The Making of a Lyric Sequence: Time and Narrative in Petrarch`s

The Making of a Lyric Sequence: Time and Narrative in Petrarch's Rerum vulgarium
fragmenta
Author(s): Teodolinda Barolini
Reviewed work(s):
Source: MLN, Vol. 104, No. 1, Italian Issue (Jan., 1989), pp. 1-38
Published by: The Johns Hopkins University Press
Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/2904989 .
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The Makingof a LyricSequence:
in Petrarch's
Time and Narrative
fragmenta
Rerumvulgarium
Barolini
Teodolinda
Nowifthingsare regardedas partofa continuum,theycan be takeneitheras manyor
as one; fortakenseparately,one by one,
theyaremany;and as suchtheydo notform
a singleobject for an act of sensationor
norare theysensedor thoughtof
thinking,
Buttheycan be regardedin
simultaneously.
another way, namely as composing the
and as suchtheyare apwholecontinuum;
prehended all at once and by one act,
of sensationor intelligence.
whether
Thomas Aquinas, SummaTheologiaela.58.2
This essay seeks to show that,in makinghis lyricsequence, and in
forgingthe model that would be so variouslyimitated,Petrarch
was above all concerned withwhat alwaysconcerned him mostthe experience of the passing of time,the factthat he was dying
witheveryword he wrote:"Having reached thispointin the letter,
I was wonderingwhatmore to say or not to say,and meanwhile,as
is my custom, I was tapping the blank paper with my pen. This
action provided me with a subject,for I considered how, during
the briefestof intervals,time rushes onward, and I along withit,
slipping away, failing,and, to speak honestly,dying. We all are
constantlydying, I while writingthese words, you while reading
them, others while hearing or not hearing them; I too shall be
dyingwhileyou read this,you are dyingwhile I writethis,we both
2
TEODOLINDA BAROLINI
are dying,we all are dying,we are alwaysdying."' It is my thesis
that Petrarch responded to what he perceived as the mutually
reinforcingtyranniesof time and narrativeby devising the lyric
sequence: a genre in whichhe could manipulatethe propertiesof
narrativein such a way as to confrontand defuse the passage of
time.
Let us begin at the beginning,with the title. Petrarch himself
fragmenta.
gave his collectiononly the Latin title,Rerumvulgarium
noun recommon
from
a
(derived
title
Canzoniere
traditional
The
that
to
the
of
testifies
unity
to
collection
canzoni)
a
literally
ferring
earlier generationssaw in and/orimposed upon the collection;by
forcingus to speak of the textin the singular,it conveysa sense of
unity,and hence of willed narrativeprogression.The vernacular
titlecurrentlyin vogue, Rime or Rimesparse,borrowed from the
firstverse of the collection'sfirstpoem, "Voi ch'ascoltatein rime
sparse il suono," more accuratelyreflectsthe original; not only
withthe Italian sparse,
does it provide an equivalence forfragmenta
but it preservesthe pluralityof the Latin title,obligingus to speak
of "them" rather than "it."2While the historyof the Fragmenta's
reception most often demonstrates an implicitrejection of the
title'sassessment,our own timeshave witnessedan upsurge in critical willingnessto take Petrarch'stitleat face value.3 Once more,
1 Familiari24.1, whichtreats"de inextimabilifuga temporis,"in the translationby
Aldo S. Bernardo, Letterson FamiliarMatters:RerumfamiliariumlibriXVII-XXIV
(Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins U. Press, 1985) 312.
2 This grammaticalfragmentation
was deemed sufficiently
importantby the authorthat,in the course of the transitionfromthe Chigi formof the collectionto the
finalversion as preserved in Vatican manuscript3195, the titlewas changed from
fragmenta,
liberto the currentRerumvulgarium
one bearing the wordsfragmentorum
thus moving from a singular to a plural noun; see Ernest Hatch Wilkins, The
Making of theCanzoniereand OtherPetrarchanStudies(Roma: Edizioni di Storia e
Letteratura,1951) 167. Althoughthe Chigi ms. is not an autograph,FranciscoRico
treatsfragmentorum
liberas likelyto have been Petrarch'sdesignation; in " 'Rime
sparse,' 'Rerum vulgariumfragmenta: para el tituloy el primersoneto del Canzoniere,"Medioevoromanzo3 (1976): 101-138, he suggestsa lengthy"vacilaci6n" betweentitles(121). Quotations are fromGianfrancoContini,ed., Canzoniere(Torino:
Einaudi, 1964); italicsin the textare mine throughout.Continiinsertsa second title
afterthe prefatorymaterial.A sampling
page, inscribedRerumvulgariumfragmenta,
of recent editions yieldsthe followingtitles:Canzoniere,ed. Piero Cudini (Milano:
Garzanti, 1974) (Cudini followsContini in insertingthe proper titleprior to the
text); Rime,ed. Guido Bezzola (Milano: Rizzoli, 1976); Rimesparse,ed. Giovanni
Ponte (Milano: Mursia, 1979). Robert Durling uses Rimesparsein his edition and
translation,Petrarch's
LyricPoems(Cambridge: Harvard U. Press, 1976).
3 Natalino Sapegno commentsthat "l'ordinamentofu, in ogni caso, un fattoposterioree sopraggiunto,inettoa trasformarela sostanzaliricadelle singolecomposizioni, ciascuna delle quali vuol essere considerataesteticamenteper se" (II Trecento,
M LN
3
however,the criticalpendulum has swung,and recentstudies return to the attemptto formulatethe nature of the Fragmentaqua
collection:in reactionto Bosco's "Petrarcasenza storia,"Santagata
urges us to "reimpostareil problema del Canzonierenella sua diacronia."4In fact,in the dialecticbetweencollectionand fragment,
neitherpole should be privileged;the genius of the genre lies preciselyin itsbalancing of both. Petrarchhimselfdoes not uniformly
avoid all formsof narrativityin the fashioningof his fragments;
rather, he not infrequentlyexploits the propertiesof narrative,
most notablyin his deliberatecontrivanceof a beginning,middle,
and end, and in the deploymentof sufficientplot to provoke the
crude biographicalreadings we enjoy lampooning today.5Thus, a
3rd ed. rev. [Milano: Vallardi, 1938] 241); see also Giuseppe De Robertis'application to the Fragmentaof Mallarm6'stheoryof "recommencements"(Studi[Firenze:
Le Monnier, 1944] 42). Most influentialhas been UmbertoBosco's dictum:"II vero
e che non possiamo in alcun modo ravvisareuna linea di sviluppo, uno svolgimento, non solo nel canzoniere, ma in tuttoil Petrarca.Egli e senza storia,se lo si
considera,come si deve, nel concretodi tuttal'opera sua" (FrancescoPetrarca[1946;
2nd ed. rev. Bari: Laterza, 1968] 7). Bosco's formulationof the Fragmenta'spoetics
as "statica,senza sviluppi,senza un prima e un poi" (7) is, in myopinion, stillvalid
as an essentialhalf of the Petrarchandialectic.
4 Marco Santagata, Dal sonetto
al Canzoniere(Padova: Liviana, 1979) 146. Santagata responds to his own challenge in "Connessioni intertestualinel Canzonieredel
al Canzoniere),in whichhe demonstratesthe linksthat
Petrarca"(ch. 1 of Dal sonetto
exist between individual poems. Adolfo Jenni,"Un sistemadel Petrarca nell'ordiChiari(Brescia: Paideia, 1973) 2:
in Studiin onoredi Alberto
namento del Canzoniere,"
721-732, countersWilkins'emphasison varietyas a governingprinciplebypointing
out all the instancesof "raccostamento"(722) in the Fragmenta,thus emphasizing
synchronyratherthan diachrony;Ruth Shepard Phelps too had posited not onlya
principleof varietyin formand content,endorsed by Wilkins,but also a "principle
of association,which creates littlegroups and clustersof poems upon similarsubjects" (The Earlier and LaterFormsofPetrarch'sCanzoniere[Chicago: U. of Chicago
Press, 1925] 172). Variatioas the structuringprinciple of the lyricsequence has
recentlybeen reproposed by Germaine Warkentin,"'Love's sweetestpart,variety':
Petrarchand the Curious Frame of the Renaissance Sonnet Sequence," Renaissance
and Reformation
11 (1975): 14-23. For Bortolo Martinelli,"L'ordinamento morale
(Bergamo: MinervaItalica, 1977)
del Canzonieredel Petrarca,"in Petrarcae il Ventoso
217-300, order is provided by a moral itinerary;his zealous replacementof the
romantic "psychological" reading with an Augustinian autobiography runs the
same risksof imposinga story-lineonto the textincurredbyhis precursors.Kenelm
Foster,Petrarch:Poet and Humanist(Edinburgh: Edinburgh U. Press, 1984) 63-89,
also sees a moral narrative,withthe differencethathe acknowledgesa repudiation
of Laura in certainpenitentialpoems, notablythe closingcanzone, while Martinelli
insistsimplausiblyon her consistentlyBeatricianfunction.
5 The search forbiographyin the textis an offshootof the desire fornarrative;as
and
C. S. Lewis pointsout withrespectto biographicalreadingsof Sidney'sAstrophel
Stella,readers move fromthe search forthe "story"(narrative)to the search forthe
"real story"(biography),while "the sonnet sequence does not existto tell a real, or
4
TEODOLINDA BAROLINI
poet whose paradoxical project is the collectingof fragmentsengages in strategiesthat furtherheightenthe disjunctionbetween
the mode of binding and the mode of loosing: he underminesthe
fragmentarinessof his fragments.
We could more simplysay thatPetrarchadopts the genre of the
lyricsequence, since the paradoxes posed above are inherentin
the genre itself.6Such a choice was not automaticforPetrarch,not
time-honorednor sanctioned by tradition,as it will be for later
Renaissance poets; indeed, Petrarchinventedthe modern lyricsequence.7 He could have writtenlyricsin the manner of the poets
before him, poets like the ones he celebratesin canzone 70, where
he rehearses the lyrictraditionfrom its Provencal origins to his
own time by citingincipitsof Arnaut Daniel,8 Guido Cavalcanti,
Dante, Cino da Pistoia,and himself;thatis, he could have written
lyricsthat would not have tantalizedreaders witha faintbut unthatwould not have demonstratedthe tentamistakablestory-line,
tivebut provocativeunitythatled to the titleCanzoniere. Instead of
followingin the wake of Dante's lyrics,whichare in factrimesparse,
connected by no internalprinciplesof construction,Petrarchfollowed in the wake of Dante's Vitanuova,the firstmodern collection
of lyricsto be deliberatelyarranged accordingto a predetermined
Century,
ExcludingDrama
even a feigned, story"(EnglishLiteratureof theSixteenth
[Oxford: Clarendon, 1954] 328). Although I concur with the general thrustof
Lewis' argument,I see the matteras somewhatmore resistantto solution than is
suggested by his statementthat the sequence does not exist to tell a story.It undoubtedlyis intended to tease us witha story,if not to tellit; indeed, I would argue
thatits identityis premisedon establishinga unique tensionbetweenlyricand narrativedrives.This precise balance, wherebythe poet hintsat a submergednarrative
that is never forthcoming,will be disrupted as the genre develops in favor of a
more sustained narrativepresence.
6 For general considerationson the lyricsequence, see Gerard Genot, "Strutture
narrativedella poesia lirica,"Paragone 18 (1967): 35-52, and the opening pages of
critici2
Cesare Segre, "Sistema e strutturenelle Soledadesdi A. Machado," Strumenti
(1968): 269-303; both Segre and Silvia Longhi's studyof Giovanni Della Casa ("II
critici13 [1979]: 265-300) are
tuttoe le partinel sistemadi un canzoniere,"Strumenti
more thematicallyoriented than the analysis attemptedhere. Also interestingis
Earl Miner, "Some Issues for Study of Integrated Collections,"in Poemsin Their
and OrderofPoeticCollections,
ed. Neil Fraistat(Chapel Hill:
Place: TheIntertextuality
U. of North Carolina Press, 1986) 18-43.
7 Santagata goes further,
claimingthatPetrarch'sis "il primoorganico canzoniere
della letteraturaoccidentale" (145). The question of the ancient poetry book is
much discussed; see Matthew S. Santirocco, Unityand Design in Horace's Odes
al Canzo(Chapel Hill: U. of North Carolina Press, 1986). Chapter 3 of Dal sonetto
nieretreatsPetrarch'smedieval antecedents.
8 Although the verse in question is probably Guillem de Saint-Gregori's,according to Contini Petrarchcertainlyattributedit to Arnaut.
M L N
5
sequentialorder, an order thatis investedwitha narrativeburden.
