Promotional Information

A superbly well-conceived, original, and authoritative work. Christopher Celenza knows the literature extremely well and writes in clear and precise prose. I found this one of the most interesting books I have read in a long time. -- Edward Muir, Clarence L. Ver Steeg Professor in the Arts and Sciences, Northwestern University Christopher Celenza has written a smart, sensitive, and stimulating book on the intellectual history of the Italian Renaissance. He writes with balanced objectivity on the problem of Renaissance Studies to convey an engagement and urgency that is concise and captivating. His very well-written, clearly organized book is not only a pleasure to read, but demands a rethinking of the field. -- John A. Marino, University of California, San Diego

Table of Contents

Preface and Acknowledgments
Introduction: A ''Lost'' Renaissance and a ''Lost'' Literature
Chapter 1. An Undiscovered Star: Renaissance Latin and the Nineteenth Century
Chapter 2. Italian Renaissance Humanism in the Twentieth Century: Eugenio Garin and Paul Oskar Kristeller
Chapter 3. A Microhistory of Intellectuals
Chapter 4. Orthodoxy: Lorenzo Valla and Marsilio Ficino
Chapter 5. Honor: The Humanists of the Classic Era on Social Place
Chapter 6. What Is Really There?
Appendix: The State of the Field in North America
Notes
Index

About the Author

Christopher S. Celenza is a professor of Romance languages at the Johns Hopkins University.

Reviews

There is no doubt that with this book Celenza has drawn attention to a body of work that deserves far more attention than it has received and that offers exciting new avenues for historical study. Bryn Mawr Classical Review This impressive volume offers a fresh interpretation of Italian Renaissance learned culture and vindicates that culture's abiding importance... Lucid in its exposition of complex philosophical and linguistic theories, whether from the 15th century or the 20th, this exceptional book will help us to advance constructively to the 21st. Choice An intelligent, learned, and well-written historical and critical account of how we have failed over the past century to meet the challenge of fully appreciating, and making relevant to our own time, the neo-Latin culture of Renaissance Italy... A fine book that should help frame the debate about humanism in the Renaissance. -- Douglas Biow American Historical Review An important, thought-provoking book, one which at least suggests an approach to Italian Renaissance humanism that can allow a group of important authors to speak in such a way that they can, finally, take their rightful place in the history of Western philosophy. -- Craig Kallendorf British Journal for the History of Philosophy An original, engaging, well-written book. -- Michael J. B. Allen Renaissance Quarterly A courageous book that aims at a broad audience and takes an orignal approach. -- Carol Quillen Journal of Modern History Intellectually stimulating book. -- Charles G. Nauert Sixteenth Century Journal For this sizable and important sector of academia, The Lost Italian Renaissance should be considered essential reading. -- Emily O'Brien Erasmus of Rotterdam Society Informative and brave book. Bibliotheque d'Humanisme et Renaissance