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OverviewA fascinating study of a Renaissance tragedy that has haunted artists and writers through the ages. Beatrice Cenci was executed under papal decree in Rome in September of 1599. She was said to be sixteen, and hauntingly beautiful. Her crime was the murder of her father, a member of one of the great Roman families, but his cruel treatment of Beatrice, including incestuous rape, moved the people of the city to take her side. Weeping crowds lined the streets, and a special mass is still held in Rome on the anniversary of her death. Beatrice's patricide, occurring at a time when Papal Law was a farce played out in the service of the rich and the powerful, became an object of fascination for writers and artists who saw in the young woman an incarnation of their own intimate torments. Through Belinda Jack's exquisite understanding of literature, history, and psychology, we discover how Shelley, Hawthorne, Melville, Artaud, and others fall under Beatrice's spell in their writings and their lives, often at the price of damaging their reputation and even their sanity. Storytelling and literary criticism come together in this beautifully researched work, revealing the fragility and passions of those great masters of literature and art who tried to discover in Beatrice's motives the meaning of their own lives. Full Product DetailsAuthor: Belinda Elizabeth JackPublisher: Other Press (NY) Imprint: Other Press (NY) Dimensions: Width: 14.80cm , Height: 2.60cm , Length: 22.00cm Weight: 0.490kg ISBN: 9781590511633ISBN 10: 1590511638 Pages: 252 Publication Date: 17 October 2005 Audience: General/trade , General Format: Hardback Publisher's Status: Active Availability: Out of stock The supplier is temporarily out of stock of this item. It will be ordered for you on backorder and shipped when it becomes available. Table of ContentsReviewsAuthor InformationBelinda Jack Belinda Jack is the author of an acclaimed biography of George Sand and teaches French at Christ Church, Oxford. She lives in Oxford with her husband and children. Tab Content 6Author Website:Countries AvailableAll regions |