But whereas Dante connectsthe lyricsof the Vitanuova by means
of prose passages that are intended to elucidate the poetry,and
thus to controland limitits narrativereach, Petrarchremovesthe
connectingprose passages, and leaves his poems unglossed except
by each other,open to interpretationsthat are limitedby nothing
but the order in whichthe poems are arranged.9In other words,
Petrarch takes from Dante the idea of transcribingpreviously
writtenlyricsinto a new order where the order generates significance, but he does not take Dante's means of controllingsignificance, namelythe prose. The resultsare twofold.First,we have a
form that is programmaticallyopen, that seems devised for the
multiplication (in Petrarchan diction, metamorphosing) of
meaning,thus generatingthe paradox of mobile fixity,of themes
and topoi thatare unchanged but also unrestrained,freeto accrete
greaterand greatersignificance,in the same way thatthe "monotonous" language develops an intense power of suggestion.'0
Second, we have a genre whereorder,althoughfrequentlyused to
destabilize, is also the basis for what stable significancewe can
grasp, where indeed order is everything,as is indicated by the
tellingphrase "transcripsiin ordine," used by the poet to note that
he had transcribeda poem from a referencecollectioninto the
"I
Fragmenta.
9 Simplifyingsomewhat,Lewis commentsthat"The differencebetweenthe Vita
Nuova and Petrarch'sRimeis that Petrarchabandoned the prose links; and it was
theythatcarriedthe narrative"(327). The Vitanuova'snarrativeis not carriedsolely
by the prose; Dante too had the idea of arrangingpreviouslyunarranged lyricsto
make themsignifysomethingtheyhad not previouslysignified.At the same time,it
Petrarchdisis importantthat, of Dante's two means for generatingnarrativity,
cards the more heavy-handeduse of prose, and retainsonlythe more supple use of
order. For a Bloomian approach, see Germaine Warkentin,"The Form of Dante's
2 (1981): 160-170.
'Libello' and its Challenge to Petrarch,"Quadernid'italianistica
10The referenceis to the "unilinguismo"posited by Contini'sclassicstudy,"Preliminarisulla lingua del Petrarca,"printed as the introductionto his edition; see
poeticadelPetrarca(Firenze: Le Monnier, 1962), who
also Adelia Noferi,L'esperienza
refersto Petrarchan "monotonia." For the openness of the Fragmenta,see Aldo
Scaglione, "La strutturadel Canzonieree il metodo di composizione del Petrarca,"
Lettere
Italiane27 (1975): 129-139.
" The table betweenpp. 98 and 99 in Wilkinsshowsthe poems thatwere marked
for transcriptionand the various abbreviationsPetrarchused (one set of markings
that Wilkinstakes as "tr' p me" is in fact "trs p me"; see Domenico De Robertis,
"Contiguitae selezione nella costruzionedel canzoniere petrarchesco,"in Studidi
filologiaitaliana, Bollettino annuale dell'Accademia della Crusca [Firenze: presso
l'Accademia della Crusca, 1985] 43: 46, n. 3). The factthatPetrarchused an analogous expression, "transcriptionesin ordine," for his transcriptionsof letters(see
Carlo Calcaterra,Nella selvadelPetrarca[Bologna: Cappelli, 1942] 393) impliesanal-
6
TEODOLINDABAROLINI
thatin"Transcripsiin ordine" is emblematicof the narrativity
heres to Petrarch'sfragments,and whose value is far frommerely
is essentiallytimein its textualdress, and
formal:since narrativity
we are asking how
time is the major concern of the Fragmenta,12
the poet's obsession withthe passing of timetakes textualshape in
in textual time as articulatedin unavoidthe formof narrativity,
able temporalconstraintslike beginnings,middles,and ends.'3 Although unavoidable, these are constraintsthata poet, especiallya
lyricpoet, can minimize.Such, however,is not Petrarch'stack. Instead, he alternatesbetween evading narrativityand confronting
it, exploiting the dialectical tension between the lyricsequence's
lyricand narrativedrivesto tread a tightropebetweenthe safetyof
stasis and the exigencyof motion. Thus, the basic featureof this
simultaneousabsence
problematicis the paradox of narrativity's
and presence,a paradox thatinformsthe lyricsequence as a genre
and underlies the Fragmentaas a whole: Petrarchseems to accept
libriand the Rerumvulogous principlesof constructionfor the Rerumfamiliarium
gariumfragmenta,
an implicationrendered more suggestivebythe furthersimilarity
of their titles.On the kinshipof the prologues of Familiares,Metricae,and Canzoniere,all proclaimingthe fragmentarynature of the textstheyintroduce,see Rico,
108-114.
12 Recent scholarship has begun to accord time its rightfulplace as the central
and abiding concern of Petrarch'soeuvre. As GianfrancoFolena observesin "L'orologio del Petrarca": "II tempo e non solo un riferimentocontinuo,ma anche la
strutturaportante della cultura e della poesia del Petrarca,e stupisce che questa
strutturanon sia stata ancora analizzata partitamente,per quanto non manchino
alcuni tentativirecenti"(Librie Documenti5.3 [1979]: 1-12; quotation p. 5). See also
the two contributionsof Edoardo Taddeo, "Petrarca e il tempo: Il tempo come
di criticatestuale25 (1982): 53-76, and, on
tema nelle opere latine,"Studie problemi
the Fragmenta,"Petrarca e il tempo," Studi e problemidi criticatestuale27 (1983):
69-108. Aftera briefsectionon "II tempo come tema nelle Rime,"the latterarticle
deals with "I tempo come categoria formale nei sonetti,"showing how Petrarch
employstense to obtain "quello che e il caratterespecificodella poesia petrarchesca,
la profondita
dellaprospettiva
temporale"
(75). More generally,see Bosco and Noferi,as
well as Arnaud Tripet,Petrarqueou la conaissancede soi (Geneve: Droz, 1967) 75-87,
and Giovanni Getto, "TriumphusTemporis:Il sentimentodel tempo nell'opera di
e metodo.
Studiin onoredi Ettore
comparate:
problemi
Francesco Petrarca,"in Letterature
Paratore(Bologna: Patron, 1981) 3: 1243-1272.
13 The link between narrativeand time is affirmedin a textof supreme importance to Petrarch,the Confessions,
where Augustine answers the question "What,
then,is time?"by wayof a narrativeact,the recitationof a hymn(11.14; trans.R. S.
Pine-Coffin[London: Penguin, 1961]). Although Augustine is seeking to define
timeratherthan narrative,his discussionillustratesnarrative'sintractablytemporal
nature, and is one to which modern theoristsare stillindebted; Paul Ricoeur not
coincidentallybegins his studyTempsetrecit(Paris: Editions du Seuil, 1983) witha
11 as the
Noferiand Folena stressConfessions
chapteron Book 11 of the Confessions.
basis for Petrarch'sideas of time.
M L N
7
the narrativeburden of time when he arranges his lyricsin a sequence; he seems to deny itby callingthem-and to a lesser extent
by making them-fragments. From a narratologicalperspective,
the lyricsequence is a peculiarlyparadoxical genre, since it insists
simultaneouslyon fragmentation-each lyricis an individual entityendowed witha beginningand ending, withits own entelecheia
-and on fragmentation'sopposite, namely a sequentiality,a linearitybrought about by the existenceof the larger unit that subsumes the individual parts into a common structure, with a
common beginningand ending. But the trulynoteworthyfeature
of the lyricsequence, and the one that renders it as a genre so
suited to itsinventor,is thatthese termscould be reversedand the
paradoxes cited just now "squared": thus, the individual lyric
could be viewed as the paradigm of unity,of anti-fragmentation,
and the common structureas the agent of fragmentation,as that
which continuouslydisruptsthe unityachieved by the individual
poems.'4 In the same way, then, that withrespectto content,the
poet preciselycalibratesinformationand disinformationin such a
him,at the level
way as to hook the reader withoutever gratifying
of form he holds the agents of unityand of disunityin a severe
and paradoxical balance. Whicheverwaywe look at it,Petrarchhas
created a genre in whichthe peace he is alwaysseekingis as elusive
formallyas it is thematically.
A typicallyopaque but crucial index of our poet's concern with
narratologicalissues is his division of the collectioninto the two
parts traditionally,but erroneously,labelled "in vita di madonna
Laura" and "in mortedi madonna Laura." The mostovertexploitationof formalstructurein the text,Petrarch'sdivisionis a creative act withoutprecedentin the lyriccollectionsof his forebears.
Our mishandlingof the divisionis thus worthlooking at in some
14 An example of such disruptionoperatingthematically
is provided bythe placementof sonnets60-63: the unityof 60, in whichthe poet curses the laurel, is compromised by 61, in whichhe blesseseverythingconnectedwithLaura, while61 is in
itsturncompromisedby 62, a penitentialpoem, whichis thenunderminedby 63, a
love poem. On a syntacticlevel, Antonino Musumeci discusses Petrarch'suse of
parenthesisas a means of mirroringpsychologicalfragmentation;see "Tecniche
ed. Gioframmentarienei Fragmentadel Petrarca,"in Interrogativi
sull'Umanesimo,
vannangiola Tarugi (Firenze: Olschki, 1976) 3: 27-34. The poet's sensitivity
to the
dialecticbetweenthe one and the manyis expressed in thismeditationon the value
of time: "Thirtyyearsago-how timedoes fly!and yetif I cast a glance backward
to consider them all together,those thirtyyears seem as so many days, so many
hours, but when I consider them singly,disentanglingthe mass of mylabors, they
seem so manycenturies"(Fam. 24.1; p. 308).
8
TEODOLINDA BAROLINI
detail. The manuscriptstestifythat the divisionwas placed by authorialfiatat canzone 264, "I' vo pensando": in the Vatican manuscript264 is marked, like the collection'sopening sonnet, witha
large ornamentalinitial,and there are seven blank pages between
it and 263;15 the factthat "I' vo pensando" is similarlymarked in
the Chigi collectionindicatesthatthe idea of using it to begin part
2 was one of long standing.'6 Nonetheless, from Bembo's 1514
editionuntilMestica's 1896 edition,part 2 begins withsonnet 267,
"Oime il bel viso," the firstpoem to registerLaura's death, thus
accommodatingthe in vita/inmorterubricsinvented by the text's
editors.'7Nor does our century'sacceptance of the manuscriptevidence resolve all the problems posed by the division,since relucof part 2 is fueled not only
tance to accept 264 as the starting-point
by the apparent suitabilityof 267 for the post,but also by the two
15 See Wilkins, 190-193, for a descriptionof the codices and discussion of the
bipartitedivision;regardingthe portionsof V. L. 3195 transcribedbyPetrarchand
those by his secretary,Giovanni Malpaghini, see p. 107. Wilkinstook the blank
pages as an indicationthat Petrarchintended to keep adding to part 1, therefore
concludingthat366 does not representthe finalnumberof poems (186-187). Most
criticstoday would agree withFoster that"263 is manifestlya splendid conclusion
to Part I" and that the symbolicsignificanceof the number 366 is intentional(96;
but see Scaglione). Recent argumentsforthe calendricalstructureof the Fragmenta
depend on an intentionalnumerology;see Thomas Roche, "The Calendrical StrucStudiesinPhilology71 (1974): 152-172,and, much less
ture of Petrarch'sCanzoniere,"
plausibly,FredericJ.Jones, "Laura's Date of Birthand the Calendrical SystemImItalianistica12 (1983): 13-33.
plicitin the Canzoniere,"
16 See Phelps for an analysisof the Chigi form,the firstextantcollectionof the
Fragmenta.In the Chigi collection,whichcontains215 poems (174 in part 1 and 41
in part 2), "I' vo pensando" is distinguishedby an ornamental initial; one blank
page and a portion of another separate it fromthe last poem of part 1, which is
"Passa la nave mia" (Phelps, 189). Since the 41 poems that make up part 2 of the
Chigi collectionare arranged in the same order as the first41 poems of part 2 of
the final collection,Phelps' discussion of the division is stilluseful. According to
Wilkins,the Chigi belongs to 1359-1362, while workon V. L. 3195 beings ca. 1366
and continuesuntilthe poet's death.
17 A briefeditorial historymay be found in Martinelli,256-258, who points out
that whereas the in vitalinmorteheadings derive froma fourteenthcenturyrubric
century,the transposiadded to the Vat. ms.,and thuswere presentin the fifteenth
tion from264 to 267 occurs onlyin 1514. The tenacityof the traditionis such that,
even after Mestica, Carducci and Ferrari begin part 2 of their edition with 267:
"Non osammo seguirlo [Mestica],tenutidal rispettoalla quasi religiosa consuetudine" (Giosu6 Carducci and Severino Ferrari,eds. Le Rime[1899; rpt. Firenze: Sansoni, 1957] xxiii). A furthereditorialtransgression,undertakenforthe firsttimein
1525, is the separation of all nonLaura poems into a thirdindependent group; see
e Sant'Agostino
(Roma: SocietAAccademica
Nicolae Iliescu, I1 Canzonierepetrarchesco
Romena, 1962) 19-20. The divisioncontinuesto eliciteditoriallapses, as witnessed
by the factthat Cudini, Bezzola, and Durling fail to indicate its existence.Contini
scrupulouslyleaves a blank page and uses the runningheaders "Prima parte" and
"Seconda parte."
