Francesco PetrarchBy: Darian Cox

Francesco Petrarch was a philosopher and poet during the time 1326 to 1374. He was set the stage for the Renaissance Age and is considered one of the fathers of the modern Italian language.

Introduction

➢ Francesco was born July 30, 1304 in Arezzo, Tuscany. ➢ He moved to Avignon, France as a child.➢ While there, he studied law because his father wanted him to,

even though he really wanted to study literature.➢ After his father, Ser Petracco’s, death, (1326) he decided to quit

studing law and focus on his true passion.

Early Life

Petrarch started to study classics and humanism. While doing so, he became a cleric to make himself eligible for ecclesiastical posting, which helped to support his passion in ancient literature. He traveled as a diplomatic envoy for the Church and searched for many forgotten classical texts.

College

As Francesco continued to learn more and more about the classical era, he started to revere the period and recreated the era and turned it into his own. He felt that the present could reach the past accomplishments. The principle he espoused is now known as humanism, and formed a link from the Middle Ages all the way to the Renaissance.

College (Continued)

Laura didn’t have much reported on her though. She was alive from 1310-1348 when she died of the Black Plague. Francesco was obsessed with Laura. All of his sonnets were for or about her.

Laura de Noves

Francesco was truly into writing different types of literature, but he is most know for he is his poetry. He even created his own type of sonnet which is known as the Petrarchan sonnet. The work of literature that he felt was his best was his Latin composition Africa which was about The second Punic War. He collected 336 of his poems in his songbook, Rime Sparse, though the main theme was about a woman that he was in love with named Laura. The book also contained 317 sonnets.

Francesco’s Passion

Petrarch passed away on his 70th birthday, in Arqua, Carrara (Now part of Italy) ON July 18, which is also my birthday, 1374. He died in the night and his body wasn’t found until the next morning.

Death

• http://www.biography.com/people/petrarch-9438891

Resources

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