Angelo Mazza (16 November 1741 – 11 May 1817) was an Italian neoclassical poet, and classical scholar.

Angelo Mazza
Portrait by Tiziano Marcheselli, c. 1790
Portrait by Tiziano Marcheselli, c. 1790
Born(1741-11-16)16 November 1741
Parma, Duchy of Parma and Piacenza
Died11 May 1817(1817-05-11) (aged 75)
Parma, Duchy of Parma and Piacenza
OccupationPoet, classical scholar
Alma materUniversity of Padua
EmployerUniversity of Parma
Spouse
Caterina Stocchi
(m. 1775)
Children3

Biography

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Angelo Mazza was born at Parma on 16 November 1741. He became Professor of Greek in the University of his native town.[1] As a poet he belonged to the group of Italian men of letters who fell under the spell of the English eighteenth-century classical school of poetry. He derived themes such as the power of music from English literature, to which he was introduced by his teacher and friend Cesarotti. He subsequently translated and imitated English poets, notably Akenside, Dryden, Mason, Pope, Gray, and Thomson.[2] His example left its mark on Foscolo and other poets of the next generation. Mazza was a prominent member of the Academy of Arcadians, with the pseudonym Armonide Elideo.[3]

Notes

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  1. ^ Catucci 2009.
  2. ^ Lindon 2002.
  3. ^ Angelo Mazza entry (in Italian) in the Enciclopedia Treccani, 1934

Sources

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  • Lindon, J. (2002). "Mazza, Angelo". The Oxford Companion to Italian Literature. Oxford University Press. ISBN 978-0-19-818332-7. Retrieved 25 January 2024.
  • Catucci, Marco (2009). "MAZZA, Angelo". Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani, Volume 72: Massimo–Mechetti (in Italian). Rome: Istituto dell'Enciclopedia Italiana. ISBN 978-8-81200032-6.