M LN
9
sonnets that follow the canzone: 265 and 266 refer to Laura
alive.'8 Moreover,one of these two sonnets,266, is an anniversary
poem, ostentatiouslydeclaring itselfcomposed 18 years afterthe
poet's innamoramento,
and thus threeyearsbefore Laura's death, a
factthathas weighed heavilyin an ever more chronologically-oriented debate: Wilkinsargues thatthe decision to use 264 to begin
part 2 must have been made before Laura's death, a view thathas
been challenged by Rico, who suggests 1349-1350 instead.19
The debate about the divisionis marked by an inabilityto focus
on the express intent-indeed on the veryactions-of the author.
To say, with Mestica, that the division is intended to reflectnot
external events but an internal struggle sharpened by external
events,is to say correctly,but not enough.20Unless we choose to
ignore the author'sintentions,like Carducci and Ferrari,or seek to
show that Petrarchintended to move 265 and 266 to the end of
18 As Phelps notes, "The great objection to accepting the division into parts as
indicatedin Chigi L. V. 176, Laur. XLI, 17, and V. L. 3195 is the factthatit throws
into Part II the two sonnets Asprocoreand Signormio caro, the one a complaint
against Laura's cruelty,in the old key of so many of the songs in Part I, and the
other a tributeof love and friendshipto Cardinal Colonna and to Laura" (193).
Cesareo argues thatPetrarchintended to transfer265 and 266 to the end of part 1
(Phelps, 194).
19 Wilkinssuggests 1347 as the date for "I' vo pensando" (193); in LifeofPetrarch
(Chicago: U. of Chicago Press, 1961), he moves the canzone even furtherback, to
ca. 1344. Rico's argumentsfor the later date may be found in the articlecited previously,and are paraphrased by Foster, 103-105. In his attackon Wilkinsand support for Rico (98-102), Foster, although not unprovoked-Wilkins' argument is
indeed specious when he infersfromthe positionof 264 that it had to be placed
where it is before Laura's death in 1348-makes the mistake of continuingto
pursue the red herringof chronology(and, in effect,allowing Wilkinsto set the
agenda). Thus, Foster'seffortsgo into supportingRico's case fordating the bipartite division afterLaura's death and not into determiningwhat the divisionis intended to signify;once more externalbiographicalissues take precedence over internal textualmatters.Moreover, the desire to discreditWilkins'chronologyleads
Foster to contradicthimself;whileon p. 101 he notes that"the bipartitedivisionof
the Canzoniere,though related to, is not whollydeterminedby,the death of Laura"
and "thatPetrarchwas free to arrange his poems exactlyas he pleased," on p. 102
he forgetsthese sound precepts when he attemptsto devalue 264 and the two
sonnets that follow it. Although it is not clear how the date of "I' vo pensando"
would affectour reading of its positionat the outsetof part 2, it is symptomaticof
the debate thatso much attentionhas been paid to thisissue.
20 Mestica writesthat in his edition the two parts are divided "non per l'avvenimento esterioree accidentale della morte di madonna Laura, ma per un fattointimoal Poeta stesso:la sua conversionemorale,che nel 1343 diede a lui occasione di
e quindi in poesia volgare la Canzone I' vo pensando,
comporre in latino il Secretum,
con cui appunto, nel Codice originale,la Parte seconda ha principio"(Wilkins,191).
Martinellidevelops thisview to argue thatthe divisionsignifiesa conversionfrom
vitavetusto vitanova (252-253). These authors,like Iliescu and mostrecentlyFoster,
an idea I do not share.
posit an achieved conversionwithinthe Fragmenta,
10
TEODOLINDA BAROLINI
part 1, like Cesareo, we are faced withthe followingfacts.Part 2
begins with 264, which is followed by two sonnets that treat of
Laura alive; this fact becomes significantwhen we reach 267,
where she is dead, and it becomes more significantwhen we finish
reading the collectionand realize thatthe restof the Laura poems
in part 2 endorse Laura's death in 267, withthe resultthat265 and
266 are unique. So we have a moral canzone, a meditationon the
transitorynature of all earthly attachments, followed by two
sonnetsthatstrikethe reader as a returnto the statusquo, in that
theydo not pursue the moral program of detachmentsuggested
by the canzone. If, withrespectto the canzone thatprecedes them,
these sonnets are discontinuous,with respect to the poems that
followthemtheyare completelyanomalous, since theyrepresenta
livingLaura. Their anomalyis heightened,as thoughto make sure
we noticeit,by theirdates: poem 266 expresslyinstructsus to view
it as composed in 1345, before the death of Laura in 1348. And
while the 1350 date of poem 265 is not apparent to the reader, it
too is of interest,because it tellsus thatPetrarchwas capable, if he
deemed the effortadvisable,of writingas thoughLaura were alive
afterher death, and thus furtherunderscoresthe painstakingconstructionthatcharacterizesthisportionof the text.21
What, then, is the functionof these two sonnets? Besides providing, as Phelps suggests,an ironic rejoinder to the canzone,22
their presence in part 2 indicates that the significance of the
second part cannot be located whollyin Laura's death. It therefore
constitutesa deliberate nonprivilegingof 267, and, thus,an affirmation, a deliberate privileging,of 264. In prototypicalfashion,
Petrarchhas used order and form to signal that we must not be
distractedby the superficialsuitabilityof 267 as a new beginning,
but perseverein lookingto 264 forhis message,whichregardsnot
the transit of one of life's creatures but transitionitself-our
nature of all
abilityto make transitionsin the face of the transitory
life. By giving264 an ornamentalinitialand creatinga space betweenit and 263, the poet marksa textualnew beginning,a textual
transition;by making the firstpoem of part 2 one that addresses
preciselyhis abilityto effecta spiritualnew beginning,to put a
space betweenhimselfand his past,Petrarchhas created a remark21
22
Petrarch'snotes provide the 1350 date for "Aspro core"; see Phelps, 157.
"A conceivable explanation of their position here is that they are a kind of
corollaryto thatlast line of I' vopensando,provingthatalthoughhe sees 'the better'
he stillfollows'the worse'" (Phelps, 199-200).
M L N
11
able consonance between form and content.The question posed
by the contentof the canzone-is the poet capable of conversion,
is he capable of transition?-is thus also posed formally;the space
that delimits part 1 from part 2 signifiesthe idea of change as
surelyas anythingthe poet can say. A method of compositionthat,
definitelyfromthe timeof the Chigi collectionand verylikelyeven
before,hinges on the bipartitestructure-poems 1 and 264 were
fixedas the beginningsof parts 1 and 2, and the collectiongrewby
a process of accretion to each part-tells us that the divisionis a
keyindex to the text.As I hope to show,the two partsof theFragmentareflect diametricallyopposed attitudestoward narrativity,
but ultimatelycompatiblestratand, in fact,embodycontradictory
egies for defeatingtime.
by the refusalor inabilityto
Part I is dominated by nonnarrativity,
move forward. Emblematic verses articulatingvariationson this
motif include: "lo mi rivolgo indietro a ciascun passo" (15.1),
which presentsthe basic paradigm volgereor tornareplus indietro;
"et tornaiindietroquasi a mezzo '1giorno" (54.10), where the antiDantesque variantis established,since the middle of the path probut for
vides Petrarchan opportunitynot for turning(con-vertere)
returning;23"ne' primi empii martiri/pur son contra mia voglia
risospinto"(96.7-8), where the poet viewshis backwardturningas
involuntary,and anticipatesa later poem where the attemptsof his
menteto cross the ford to virtue are turned back by a superior
force, "quasi maggior forza indi la svolva" (178.12); "l'aura mi
23 I should note that madrigal 54 is a penitentialpoem thatexpresses the poet's
desire to leave Love, and that the verse in question announces his defection.It is
certainlylegitimateto speak of conversionas a returnto God; for examples from
Augustine,see Iliescu, 52-53, 83. Nonetheless,Petrarchis here imitatingthe Commedia,where conversionis generallyviewed as forwardmotion:besides the obvious
recall of Dante's firstverse, Santagata pointsout thathe is adapting the episode at
the gates of Dis, and puttinginto effectthe returnthatDante-pilgrimmerelyfears
("Presenze di Dante 'comico' nel Canzonieredel Petrarca,"Giornalestoricodeltaletteraturaitaliana 146 [1969]: 163-211; esp. p. 206). And in his pivotal conversion
scene, Augustine too speaks of forwardmotion: earthlyattachmentsare "voices"
that "were stealthilypluckingat my back, tryingto make me turnmy head when I
wanted to go forward";on the other side of the barrier,Continenceurges him "to
8.1 1; p. 176). My point is thatresiscross over and to hesitateno more" (Confessions
tance to forwardmotionis so ingrainedin Petrarchthateven conversionis figured
as a turningback; moreover,what is only a trope in the last verse of 54 is concretized in the opening versesof 55, where he turnsback indeed, to Laura: "Quel foco
ch'i' pensai che fosse spento /dal freddo tempo et da FetAmen fresca,/fiammaet
martirne l'anima rinfresca."
12
TEODOLINDA BAROLINI
volve, et son pur quel ch'i' m'era" (112.4), where his personal version of the winds that buffetFrancesca, the agent of his private
"bufera infernal,che mai non resta" (Inf. 5. 31), is identifiedas
l'aura/Laura;"io son pur quel ch'i' mi soglio,/ ne per mille rivolte
anchor son mosso" (118.13-14), where his capacity for turning
without ever convertingis even more explicitlyreiterated; "poi
tornaiindietro"(120.9), where the classic paradigm refersto a returnfromthe thresholdof death, thusbeginningto reveal the advantages of not moving forward,and to clarifysuch refusal as a
strategyfor denying the passage of time;24"Vero e il proverbio,
ch'altricangia il pelo, /anzi che '1vezzo" (122.5-6), where we learn
that,though we may grow old, we will not alter our habits,i.e. we
will not change, a sentimentechoed in "gia' per etate il mio desir
non varia" (168.13); "saro qual fui, vivro com'io son visso"
(145.13), where the poet emphaticallyconfirmsthe truthof the
above proverb with respect to himself;"ma spesso a lui [= Quel
sempre acerbo et honorato giorno]co la memoriatorno"(157.4), a
verse that illuminatesthe key role of memoryas part 1's nonforward-movingmechanism par excellence; "a vespro tal, qual era
oggi per tempo" (175.11), where the stages of the day are invoked
to tell us thatthe "sun"-Laura-shines on him in the eveningof
his day as she did in the morning,so that the course of his life
bringsno change; "tornavolando al suo dolce soggiorno"(180.14),
where his soul fliesback to Laura though his body sails away from
her down the Po; and the verse that perfectlycaptures the paradoxical nature of his stationarymovement,"ch'i' pur vo sempre,et
non son anchor mosso" (209.6).
The attitudesketchedby these versesis quite unshakable. Thus,
a poem that seems at firstglance to express a contraryopinion is
86, where we find the idea that time cannotturn back, i.e. that
change is inevitable,expressed in the same language used elsewhere to express the self's continual turningback and refusal to
change. However, on closer examination of the sonnet, we find
that the poet feels compelled to instructhis soul regarding the
passage of time-"Misera, che devrebbe esser accorta / per lunga
24 Petrarch's awareness of this ploy is indicated by the rigiditywith which he
counters it elsewhere, most tellinglyin Familiari16.5, where he congratulateshis
correspondentupon recoveringhis health whileat the same timeexhortinghim to
remember"thatone is alwaysgoing towarddeath even while seeminglyreturning
libri
fromit" (trans.Aldo S. Bernardo, Letterson FamiliarMatters:Rerumfamiliarium
IX-XVI [Baltimore:The Johns Hopkins U. Press, 1982] 302).
M L N
13
experientiaomai che '1tempo /non e chi 'ndietrovolga, o chi l'affreni"(9-1 1)-precisely because his soul is unwillingto accept the
verdict.Similarly,we note that even positiveforwardmovement,
genuine change, is designated as backwardmotionby Petrarch,as
a returnfrom the state in which he was; thus, in 119, he credits
Glory,here personifiedas a woman,withhavingturnedhim from
less noble youthfulendeavors towardthe pursuitof poetic immortality:"Solo per lei tornai da quel ch'i' era" (9). Although phrases
are the clearestindicatorsof the poet's attitude,
like tornareindietro
there are others; we think,for instance,of the importantverbs
used to denote the lover's increasingor
and disacerbare,
rinfrescare
decreasing pain, as in "ragionando si rinfresca / quel'ardente
desio" (37.49-50) and "perche cantando il duol si disacerba" (23.4).
