Cintia

Giambattista della PortaProject Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

2.9

Word count: 173K words
Chapters: 18

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today. La Cintia by Giambattista della Porta. Author: Porta, Giambattista della, 1535?-1615. Language: Italian. Class: PQ: Language and Literatures: Romance literatures: French, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese. Release Date: Apr 27, 2008

Editor's review

La Cintia is a play by the Italian Renaissance polymath Giambattista della Porta, written in Italian and in the public domain as a literary text. Della Porta is best known for his works on natural science and natural history, but he also wrote for the stage, which makes this play a window onto late sixteenth-century Italian theatrical taste and linguistic style. For readers studying Renaissance drama, the history of Italian literature, or early modern European popular narrative, it is a primary text worth including in view. The main barriers to reading are the distance between early and modern Italian and the absence of modern annotation in this electronic edition. It is best approached as material for literary history rather than light reading; working through it in stages alongside background sources will make its period character and textual interest easier to appreciate.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Scholars of literature specializing in Renaissance Italian drama
Advanced language learners of Italian seeking early texts
Readers of science and literary history interested in Della Porta's multiple roles
Libraries and researchers collecting public-domain European classical drama

Not a good fit for

General readers with no Italian hoping to read without difficulty
Beginners in drama expecting modern annotation and an introduction
Readers used to the pace of contemporary fiction and unfamiliar with classical dramatic form

Reading tips

Begin by learning the basic conventions and staging practices of Renaissance Italian comedy before entering the text.
Read alongside a modern Italian translation or bilingual materials to reduce difficulties with early spelling and vocabulary.
Divide the reading by act and scene, reviewing character relationships and the development of conflict after each act.
Note unfamiliar archaic words and allusions and look them up in batches rather than interrupting the reading constantly.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

What language is this book written in? What level of language proficiency is needed?

The source material indicates that the original is in Italian and is a late sixteenth-century text, whose spelling and vocabulary differ from modern Italian. An intermediate or higher reading ability in Italian is preferable; beginners are advised to read it alongside a modern translation or annotated materials.

What was Della Porta's main identity?

He was a sixteenth-century Italian scholar known for his natural science research and natural history writing, and he also wrote drama. La Cintia belongs to his literary side; readers may note possible echoes between his scientific interests and his theatrical imagination, but should not infer too much.

Does the electronic edition include notes and an introduction?

According to the source material, this is a public-domain electronic text released by Project Gutenberg, with no indication of modern annotation or an introduction. Readers who need background explanation should prepare literary-historical materials themselves or use an annotated edition alongside it.

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About the author

Giambattista della Porta Author · Italian · 1535–1615

Giambattista della Porta (1535?–1615) was an Italian scholar and playwright of the Renaissance, born in Vico Equense and died in Naples. He is best known for his book Natural Magic, and his interests extended to optics, cryptography, and physiognomy, reflecting the intertwining of natural history and experimental inquiry in his age. In drama he wrote some seventeen works, including neoclassical comedies such as L'Olimpia and Gli duoi fratelli rivali, as well as La fantesca, La carbonaria, La sorella, and Lo astrologo. Their subjects are drawn largely from everyday human affairs and domestic entanglements, with lively language and ingenious plots. His plays hold a place in the Italian comic tradition; public information is limited, and many details of his life remain uncertain.