The souls of Venice / by Janet Sethre.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Sethre, Janet, 1945-

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Venice (Italy)--Civilization.

Venice (Italy).

Venice (Italy)--Biography.

Genre:

Biographies.

Physical Description:

xi, 232 pages : illustrations ; 23 cm

Place of Publication:

Jefferson, N.C. : McFarland & Co., [2003]

Summary:

People who have helped shape and been shaped by Venice are considered in five groups: the "mutilated culture heroes" (e.g., the eunuch Narses) who with some great sacrifice helped the city define itself; the "fugitives from splendor" (such as St. Pietro Orseolo or El Greco), so overwhelmed by beauty they fled the city; the "prisoners of Venice--the convicts, the cloistered, the mad; the "symbiotics" in communion with the city for long periods (Titian was one), and the "fugitives from self" (e.g., Igor Stravinsky), who have come from elsewhere seeking a new identity, and who ended up helping to create a new identity for the city itself. More than a collection of biographies, this richly textured and insightful work examines the roots of people's "Venice-ness" as well as the city's own humanity.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 219-222) and index.

ISBN:

0786415738

OCLC:

52271623