In one case discoursecauses desire,hence suffering,to wax, and in
the other discourse causes sufferingto wane, and yet these two
contradictoryemotions are conveyed throughverbs that describe
to re-fresh,tellsus that
identical-backward-motion: rinfrescare,
to dedesire grows by returningto a point of origin; disacerbare,
bitter,tells us that sufferingis lessened by a removal of what is
acerbo,again by a returnto an earlier state. Thus, Petrarchfinds
ways always to go back, never forward,a fact that highlightsthe
importanceof the firstverse of the firstcanzone, poem 23, "Nel
dolce tempo de la primaetade"; for Petrarch,there are no new
beginnings (because there are constant new beginnings),and so
the firsttime-the "prima etade"-is the only time.25Whetherby
turning back or by not moving forward,he never gets beyond
he
square one; like the Red Queen in ThroughtheLooking-Glass,
moves in order not to move.26This principleis stated in its most
25 The poet provides an accurate diagnosis of this condition in Familiari21.12:
"Those who pursue theirlustsdo not attainthisgoal [well-beingin the present],for
just as a useless or brokencontaineris neverfull,so thosewhoalwaysbeginafreshnever
infinite;what is more, cupidityis ever
reachan end, therebeingno end to something
vigorous and incipient,alwaysattractiveand infinite.Those, then,who followher
are undertakingan infinitejourney, never restingnor able to find repose because
their motivation,lust, knows no rest" (193, italicsmine). The clarityof the moral
lesson expressed in this passage is problematizedin the Fragmentaby the poet's
exploitationof the "positive"side of continualincipience: the illusionof infinity.
26 Elizabeth Wilson Poe addresses Bernartde Ventadorn's waysof denyingtime
in the chanso,commenting:"Though we may thinkthatwe are going forward,we
alwaysseem to end up where we were before; it is as if we were movingin circles,
or, perhaps more accuratelystill,markingtime"(FromPoetrytoProsein Old Proven,al [Birmingham,Alabama: Summa Publications,1984] 7). What Bernart aims to
do withinthe chanso,Petrarchaims to do withinthe sequence as a whole.
14
TEODOLINDA BAROLINI
extremeformin another paradigmaticpart 1 verse: "millevolte il
di moro et mile nasco" (164.13).
of part 1 may be
Furthertextualsupport for the nonnarrativity
found in its high proportionof sestinas,a formwhose verystructure,based on the compulsivereturnof six identicalrhymewords
repeated in differentorder in each of its six stanzas,constitutesa
Althoughit has been argued that
denial of time and narrativity.27
if we
the circularityof the six stanzas is temperedby the congedo,28
consider the formfromwhichthe sestinaevolved-the canzoneit seems fairto say thathere we have canzone thathas been rigidified (by the use of rhymewords ratherthan sounds) and stylized
cruciataas an organizingdevice) to the
(by the use of retrogradatio
point where it becomes the textual equivalent of the illusion that
time has stopped: if meter (and hence rhyme)is the poetic means
of measuring time, then the sestina has discovered a meter that
subvertsitself,that-by producing circularstasisinstead of linear
movement-in effectrefuses to do what meter must do.29 Nor
should we forgetthat,in practicalterms,the sestina is the poetic
alternativeto the standardcanzone, and thatthe standardcanzone
as a formis almost "narrative"by comparison.Thus, it seems not
insignificantthatof the Fragmenta'snine sestinas,eightare in part
1. The firstsestina is poem 22, "A qualunque animale alberga in
terra," whose importance is enhanced by its position withinthe
collection; it is the firstnonsonnet, nonballata to appear in the
text,and servesas a kind of dialecticalpreparationforthe canzone
27 In her studyof Petrarchanpoetics as a poetics of repetition,Noferi remarks
that the sestina is "non per nulla la forma petrarchescaper eccellenza" (see "Il
Canzonieredel Petrarca: scritturadel desiderio e desiderio della scrittura,"in many
respectsan updating of her book via Blanchot, Lacan, et. al., in II giocodelletracce
[Firenze: La Nuova Italia, 1979] 59). Petrarchsuggestivelylinksrepetitionand the
passing of time: "Scarcelydid he [Vergil] seem able to express to his own satisfaction the flightof timeand itsirretrievableloss, except by constantrepetition"(Fam.
24.1; p. 309).
a
28 "The poems are not, however,pure sixes. Tornadas create a seventhentity,
half-strophethattransformsthe sestinainto a 'seven.' Thus in itscompleted form,
the poem has an eschatologicalorientationand a unilateraldirectionof time"(MarSestina[Minneapolis: U. of MinneofTime:ThePetrarchan
ianne Shapiro, Hieroglyph
sota Press, 1980] 12).
29 Dante notes the relationof rhymeto time in the Convivio:"Per che sapere si
conviene che 'rima' si pu6 doppiamente considerare, cioe largamente e strettamente: stretta[mente],s'intende pur per quella concordanza che ne l'ultima e
penultimasillaba far si suole; quando largamente,s'intendeper tuttoquel parlare
che 'n numerie temporegolatoin rimateconsonanze cade" (4.2.12, italicsmine; G.
Busnelli and G. Vandelli, eds., 2nd ed. rev. A. E. Quaglio [Firenze: Le Monnier,
1964]).
M L N
15
thatfollows.As itspreponderantlytemporalrhymewords indicate
(overtlytemporalare sole,giorno,stelle,and alba), poem 22 could be
seen as a manifesto for the sestina form: while any sestina, no
matterwhat its content,is temporallycharged, here the content
fullysupports the form. (For contrast,we need only look at the
next sestina, poem 30, "Giovene donna sotto un verde lauro,"
where only one rhymeword-anni-is overtlytemporal; instead
of the eroticizingof timethatwe findin "A qualunque animale,"in
"Giovene donna" we find the temporalizingof eros.30)Although,
in 22, the illusion thattime has stopped can hardlybe achieved in
isolation fromthe incantatoryeffectof the poem as a whole, it is
thatarticulatethe
mostclearlyexpressed in the seriesof impossibilia
core of the poet's desire; he craves only one night,but that night
mustknow no dawn: "Con lei foss'ioda che si parte il sole, /et non
ci vedess'altriche le stelle,/sol una nocte, et mai non fosse l'alba"
(31-33). This "time-stoppingsequence" may be taken as emblematic of the role accorded the sestinaformwithinthe Fraggmenta.
I am aware of the paradoxes thatobtain withregard to the Petrarchansestina,in which the circularityof the formis frequently
vitiatedby a narrativeprogram. It could be argued thata characteristicof the Petrarchansestina is to let time in; this is most apparent in the penitentialsestinas,80, 142, and 214, where the conversion thematic fightsagainst the circularityof the form and
somewhat"straightens"it.31Indeed, in his penitentialsestinas,Peparadoxical project,namely
trarchundertakesa characteristically
the wedding of a linear program to a circular form-and in so
doing he once more registershis ambivalence about conversion.
We could restate this by noting that while Dante's stonysestina,
locked in its erotic petrifaction,is as spirituallydistantfrom the
Commedia
as anythinghe wrote,Petrarchgoes counterto all precedent by adopting the sestina to writesome of his most Commedialike poems. If the formaffectsthe content,throwingdoubt on the
expressed desire to change, the contentalso affectsthe form,resultingin a stretching,a depetrifying,of the genre. While Dante
aims to make his sestina as petrifiedverballyas the petra it describes,Petrarchaims for greaterfluidity,seeking waysto reduce
the form'sresistance;for instance,while Dante strivesto keep the
rhymewords in their primarysignificance,Petrarch "cheats" by
30 Temporalized eros is more characteristic
than itscounterpart,
of theFragmenta
as witnessedby that paradigmaticsonnet "Erano i capei d'oro a laura sparsi."
31 On Petrarch's"narrative"sestinas,see Foster, 111.
16
TEODOLINDA BAROLINI
adopting equivocal and impure rhymes.32This line of argument
could be pursued by looking at the sestinasas a group, in termsof
the narrativepurpose theymay serve as a set. If, as I hope to show
in futureelaborationsof this essay, Petrarchdistributeseven this
formthroughouthis collectionwitha narrative
mostanti-narrative
purpose, then his sestinasare compromisedby definition,and it is
not surprisingto find them lettingtime in. Like all aspects of Petrarch'spoetics,his sestina is paradoxical; he contaminatesthe rigidityof itsformbecause his way is based on ambivalenceand paradox, to the point that it would be unlike him to exploit even the
sestina'sformabsolutely.33Nonetheless,I believe thatthe previous
paragraph is not incorrectas a firststep in the analysis:Petrarchis
attractedto the sestina for its time-stoppingproperties,which he
exploitsbut also-typically-distorts. If rhymeis semantictimeor
change, and the sestina is a game in which you drasticallyreduce
the possibilitiesfor such change, Petrarchis the masterof playing
these two ends against the middle: while Dante uses the formto
achieve stasis, Petrarchuses it to achieve the paradox of mobile
movement.
stasis/static
In the same way thatthe sestinasserve to dissolve time,there is
another group of poems that exists to mark it. The anniversary
poems commemorate the date of the poet's enamorment on 6
April 1327, and carrytheirown timebombs in the formof numerical expressions indicatingthe precise number of years that have
elapsed since that fatal day, "'1 primo giorno" (107.8). The very
existenceof a set of fifteenanniversarypoems scatteredthrough
theFragmentaconfirmsPetrarch'smanipulationof latentnarrative
structuresin his text,and also illuminateshis keen awareness of
the relationbetweennarrativeand time.34The anniversarypoems
32 Mario Fubini comments"Col Petrarca abbiamo l'impressioneche la sestina si
disciolga" (Metricae poesia [Milano: Feltrinelli,19621 305). In "Forma e significato
[Bologna: I1 Mudella parola-rimanella sestina" (Teoria e prassidella versificazione
lino, 1976] 155-167), Costanzo Di Girolamo documentsthe waysin whichPetrarch
alters the form,noting that "pare anzi che il gioco principale consista nel 'deformare' semanticamenteproprio le parole-rimapiii concrete" (162). On Petrarch's
mediation, in his choice of rhyme words, between Arnaut's phonic values and
Dante's semanticvalues, see Maria Picchio Simonelli,"La sestina dantesca fra Ar(Firenze: Licosa,
naut Daniel e il Petrarca,"in Figurefonichedal Petrarcaai petrarchisti
1978) 1-15.
33 Similarly,Petrarchuses alliterationto obviate the effectsof enjambement(see
in Figurefoniche,52).
Simonelli,"Strutturefonichenei Rerumvulgariumfragmenta,"
What makes this move so characteristicis its duplicity:on the one hand the poet
wantsenjambement,on the other he attentuatesits impact.
34 The set has been studied by Dennis Dutschke, "The AnniversaryPoems in
Petrarch'sCanzoniere."Italica 58 (1981): 83-101, who reads them thematicallyin
M L N
17
are a sequence of poems whose physicalorder is investedwithnot
only a generallynarrativebut also a specificallytemporalburden:
i.e. theyare arranged chronologically,withthe resultthatsequentiality,the flow of the text,and chronicity,the flow of time,are
more concretelythan usual-one. Although, as groups, the sestinas and the anniversarypoems seem intended to counter and
defuse each other, I believe that in factthe two sets move toward
the same goal-the liquidation of time-from opposite perspectives. The anniversarypoems are emblematicof Petrarch'sparadoxical relation to time: although a sequentiallylinked narrative
set whose common and avowed purpose is the markingof time,
theycontain some of the poet's most pronounced refusalsto accommodate time. (In this respect too the anniversarypoems are
the mirrorimage of the sestinas:the poems thatworkto stop time
are recast so that theyshow time's ravages, while the poems that
existto salute timeare infusedwitha fierceresistance.)Thus, "fine
non pongo al mio obstinatoaffanno" (50.52) announces limitless
suffering,but it also rejectsfinitude,limits,forthe sufferer-"fine
non pongo"; the middle and the end of the fourteenthyear are
said to correspond to its beginning,thus denying both time and
narrative("S'al principiorisponde il finee '1mezzo /del quartodecimo anno ch'io sospiro" [79.1-2]); in his fifteenthyear, Laura's
"amorosi rai ... m'abbaglian piu che '1primo giorno assai" (107.78); when the sixteenthyear of his love remains behind him, the
lover moves forward toward his death, only to find that he has
returned to the beginning: "parmi che pur dianzi /fosse '1 principio di cotanto affanno"(118.3-4). Of the examples of nonnarrativitycited earlier,three-"io son pur quel ch'i' mi soglio,/ne per
mille rivolteanchor son mosso," "ch'altricangia il pelo /anzi che '1
vezzo," and "saro qual fui,vivrocom'io son visso"-are fromanniversary poems. Indeed, this last verse recalls Dante's Capaneo,
who sums up Hell as a condition of eternal stasis and repetition
when he exclaims "Qual io fui vivo,tal son morto"(Inf. 14.51).35
The verse "saro qual fui, vivro com'io son visso" comes from
poem 145, "Ponmi ove '1 sole occide i fioriet l'erba," one of two
anniversarypoems thatare out of chronologicalorder; in thiscase,
terms of an achieved conversion: "They emphasize love as conflictin Part I, by
depictingPetrarch'scontinuouslyoscillatingthoughtsand moods. In Part II, however, there is a change as the anniversarypoems progressivelypoint the way to a
resolutionof conflict"(88).
35 Raffaele Amaturo cites Propertius("Huius ero vivus,mortuus huius ero") as
Petrarch'ssource; see Petrarca(Bari: Laterza, 1971) 306.
18
TEODOLINDA BAROLINI
a poem referringto the fifteenthyear of the poet's love follows
anniversarypoems commemoratingthe sixteenthand seventeenth
years.36Readers of Wilkinswill rememberhow much he makes of
the break withchronologyeffectedby 145; reasoningon the basis
of Phelps' three principlesof constructionfor the Chigi collection
general chronologicalorder,varietyof form,and varietyof content-and noting that there is noticeablyless varietyof formand
content in part 1 after 145 (i.e. there are longer stretches of
sonnets not interspersedwith canzoni, ballate, sestinas,or madrigals, and longer stretchesof love poems not interspersedwith
political poems, moral poems, friendshippoems, and the like),
Wilkinsextrapolatesa so-called Pre-Chigiformthatended before
145, indeed withsestina 142, and thatwas composed withgreater
care than the sectionsof part 1 added later. I say "extrapolate"and
"so-called" because the Pre-Chigi form (also called Correggio) is
not extant; unlike the Chigi form,it does not actuallyexist. Since
Wilkins'enormous contributionshave led to the damaging repetitionsof his conjecturesas facts,I willtake thisopportunityto point
out thatthe Pre-Chigiformis a hypothesiswhose shape is based in
great part on the out of order poem 145.37 Thus, Wilkinsconcludes that the penitentialsestina 142, "A la dolce ombra de le
belle frondi,"is the last poem of part 1 of the Pre-Chigiform;he
reaches thisconclusionbylookingfora poem witha "specificcharacter of finality"among the poems immediatelypreceding 145,
and he lands on 142, which "would have made a dignifiedand
appropriate ending to Part I."38 On thisbasis it is now commonly
taken for granted that 142 is the end of part 1 of the Pre-Chigi
form,whose existenceis also taken for granted.39All thisbecause
36 118 refers to "il sestodecimo anno" and 122 to "Dicesette anni." While the
referenceto "il mio sospirtrilustre"in 145 is somewhatvaguer,I agree withWilkins
(95).
thatit provides "an impressionof fifteen-ness"
37 Wilkins' positivismhas induced many to repeat him uncritically;
in response
Foster is correct to stress that "Not one of the earlier 'forms' distinguishedby
Wilkinsexists" (94). Although Wilkinstells us that the Chigi collectionis the first
extantform,the importanceof thisinformationis obscured by his confidentassertions regardingearlier forms,especiallythe Pre-Chigi.
38 Wilkins,97. In the same way, he posits 292, "Gli occhi di ch'io parlai si caldamente,"as the last poem of the Pre-Chigiformbecause it "has a specificcharacter
of finality,and would in itselfbe excellentlyadapted to close a carefullyordered
collection"(104).
39 Guglielmo Gorni unquestioninglytreats 142 as the last poem of part 1 of a
formin "Metamorfosie redenzione in Petrarca: I1 senso della
Pre-Chigi/Correggio
Italiane30 (1978): 3-13; fora similartreatLettere
formaCorreggio del Canzoniere,"
ment of 292, see Amaturo, p. 328, who compounds the problem by mistakenly
M LN
19
of the "notable disregard" for the poet's presumed original principles of constructionthatthe out of order 145 supposedly ushers
into the collection. Far from showing disregard for such principles, I contend that the out of order anniversarypoems are key
to understandingwhat Petrarch'sprinciplesof constructionreally
are: fragmentationis broughtabout by establishingand then destroyingits opposite. The out of order anniversarypoems perfectlyreflectthe paradoxes of the set to which theybelong; they
function as subvertersof narrative order-of progression, linearity,time-of all that the anniversarypoems as a set seem to
represent.
Let us consider the placement of the two out of order sonnets.
With regard to 145, one could deduce fromthe lack of varietyin
form and content followingit that it serves to announce a set of
poems devoted to repetition,indeed to a formaldramatizationof
its key verse, "saro qual fui, vivro com'io son visso." In other
words, the chronology-breaking145 heralds chronological rupture writlarge, in the formof a more markedlack of chronicityor
temporal flow than has previously been encountered.40 The
second out of order anniversarypoem is 266, "Signor mio caro,"
whichcommemorates18 yearsof love forLaura and followsanniversarypoems referringto 20 yearsof passion. "Signor mio caro,"
the most gravely out of sequence of the anniversarypoems,41
draws attentionto itselfin other ways besides: it is the only anniversarypoem to allude to a double devotion,celebratingnot only
18 years of love for Laura but also 15 years of friendshipwith
Cardinal Giovanni Colonna; it is the firstanniversarypoem in part
2, and is separated from"I' vo pensando" onlyby one intervening
sonnet. (These two factsseem not unrelated: the presence of an
referringto 292 as the last poem of the Chigi (ratherthan Pre-Chigi)collection.In
fact,the last poem of the Chigi collectionis our current304, "Mentre che '1 cor
dagli amorosi vermi,"and the last poem of part 1 of the Chigi is our current 189,
"Passa la nave mia." It is regrettablethatcriticalenergyhas been devoted to poems
142 and 292 as appropriateendings to theirnonexistentcollectionand thatno one,
to my knowledge,has examined fromthis perspectivethe two poems thatactually
serve as endings in the existentChigi collection.
40 The unbroken stretchesof the second section of part 1 have routinelyposed
problems for commentators: Amaturo refers to the "lunga e diseguale serie
130-247" (299), while Foster speaks of the "rather random arrangement" of
135-263 (71), and vascillatesbetween ending the firstsectionof part 1 with 135 or
142.
41 Compare itsstraightforward
"diciottoanni" to "sospirtrilustre"in 145. The 20
year anniversarypoems are 212 ("ventianni") and 221 ("vigesimoanno").
20
TEODOLINDA BAROLINI
earthlyattachmentother than Laura is anotherway of showingus
that part 2 deals withthe implicationsof the passing of all mortal
loves, which is to say that this text is more philosophic than romantic;as confirmation,269 lamentsthe deaths of both Laura and
the Cardinal.) If beginningthe second part of anythingnecessarily
implies a transition,a movementforward,what could more effectivelysuggesta conversionmanque than a backwardmovinganniversarypoem, a poem thatshould have moved forward,beyond a
point we indicate as "20," and instead has regressed to "18"? Finally,perhaps the mostsatisfyingsign thatthe anniversarypoems
are not what theyseem, that theyresisttime as well as affirmit,
comes froman instanceof collusionbetweentwo sets: the firstanniversarypoem, "Giovene donna sottoun verde lauro," is a sestina,
resultingin a poetic hybridthatis the formalequivalent of a contradictionin terms.From this perspective,"Giovene donna" constitutesan impasse betweenformand content;the first-primeexample of the species we call anniversary poems, the poem
startingthe set on its
charged withinitiatingthe series' narrativity,
temporal path, is crippled, rendered incapable of accomplishing
its textualmission,by being cast as a sestina.42
The collectionopens witha sequence of poems that,like the anniversarypoems, possesses a narrativethrust;as readers have long
noted, poems 2 to 5 provide plot informationregardingfirstthe
lover'senamorment(2 and 3) and then the beloved (4 and 5). This
narrative sequence introduces the problematicof time into the
text; it offersPetrarchan opportunityto establishthe ideological
underpinnings for part l's animositytoward narrativity.Poems
1-4 are about firstthings,firsttimes,first(birth-)places: the poet's
assalto" (2.9), the
"primogiovenile errore" (1.3), Love's "primiero
(3.7-8),
day when "i miei guai /nel commune dolor s'incominciaro"
the place where "si bella donna al mondo nacque"(4.14). The last
poem in the sequence, poem 5, the firstpoem to contain "il fine"
(and, perhaps not coincidentally,the firstpoem to begin with
"Quando"), introducesthe consequence of all beginnings,namely
endings. This famous play on the beloved's name, parsed as LAURE-TA, far frombeing a frivolousgesturetowardrhetoricalvirturesidesin her,in her name, repreosity,instructsus thatnarrativity
sented here as syllabifiedby time:43
42 By the same token,it will be apparent whythissestinacould hardlyhave contained the time-stoppingsequence found in "A qualunque animal."
43 In Confessions
13.15, angels are able to look upon God's face and read in it "sine
21
MLN
udir di fore
LAUdando s'incomincia
il suonde' primidolciaccentisuoi.
poi,
VostrostatoREal,che 'ncontro
raddoppiaa Y'altaimpresail miovalore;
ma: TAci, grida iifin, che farlehonore
e d'altrihomerisomache da' tuoi.
(5.3-8)
Particularlynoteworthyare the narrativemarkers that the poet
has linked to the syllablesof her name: LAU with"s'incomincia,"
RE with"poi," and TA with"il fin."The firstsyllablecorresponds
to beginnings,the middle syllableto middles,and the last syllable
to endings; thus, to the extent that the text engages a being definedas existingin time,such as Laureta, it engages the temporal/
narrativeproblems of beginnings,middles, and ends. Most propheticforthe restof theFragmentais the negativesense of endings
introduced here. The ominous "TAci, grida il fin" foreshadows
the poem's finaltercet,where the unexpected turntowarddeath is
expressed in the possibilitythat Apollo will disdain the poet's
"lingua mortal,"and it establishes,in the linkbetween the last syllable of her name and finality,the narratologicalconsequences of
loving-or for that matterbeing-a living creature, a creature
subject to time,to death, to endings.
Sequentialitycreated by the linkingof canzoni is encounteredin
poems 70 to 73, a series of four successivecanzoni. Here narrativityis confrontedin the formof metricaluniformity:not only do
we find four canzoni in a row, in itselfan occurrenceof note, but
poems 71, 72, and 73, the so-called canzonidegliocchi,are more
specificallyemblazoned. In the midst of the Fragmenta'sflagrant
cultivationof metrical variety,they are the only canzoni to be
markedby identicalmeterand rhymescheme,differingfromeach
other only in number of stanzas, and thus in overall length. Far
frombeing haphazard, this sequence of three canzoni possessing
identicalstanzaicformoffersus anotherexample of the collaboration of formand content;the poet has found a metricalmeans of
mirroringhis thematicconcerns. These poems, in which the poet
requests Amor to harmonize his rimewithdesire ("et col desio le
of Laura's
syllabistemporum"("withoutthe syllablesof time"). The syllabification
name, by contrast,recalls Augustine's syllabificationof the hymn "Deus Creator
11.27. RobertDurling takespoem 5
omnium" as an analogue fortimein Confessions
more seriouslythan most commentators;see the introductionto his edition of the
Rimesparse,12-14.
22
TEODOLINDA BAROLINI
mie rime contempre"[73.6]), air the relationbetweenwritingand
eros: writingbegets desire, theytellus; an activityundertakenas a
means of ending desire succeeds only in renewingit. This theme
in itselfis not new (we thinkof the verse from poem 37 quoted
earlier: "ragionando si rinfresca/quel'ardente desio"); whatis new
is the poet's use of the formalmetricalpropertiesof the canzone to
highlight the problem. Thus, the congedo-the ending-of 71
states:"Canzone, tu non m'acqueti,anzi m'infiammi/a dir di quel
ch'a me stesso m'invola:/pero sia certa de non esser sola." Since
poetizing has inflamed desire rather than satisfyingit, the poem
cannot end; another must follow. Likewise,the congedoof 72 insists: "Canzon, l'una sorella e poco inanzi,/et l'altra sento in quel
medesmo albergo /apparechiarsi; ond'io piu[carta vergo." Again,
the poem's resolutionis dedicated to affirmingits inabilityto resolve itself,to terminate. This denial of closure is given added
which promotesthe ilforceby the canzoni's metricaluniformity,
lusion that the three poems are one, thatwe have not ended one
poem and begun another, but instead have refused to end and
returnedin a circleto the firstpoem's beginning.
using the congedito deny
These canzoni thus subvertnarrativity,
the closure that it is their poetic functionto effect,and thus denying the quiescence-the peace-that is brought about by the
full stop and blank space at the end of all poems. For, despite the
fact that Petrarch frequentlydestabilizes the conclusions of his
poems by introducing conditionals, and despite the fact that
poems not undercutin theirown conclusionsare routinelycontradicted in the poems thatimmediatelyfollow-despite all this,not
even Petrarch can avoid the momentarypeace of the physical
ending. This physical resolution is undercut in the canzonidegli
occhi,whose refusalto satisfyor to accommodateclosure suggestsa
lesson to be applied to the Fragmentaas a whole. The poet now
faces the problem engendered by his own strategy:if he were not
to bring this sequence of canzoni to an end he would be moving
toward narrative;he must thereforeend even thissequence dedicated to disprovingall endings. How then to end these poems that
deny endings? Petrarch'ssolutionis to importforthe last congedoa
biological rather than textual necessity: "Canzone, i' sento gia'
stancarla penna /del lungo et dolce ragionar co *llei,/ma non di
parlar meco i pensier' mei." His wearinessforceshim to end. But
we note, first,that the end imposed on his writingis not imposed
on his thoughts;second, even the end imposed on his writingis
reversed in the next two sonnets. Sonnet 74 begins "lo son gia'
M L N
23
stanco di pensar si come /i miei pensier' in voi stanchinon sono."
Here the reprise of stancofrom the conclusion of 73 echoes the
canzone in typicallycontradictoryfashion: he is wearyof thinking
about how tireless-nonweary-are his thoughtsof her. Sonnet
75 then takes this process a step farther,so that not only are his
thoughtsnot weary,but in facthis abilityto discourse is not weary
either: "questi son que' begli occhi che mi stanno/sempre nel cor
colle faville accese, / per ch'io di lor parlando non mi stanco"
(12-14). In thisway the poet does his best to undo the ending he
was obliged to posit at the end of canzone 73.
Canzone 70 serves as a kind of prologue to 71-73, a role for
whichit is formallyfittedby itslack of congedo.This is the poem in
whicheach stanza but one ends withthe firstverseof a precursor's
poem: stanza 1 ends withan incipitthat Petrarchascribed to Arnaut Daniel, "Drez et rayson es qu'ieu ciant e *m demori" ("It is
rightand just that I sing and be joyful"); stanza 2 ends with an
incipitof Guido Cavalcanti's,"Donna me priegha,per ch'io voglio
"cosi
dire"; stanza 3 ends withthe incipitof one of Dante's petrose,
nel mio parlar voglio esser aspro." The poet's anxietiesabout poetic discourse, expressed in the firststrophe'srhetoricalquestion
"che se non e chi con pieta' m'ascolte,/perche sparger al ciel si
spessi preghi?" (3-4), are reinforcedby these firstthree citations,
each of which emphasizes an outpouringof poetic expression,eitherjoyful ("Drez et rayson es qu'ieu ciant e *m demori"), emotionallyneutral ("Donna me priegha, per ch'io voglio dire"), or
harsh ("cosi nel mio parlar voglio esser aspro"). If the poet seems
up to thispoint expressivelyblocked,in part by his own fears,and
in part by the force of the traditionin which he works,finding
himselfconstrainedto appropriate the voices of others, it seems
significantthat, in the fourth stanza, where Petrarch shiftsthe
blame forhis unhappiness fromLaura to himself,he should cite a
poet whose voice is so much more like his,Cino da Pistoia,and that
the final stanza should end witha verse of his own. As though to
underscore the limited breakthrough he has achieved, Cino's
verse, "la dolce vista e '1 bel guardo soave," is not related to the
writingof poetry,like the firstthree incipits,and it is tonallysimilar to the Petrarchanverse withwhich the poem ends, "nel dolce
tempo de la prima etade"-the main difference,in fact, is the
temporal anxiety that Petrarch infuses into Cino's unalloyed
sweetness.The suggestion,at the conclusion of canzone 70, that
the poet's expressivityis no longer obstructed,that he has found
his voice, serves to usher in the three canzoni that follow: the
24
TEODOLINDA BAROLINI
blocked voice of 70 makes way for the released voice of 71-73, as
the inabilityto begin succumbsto the inabilityto end.
The mostunusual featureof canzone 70 is thatitsstrophes'final
verses are the firstverses of previous canzoni. In other words,
former incipits have become explicits,beginnings have become
endings. Most strikingis Petrarch'suse of the firstverse of his own
collection'sfirstcanzone, "Nel dolce tempo de la prima etade," as
the last verse of canzone 70; thus,not only have beginningsbeen
converted into endings, but endings into beginnings, since the
canzone's end findshim at the beginningof his own story,at the
"prima etade." It also finds him at the beginning of the canzoni
degliocchi,addressed in turn to each of his story'schief protagonists: Laura's eyes, Laura herself,and Love. Thus, the circularity
of discourse-beginnings that are endings and endings that are
beginnings-is inscribedinto canzone 70, beforebeing enacted by
canzoni 71-73, where each ending sets the stage for a new beginof beginningsand endings is further
ning. The interchangeability
figuredthroughthe presence of stancoin sonnets 74 and 75: the
congedoof canzone 73 ("stancar la penna") becomes the incipitof
sonnet 74 ("lo son gia'stanco"),whichin turnbecomes the explicit
of sonnet75 ("per ch'io di lor parlando non mi stanco"). In general
metricalterms,such a patternof recurrenceis expressed by the
type of rhyme scheme used in the sestina,which is a particular
form of coblas capcaudadas, "head-tailed" rhyme,where the last
rhymeof one strophe recurs as the firstrhymeof the next.44I
would suggestthatthe circularor head-tailedqualityof these canzoni makes them a kind of analogue to the sestinawithinthe collection; like the sestina,theyrefusetime,embodyingstasis.But, as
we have seen, Petrarch'spoetic categories mimic the fine line he
treads between motion and stasis. In this case, the veryrefusal to
end that produces the circularityof the canzonidegli occhialso
creates a sense of ongoingness,and thus a kind of mini-narrative
withinthe Fragmenta.45
If, as subvertersof narrativethat are still
subjectto narrative,the canzonidegliocchiare analogous to the sestinas,theirmirrorimage-related to the canzonidegliocchias the
anniversarypoems are related to the sestinas-is the collection's
next series of canzoni, 125 to 129.
see Shapiro, 5.
On head-tailed rhymeand ideas of cyclicity,
De Sanctis refersto 71-73 as "quella specie di poemetto lirico sugli occhi di
Laura che [Petrarca] ha diviso in tre canzoni," while Ginguen6 remarksthat the
three poems "formano tutt'insiemecome un piccolo poema in tre canti regolari"
(Carducci-Ferraried., 102).
44
45
M L N
25
The great sweep of fivecanzoni thatruns from 125 to 129 is the
longest such series in the collection, a series whose visibilityis
guaranteed not only by its lengthbut also by its concentrationof
must be
poetic brilliance.Following the principle that narrativity
established in order to be more visiblyfragmented,and considering thatthe canzone is the closestapproximationto narrativein
a lyricuniverse (it is most conducive to logical exposition and to
narrative development, hence its use by Guinizzelli in "Al cor
gentil,"by Cavalcanti in "Donna me prega," by Dante in "Le dolci
rime"), it seems not insignificantthat the Fragmenta'stwo largest
blocks of canzoni should be found in part 1.46To thissecond sequence the poet has entrustedthe demonstrationof his ultimate
desire vis-a'-visnarrative:to escape fromit. Thus, it is a linear sequence, marked not by the circularrecurrenceof the canzonidegli
occhibut by narrativeprogressionand change. While 126, "Chiare,
frescheet dolci acque," breaks throughthe impasse experienced in
125 (epitomized in the conditional incipit,"Se '1 pensier che mi
strugge"),and accomplishesthe poet's goal of turningback time,
of achieving"oblio" (56), the poem thatfollowsit,"In quella parte
dove Amor mi sprona," shows the returnto the conditionsof time
and narrative,to oblio'sopposite, "istoria"(7), a word thatappears
for the firsttimein thiscanzone's opening strophe.f7And the historyto which the poet is reconsignedin 127 is rehearsed again
macrocosmically-in 128, "Italia mia," and finally in the sequence's concluding canzone, "Di pensier in pensier, di monte in
monte,"whose acknowledgmentof the prison of forwardmotion
is apparent in its firstverse. This series takes the poet from the
brinkof escape, in 125, to actual ec-stasisin 126, where momentarilythe turning-backmechanismof memoryplaces him outside
the temporal continuum,only to return him to the adamantine
chains of time and narrativein 127, 128, and 129. Thus, the narrativityof these poems servesnot to deny the constraintsof narrative,as withthe canzonidegliocchi,but to furtherunderscore their
thematicburden: thereis no escape fromnarrativesequence, from
moving"di pensier in pensier,"fromtime.
Instead of signifyingidentityand recurrence,as in the canzomn
degliocchi,here meter is called upon to reflectlinear change and
46 The series of fourcanzoni constitutedby poems 70-73 is second in lengthonly
to 125-129. The obvious unityof poems 71-73, the canzonidegliocchi,has distracted
criticalattentionfromthe block as a whole.
47 Istoriaappears only twicein the Fragmenta,
in canzone 127 and in sonnet 343,
discussed later.
TEODOLINDA
26
BAROLINI
progression.The poet suppliesjust enough circularityto make this
seriesa precise inversionof the previousseries,where,by contrast,
a touch of linear motionwas injected into the prevailingstasis:
Verses in
strophe/settenari
in strophe.
Verses in
congedo/settenari
in congedo.
Canzone
Number
of
strophes
125
6
abCabC
Abb
cdeeDff
13/10
3/2
126
5
abCabC
AbB
cdeeDfF
13/9
3/1
127
7
ABCBAC
ABCcBcDD
CDEeDeFF
14/2
8/2
128
7
AbCBaC
aBCcBbdEdE
cDEeDdfGfG
16/7
10/5
129
5
ABCABC
aBCcBDD
cDEeDFF
13/2
7/2
Fronte/
Congedo
Sirma
l
*
|
l
As the diagram shows, the metricalpatternsof 125 and 126 are
identicalbut for the factthatthe last verse of the strophe(and the
in 125 and a hendecasyllablein 126. The
congedo)is a settenario
of 125 intothe longerverseof 126 yields
relaxationof thesettenario
a sense of closure,achievement,peace-the metricalequivalentof
the ecstaticoblioachieved in "Chiare, frescheet dolci acque."48The
meterof 127 creates a sharp break between 125-126 and the rest
of the set; here begins the process of enlargementthatwill culminate with 128. The leggerezzaof 125 and 126 (they are the only
canzoni in the collection where settenarioutnumber hendecasyllables)49 gives way to the gravitaof the entirelyhendecasyllabic
48 Durling commentsthat the differencein verse lengthsis "stunningly
effective
in suggestingthe overcomingof the haltinginhibitionof 125" (23).
49 For the effectof the settenari
in 125-126, see W. Theodor Elwert, "Rima e
figureretorichenelle 'canzoni sorelle' del Petrarca: 'Chiare, freschee dolci acque'
(126) e 'Se '1 pensier che mi strugge' (125)," LettereItaliane 34 (1982): 309-327.
Elwert points out that only six canzoni-71, 72, 73, 125, 126, 135-begin with
settenari
(319). He also notes that,besides 125-126,only270 and 323 possess congedi
of three verses (320). Elwert'sfurtheressay on the metricalpatternsof Petrarch's
canzoni, "La varietametricae tematicadelle canzoni del Petrarcain funzionedella
loro distribuzionenel Canzoniere"(in Dal Medioevoal Petrarca:Miscellaneadi studiin
M L N
27
fronteof 127, where the reversalof the second pes fromabc to bac
indicatesthe backwardturnto istoria.A connectionto the previous
canzoni is maintained in 127's sirma,which-although mainly
hendecasyllabic-conserves the rhymescheme of 125-126 but for
an additional e rhyme.Altogether,however,the strophesof 127
are longer,the number of its strophesis greater,its proportionof
hendecasyllablesmuch higher,and itscongedohas developed from
three verses to eight: the net resultis a much heavier poem. The
growthpatterncontinuesin 128, whose size reflectsits"large" materia:both strophiclengthand congedolengthpeak at 16 versesand
ten verses respectively.The addition of rhymesnot present elsewhere in the series-the g rhymein the sirmaand the e rhymein
the congedo-furtherunderscoresthe canzone's uniqueness as the
only political poem in the group. Nonetheless, 128 is less dark a
poem than 127, a fact reflected in its higher proportion of settenari;although thefronteof 128 declares itsconnectionto its predecessor by conservingthe bac twist,it is no longer entirelyhendecasyllabic.Finally,with 129 the poet introducesa fallingofffrom
the patternof enlargement:fromseven stropheswe returnto five
(the numberin 126), froma 16 verse stropheto a 13 verse strophe
(as in 125-126), froma ten verse congedoto a seven verse congedo.
Although 129 retainsthe hendecasyllabicfronteof 127 and a long
congedo,its strophicrhymescheme is identicalto that of 125-126.
In this way, Petrarch incorporatescircularityinto the sequence,
allowingthe last canzone to returnmetricallyto the firsttwo,while
stillretainingthe signs of the narrativepath travelledafter 126.
The strophicpatternsare thus carefullymodulated to reflectthe
thematicprogressionof these canzoni,whichin factends in 129 on
an ambiguous note: the series' last canzone does indeed returnto
126 in its appreciation of oblio,but with a less optimisticattitude
determinedby the interveningexperiencesof 127 and 128.50
onoredi Vittore
Branca [Firenze: Olschki,1983] 1: 389-409), should be consultedwith
great care, since its metricalresume of the canzoni containsnumerous errors. By
my calculations,the meter of the followingcanzoni is incorrect:23, 37, 105, 135,
206, 270. Moreover, 73 containssix strophes,not five;the strophesof 270 contain
12 hendecasyllablesand the strophesof 325 threesettenari;
the lady to whom the
interlocutersof canzone 360 appeal fora settlementof theirdispute is Reason, not
Laura. Most unfortunately,
Elwertlabels 264 the last canzone "in vita"and 268 the
firstcanzone "in morte,"a mistakethatseriouslycompromiseshis attemptsto synthesize his findingfor the collectionas a whole. A final note: the Rizzoli edition's
rhymescheme for 125 is incorrect,as is Durling's for 127 (p. 15 of his ed.).
50 The meterof 129 not onlydemonstratesa returnto 125-126,but also, as noted
28
TEODOLINDABAROLINI
Narrative sequence is exploited to express our subjugation to
in a seriesof sonnetsdealing
timeagain in part 1 of theFragmenta,
withpresentimentsof Laura's death thatbegins (perhaps not coincidentally)100 poems afterthe out of order anniversarypoem discussed previously,145, and embraces poems 246, 248, 249, 250,
251, 252, and 254. These poems share a lexicon that links morthe order in
tality,death, and the passing of time to narrativity,
whichwe do things.In 246, the poet arrangeshis protagonistsin a
narrative sequence, praying that God send his death, his fine,
before Laura's death: "O vivo Giove, /manda, prego, il mio in
prima che '1 suo fine" (7-8). Since life is governed by temporal
rules, the criticalquestions,as withnarrative,are those of priority
and sequence: whose end comes first,whose end comes second,
whose end comes last. Thus, in 248 we are apprised thatwhoever
wantsto see the best thatnature has to offerhad bettercome soon,
since death takes the best first;if he comes in time he will see the
sum of all virtueand beauty,but ifhe delays he willhave cause for
eternal weeping. This littlenarrativeis inscribed into the poem
witha purpose; it hingeson expressionsthatdenote temporalanxiety in narrative terms ("et venga tosto," "prima i migliori,"
"Vedrat,s'arriva a tempo," "allor dirat,""ma se piuitarda, avratda
pianger sempre"), adding urgencyto the temporalmessage at the
poem's core: "cosa bella mortal passa, et non dura" (8). Similar
strategiesabound in these poems. Sonnet 250 recountsa dream in
which Laura speaks prolepticallyto the poet of "quella ultima
sera /... ch'i' lasciai li occhi tuoi molli/et sforzatadal tempo me
n'andai" (9-11), warninghim in the sonnet'slast verse,"non sperar
di vedermi in terra mai." Sonnet 248 ends withsempre,and 250
with mai, marking the contours of a semantic field in which the
Fragmenta'sstrikinglytemporal language is even more densely
above, a solidaritywith 127, the darkestof the five canzoni: the sirmaof 129 mediates between thatof 125-126 (withwhich it shares the same rhymescheme) and
thatof 127 (withwhichit shares a similardispositionof long and shortverses,but
A more detailed
for the substitutionof the firsthendecasyllableby a settenario).
reading of the fivecanzoni bears out the double allegiance of 129, to 125-126 on
the one hand and to 127-128 on the other. Briefly,127 and 129 both functionas
glosses of 126; while the formerdisdains the oblioof 126, preferringan eternityof
desire, the latterdesires oblio,even rehearses it,but is devoted to showingwhyit is
ultimatelyimpossibleto maintain.In the futureI hope to elaborate thisreading of
125-129 as a series. I know of no otherattemptto read the poems thus; despite the
intriguingtitle,Fernando Figurelli's"Le cinque canzoni centralidella prima parte
Superioredi Scienzee Lettere'S. Chiara'
del Canzonieredel Petrarca"(Annalidell'Istituto
[Napoli: R. Monastero S. Chiara, 1957] 7: 215-251) treatsthe canzoni individually.
M L N
29
packed than usual. Sonnet 254, the final poem in this group, rehearses the poet's own ending: "i miei corti riposi e i lunghi affanni/son giuntial fine."(10-1 1; here the abruptand unusual full
stop in the middle of the verse is a formalenactmentof thefine
invoked by the poet); the poem concludes with Petrarch's own
conclusion,"La mia favola breve e gia' compita,/et fornitoil mio
tempo a mezzo gli anni." The poet calls his life a favola knowing
well whatafavola and his existencehave in common; theyare similarly sforzatidal tempo,to use Laura's words. Thoughts of her
on his own lifethathe
death, her end, have imposed a narrativity
usuallyavoids, as expressed in the extremeanomalyof poem 252's
"vivo ch'i' non son piu[quel che gia' fui" (13). His fears regarding
her death have forcedhim to let timein, and thereforeto say what
he has never before said: "vivo ch'i' non son piu[quel che gia' fui"
acknowledges the change once so categoricallydenied by "saro
qual fui,vivrocom'io son visso."
The particularinterestof these poems for us resides in the fact
that theyconstitutea verifiablesequence-let us call it the death
sequence-that runs virtuallyfrom246 to 254.51 In other words,
the poet underscoresthe thematiccontentof these sonnets-intimationsof Laura's mortality-by arrangingthemin a sequence of
where the sequential shape lends significance
manifestnarrativity,
to the expressed fear thattime is passing,thatbeautifulthingsdo
not last,thatshe willdie. In order to signifyher death, he permits
a narrativesequence to enter the text,a fact that illuminatesby
contrastthe dominant strategyof the Fragmentaup to now: it is a
strategythatcalls forfragmentationof the textintorimesparsepretime,
ciselyas a defensivebulwarkagainstthe forcesof narrativity,
death. The death sequence not only illuminatespart 1, by clarifyingwhat the majorityof poems in part 1 does notdo, but it also
anticipatespart 2, where narrativity-forthe mostpartan absence
previously-is to a much greater degree a presence. Poem 248's
dictum, "cosa bella mortal passa, et non dura," will be echoed
throughoutpart 2, most notablyin the prototypicalexclamation
fromcanzone 323: "Ahi, nulla, altro che pianto, al mondo dura!"
occur in isolated
(72). While in part 1 encounterswithnarrativity
51 Although I have omitted 247 and 253 because they do not overtlyrefer to
Laura's death, it would be easy to show that theyare closelyrelated to the others,
withthe resultbeing an unbroken sequence from246 to 254. Referringto poems
249-254 as "i sonettidel presentimento,"Amaturo commentsthat "costituiscono
quasi una sorta di poemetto unitarioe continuato"and thattheycreate a situation
"quasi piiunarrativache lirica,di presagio di morte"(319).
30
TEODOLINDA BAROLINI
instances,in part 2 such encountersare an intimatecomponentof
the textualfabric,a factthathas a verypracticalcorrelative:if one
does not trustone's own experience as a reader of the Fragmenta,
one need only meditateon the experience of one's studentsto realize that the poems of part 2 are in general easier to read than
those of part 1. This is due to the narrativity
thathas been infused
into the text; the static self-referential
discourse that dominates
part 1 has given way to a discourse thathas been simplifiedby the
intrusionof narrativeelements,by the linear flowof the miniature
vignettesor storiesthatone frequentlyencounters.Emblematicof
this shiftin tonalityare those two structuralcolumns of the Fragmenta,canzoni 23 and 323: the storybooklinearitythat characterizesthe presentationof the symbolicdramas in 323, "Standomi
un giorno solo a la fenestra,"not for nothingcalled the canzone
delle visioni,contrastsstrikinglywith the compact impenetrability
that (despite its narrativeprogram) characterizesthe canzonedelle
metamorfosi,
"Nel dolce tempo de la prima etade." Metamorphosis,
as a way of changing withoutchanging,moving forwardwithout
moving,is a hallmarkof part 1, and canzone 23 perfectlyreflects
these principlesin itslinguistictexture:dense, convoluted,an icon
to reified-or, as Petrarchwould put it, petrified-immobility.52
The story-likeflow of 323, on the other hand, is a stylistic
correlativeof the governingprinciplesof part 2: timeflows,nothinglasts,
death comes. As the poet declares in the same canzone, "ogni cosa
al finvola" (323.55).
Petrarch'smethods for infusingnarrativityinto part 2 may be
classifiedas follows.
1. The use of directdiscourse,more prevalentin part 2 than in
part 1. By my calculation,directdiscourse occurs in 45 poems in
part 1 and in 25 poems in part 2; due to the disparityin the size of
the two parts (263 poems in part 1, 103 in part 2), these figures
indicate a higher proportionof poems containingdirectdiscourse
in part 2 than in part 1 (24.27% as compared to 17.11%).53 More-
52 The impenetrability
of canzone 23 is metricalas well: endowed witha 20 verse
stropheof 19 hendecasyllablesand only one settenario,
the stanzaicpatternof "Nel
dolce tempo" is the heaviest in the collection. Canzone 323, on the other hand,
presentsus withan easily handled 12 verse strophecontainingtwo settenari
in the
sirma.
53 As part of his reviewof tense in the Fragmenta("Petrarca e il tempo," 1983),
Taddeo analyzes what he calls the "sottosistemadel discorso diretto"(102-105). He
counts 47 sonnets that contain directdiscourse. I count 70 poems that contain directdiscourse,of which 18 are not sonnets(17 canzoni, 1 madrigal),leavinga total
MLN
31
over, in part 2 directdiscourseappears in major canzoni, of which
a significantproportionare in dialogue form (either completely,
like 359 and 360, or attenuatedly,like 264, 268, and 325).54Thus,
part 2 begins with264, "I' vo pensando," a canzone that is based
fromwhichit takesas its subject
on a prose dialogue, the Secretum,
the innerconflictof itsprotagonist;as in the source,thisconflictis
rendered through a dialogue (attenuated, in that only the first
pensieruses direct discourse) between two adversarial points of
view. Canzone 268 containsa dialogue betweenthe selfand Love,
who speaks in directdiscourse,while in 325 we find a similarexchange betweenthe poet and Fortuna,in whichdirectdiscourse is
used by the lady. Of great importanceare canzoni 359 and 360:
359 recountsa dialogue between the poet and his lady, who is at
his bedside; in 360 the poet and Love argue theircases before the
tribunalof Reason (who also uses directdiscourse,so thatwe move
fromthe dialogue to a mini-drama),in the same way thatAugusDialogues
tinusand Franciscusargue beforeTruth in the Secretum.
are a textualway of makingtime palpable, as is indicatedby their
props as "et poi deconspicuous use of such temporal/narrative
mando" (359.13), "respond'io allora" (359.45), "e 'ncomincio"
(360.9), "Il mio adversario ... comincia" (360.76-77). The use of
directdiscourse is a way of creatingthe illusionof realityin a text;
thus, in Purgatorio10, Dante constructs the dialogue between
Trajan and the widow, rendered in direct discourse, to lend the
illusionof a fourthdimensionto the sculptedreliefson the terrace
of pride.55
2. The use of a narrativeploy regardinga "second love" whom
he rejectsin order to remain true to Laura, called, withnarratological emphasis, "'1 mio primo amor" (270.45; see also 271, 280).56
Indeed, the idea of a second love seems to belong to a categoryof
of 52 sonnets compared to Taddeo's 47 (because he does not give a list,I cannot
compare our findings,except to say that I include the 21 sonnets fromwhich he
cites examples). Taddeo does not use the two parts of the collectionas a criterion
for analyzinghis data.
54 In part 1 dialogue is found in foursonnets(84, 150, 222, 262) and one canzone
(1 19).
55 For the use of directdiscourse in Purgatorio10, see my "Ricreare la creazione
divina: l'arte aracnea della cornice dei superbi," in Saggi danteschiamericani,eds.
Gian Carlo Alessio and Robert Hollander (Milano: Franco Angeli, forthcoming).
56 Late in his life Petrarcherased the ballad "Donna mi vene spesso ne la mente"
fromthe positionit occupied as number 121 in the Fragmentaand replaced it with
the currentmadrigal"Or vedi, Amor." Wilkinssuggeststhat"Petrarch'sdissatisfaction withDonna arose fromthe factthatit appears to speak of an interferinglove"
(180). The care shown in removingreferencesto anotherlove frompart 1 does not
apply in part 2, where such referencesare found in poems 270 and 271.
32
TEODOLINI)A BAROLINI
"doubles" thatPetrarchcreatesforpart 2 and thatcould be seen as
a means of drawingour attentionto the deep meaningof part 2, to
the flow of time implied by the very existence of a part 2 that
followsa part 1. These "doubles" include: the unique celebration
of two loves in 266, the double anniversarypoem for Laura and
Cardinal Colonna; the commemoration, in 269, of the double
death of thissame duo, who both died of the plague in 1348; and,
on a formallevel,the presence,as the onlysestinaof part 2, of the
two-partor double sestina,poem 332, a sestina that has been extended by a factorof two to double its normal length.
3. Clingingto past narrative.Under thisrubricI would place:
a. poems on Laura's resistance,the severe onest&that he now realizes was beneficial to him, as in 289.5-6: "Or comincio a svegliarmi,et veggio ch'ella /per lo miglioreal mio desir contese" (see
also 290, 297, 315, 351). Her chastityis a matter of historical
record and should be of no particularimportancenow,a principle
whose validitywe can test by imaginingthat Beatrice and Dante
discuss her erstwhilesexual virtuewhen theymeet in the Earthly
Paradise.
b. poems on Vaucluse as a place consecratedto her, a place where
the "fior', frondi, herbe, ombre, antri, onde, aure soavi, /valli
chiuse, alti colli et piaggie apriche" (303.5-6) bespeak her (see also
the poems in 4a).
c. poems thatrehearse the narrativeof her lifeand death, such as
poems thatmentionthe day he firstsaw her (284, 298); poems on
her last day, "l'ultimogiorno et l'ore extreme" (295.5); poems on
the date of her death, e.g. 298, which belongs to this categoryas
well as to the first,since the "sempre dolce giorno et crudo" (13),
April 6, is both the day of her death and the day of his enamorment. Here we should note also 336, where he specifiesthat her
soul left her body "'n mille trecento quarantotto, /il di sesto
d'aprile, in l'ora prima" (12-14).
d. poems devoted to their last meeting,such as 314 ("Questo e
l'ultimodi de' miei dolci anni" [8]), 328 ("L'ultimo,lasso, de' miei
giorni allegri" [1]), 329 ("O giorno, o hora, o ultimo momento"
[1]), and 330, in which he imagineswhat she said to him withher
gaze during theirlast encounter.
e. poems on her arrivalin heaven. Most notable is 346, where the
angels and other heavenly citizens gather round Laura on her
"primo giorno," asking what "nova beltate" has arrived; she, although perfectlyhappy with her new "albergo," turns back now
M L N
33
and then to see if the poet follows("et parte ad or ad or si volge a
tergo,/mirando s'io la seguo, et par ch'aspecti" [11-12]), and is
concerned thathe hasten tojoin her. Indeed, the poem ends with
the temporallycharged verb affrettare:"perch'i' l'odo pregar pur
ch'i' m'affretti."Poem 326, although not as remarkable an example of the temporalizingof paradise as 346, again refersto her
statusas a newlyarriveddenizen of heaven, an "angel novo."
4. The fashioning of a narrative regarding their present together.This categoryincludes:
a. poems describing him in Vaucluse looking for signs of her:
"Cosi vo ricercando ogni contrada/ov'io la vidi" (306.9-10; see
also 280, 288, 301, 304, 305, 320). Although this search oftenresultsonlyin tracesof Laura ("Lei non trov'io:ma suoi santivestigi"
[306.12]), it can also lead to more substantiveresults:thus in 281
his callingyieldsvisionsof Laura, "Or in formadi nimpha o d'altra
diva" (9), which have materializedto the point where he can say
thathe sees her "calcare i fior'com'una donna viva" (13). Indeed,
"donna viva" thathe can specifyher piteous attishe is sufficiently
tude towardhim: "mostrandoin vistache di me le 'ncresca" (14).
b. poems in which she returnsto console him. These poems constitutethe logical next step afterthe successfulsearch described in
281; her concern leads her to returnwiththe express purpose of
consoling her lover, as we learn in 282: "Alma felice che sovente
torni/a consolar le mie nottidolenti" (1-2). In thispoem, the process of materializationbegun in 281, where she appears "com'una
donna viva," is crystallizedin his recognitionof her unique presence, manifested"a l'andar, a la voce, al volto,a' panni" (14). She
returns thus in 283 ("Ben torna a consolar tanto dolore /madonna, ove Pieta'la riconduce" [9-10]) and in 343, where her consolation takes the formof listeningto and commentingon his history-his life'snarrative-which causes her to weep ("et come intentamente ascolta et nota /la lunga historia de le pene mie!"
("con[10-11]); in 285, on the other hand, she is the story-teller
tando i casi de la vita nostra"[12]). This category(see also 284 and
286) is summed up by a verse in 285, "spesso a me torna co l'usato
affecto"(7), which exemplifiesthe process wherebythe affection
she shows in death is projected backwardsonto her life.Whereas,
in the above poems, Laura is described as speakingbut her speech
is not expressed,in 279 and 341 she speaks in directdiscourse,and
in 342 and 359 she not only comes to him and speaks to him,but
also sitson his bed and dries his tears.57
34
TEODOLINDA
BAROLINI
c. poems in which his thoughtsrise to her in heaven, where they
communicatewithher, such as 302, where what she has to say to
him extends for more than six versesof directdiscourse,and 362,
where both Laura and God speak to him,the latterrespondingto
the poet's urgent request to stay in heaven withan entirelytemporal injunction:"Responde:-'Egli e ben fermoil tuo destino; /et
per tardaranchor vent'annio trenta,/parrata te troppo,et non fia
pero molto' (12-14). Thus, God (Whose directdiscourse is the last
instance of such speech in the Fragmenta)is like everyoneelse in
the Petrarchan universe: concerned with time, which He counts
out in ciphers,a not unimportantconsiderationin a text that we
cannot read, discuss,or thinkabout withoutencounteringand manipulatingnumbers.Numbers signifytime,as Dante tellsus in the
Convivio(in the same chapterin whichhe relatesrhymeto time,as
noted earlier): "Lo tempo, secondo che dice Aristotilenel quarto
de la Fisica, e 'numero di movimento, secondo prima e poi'"
(4.2.6).
A key strategyin the fashioningof a present narrativeis the
literalizationof the turning-backtopos: froma trope of memory,
in part 1, it becomes a literaldescriptionof her various returnsto
rzricercare,
rivedere,
gives way to richiamare,
him. Thus, rimembrar
trovare,and the expression "tornamiavanti"-where the verb tornareapplies to her ratherthan to him-becomes a textualemblem
for part 2 (see, for instance, 268.46, 272.9, and 336, where the
opening "Tornami a mente"allows the poet to build up to the vivifyingexclamation: "Ell'e ben dessa; anchor e in vita" [7]).
5. The fashioning of a narrative regarding their future together.Here I would place:
a. poems referringto an unattainablefuture,the chaste old age
theycould have shared had she lived: "Presso era '1 tempo dove
Amor si scontra/con Castitate,et agli amanti e dato /sedersi inseme, et dir che lor incontra"(315.9-11). Their virtuouscolloquies
are detailed furtherin 316 ("Con che honestisospiril'avreidetto/
le mie lunghe fatiche"[12-13]) and 317, where in response to the
burden he would deposit in her "caste orecchie,"she would reply
with"qualche santa parola sospirando" (13).
b. poems in whichhe praysthatshe may meet him at his passing:
57Directdiscourse
in part2
morefrequently
is ascribedtoLauraor herattributes
thanin part1: sixtimesor 2.28% in part1 (23,87, 123,240,250,262) versusnine
timesor 8.73% in part2 (279,302,328,330,331,341,342,359,362).
35
MLN
"Piacciale al mio passar esser accorta,/ch'e presso omai; siami a
l'incontro"(333.12-13); "et spero ch'al por giuidi questa spoglia/
venga per me con quella gente nostra" (334.12-13).
c. poems thatdisplaythe otherside of her alleged concernthathe
hasten to paradise; here he begs her to pray thathe may soon join
her ("prega ch'i' venga tostoa starcon voi" [347.14]), and is impatientas to preciselywhenthis shall be: "Sarei contentodi sapere il
quando, /ma pur devrebbe il tempo esser da presso" (349.7-8).
inherentin lifein general,and in
6. Emphasis on the narrativity
his own life, whose storyhe so enjoys recounting,in particular.
Part 2 contains the bulk of the Fragmenta'sproverbialexpressions
relatingto the fleetingnessof life: "Veramentesiam noi polvere et
ombra" (294.12), "nulla qua giu diletta et dura" (311.14), "O caduche speranze, o penser' folli!" (320.5), "ogni cosa al fin vola"
(323.55), "Ahi, nulla, altro che pianto, al mondo dura!" (323.72),
"quante speranze se ne porta il vento!" (329.8). Regarding Petrarch's own life and poetry, we find "Or sia qui fine al mio
amoroso canto" (292.12) and "ch'i' chiamo il fine" (312.13).
*
*
*
According to the persistentreading of the Fragmentathat posits
conflictin part 1 and its resolutionin part 2, we could view the
of part 2 as a textualanalogue to the spiritualresignanarrativity
tion these criticshave perceived: a stylisticacceptance of the dictates of narrativethat translatesinto a spiritualacceptance of the
dictatesof time. However, forthose of us who are dissatisfiedwith
the viewof theFragmentathatreads the ending as achieved resolution and conversion, I would note that Petrarch's adoption of
strategiesin part 2 could be viewed as more anarlinear/narrative
chic than resigned.As he himselfis well aware, he introducesthese
elements precisely where, from a traditional perspective, they
should not be. He knows-indeed he tellsus, in some sonnetslocated toward the beginning of part 2, where the course he will
travelfor the restof the textis stillbeing debated-that he is supposed to use Laura's death, as Dante used Beatrice's.58He states
58 The terminologyis, of course, Augustinian.For Petrarch'srelationto Augustine,besides those criticsalready mentioned,see John Freccero,"The Fig Tree and
the Laurel: Petrarch'sPoetics,"Diacritics5 (1975): 34-40, and, more recently,Sara
Textand Subtextin theRime sparse(CoSturm-Maddox,PetrarchanMetamorphoses:
lumbia: U. of Missouri Press, 1985) ch. 5. Sturm-Maddox's reconstructionof an
Augustiniansubtextin the FragmentadiffersfromIliescu, Martinelli,and Fosterin
36
TEODOLINDA BAROLINI
thiswithgreatclarityin sonnet273, wherehe beginsby pointingto
his incurable tendencyto look backwardwhen he should look forward-"Che fai?che pensi? che pur dietroguardi /nel tempo,che
tornarnon pote omai?" (1-2)-and then linksthisOrphic pose to
the desire to re-findher here, on earth,ratherthan acknowledge
her definitivedeparture:
Le soaviparolee i dolcisguardi
et depintiAi,
ch'ad un ad un descritti
son levatide terra;et e, ben sai,
et tardi.
intempestivo
qui ricercarli
(273.5-8)
The tercetsconclude by statingthe Dantesque alternative:she is
not to be re-sought on earth, but to be followed as a guide to
heaven and sought there; only then will the factthat she is dead
begin to yield its fruits,by protectinghim fromother temptations,
less alluring than she was while alive. Only when reclassifiedas
dead, i.e. immortal,will she cease to impede his voyage toward
certainty,stability,and peace, and instead promoteit:
quel che n'ancide,
Deh non rinovellar
non seguirpiu penservago,fallace,
ma saldoet certo,ch'a buonfinne guide.
Cerchiamo'1ciel,se qui nullane piace:
che malpernoi quellabeltasi vide,
se vivaet mortane deveatorpace.
(273.9-14)
The last verse,"se viva et mortane devea t6r pace," epitomizesthe
problem: although dead, she functionsnot as a promoterof peace
but as its destroyer;the beneficialeffectsof her death are blocked
by a poet who prefersto treather death like her life.To continue
withthe Augustinianterminology,instead of using Laura's death
in the manner outlined in 273, he enjoys it, in the sense that he
inscribesit in narrative,he pickles it in the saline watersof time.
Even heaven existsin timeas a resultof the conversationsthattake
place there during his visitinghours.59In other words, Petrarch's
its understandingthat choosing Augustine as a model does not necessarilyimply
that Petrarchbelieves he succeeds in emulatinghis model; all we know is that he
says that he wishes he could.
59 All represented heavens must exist in time. My point is that Petrarch once
again does not exercize his option to limitthe temporal constraintsof language.
M L N
37
acceptance of the dictatesof narrativeis governed by his nonacceptance: in part 1 narrativeis avoided because the goal is to stop
time,resistdeath; in part 2 narrativeis invokedbecause in order to
preserve her as she was he must preserve her in time. He thus
adopts opposite and apparentlycontradictorystrategiesto achieve
the same results.When she is alive, he needs to cancel time.When
she is dead, he needs to appropriate it.
So, Petrarch both evades narrativityand confrontsit because
both postures figure in his dialectical struggle to overcome the
forces of time. This fact is never more evident than at the text's
beginning,middle, and end. The originalbeginning,according to
Wilkins, is the present sonnet 34, "Apollo, s'anchor vive il bel
desio," an archetypalpart 1 poem in which temporal sequence is
invoked in the process wherebyApollo loved firstwhat the poet
loves now-"difendi or l'onorata et sacra fronde,/ove tu prima,et
poi fu' invescatoio" (7-8)60-only in order to be nullified:in that
she is "la donna nostra,"both Apollo's Daphne and Petrarch's
Laura, whom both togetherwill watch ("si vedrem poi per meraviglia inseme /seder la donna nostra sopra l'erba" [12-13]), all
identitiesare conflated and timeceases to exist.61 By contrast,our
present number 1 is atypical.Its purpose is to establishtemporal
sequence: a verse like "quand'era in parte altr'uom da quel ch'i'
sono" (4) suggests narrative movement from the past into the
presentand seems to promise more such movementleading from
the presentinto the future.In thissense, the poem imposes a beginning in quasi-narrativeterms. But, by the same token, it also
whichhe calls Petrarch'sParadiso,
Thus, Folena notes thatin the Trionfodell'eternitd,
e affidatanei punti culminantialla negazione degli ele"L'espressione dell'eternitA
mentigrammaticalidella deissi temporale"(9); he refersto such versesas "non avrA
loco 'fu' 'sarA'n6 'era,' /ma 'e' solo in presente,ed 'ora' ed 'oggi' " (67-68). Far from
approximatingeternityin thispassage, Petrarchdraws attentionto the verytemporalityhe says he wishes to escape. By contrast,Dante's Paradiso does succeed in
findingways to approximate eternity;see my "Dante's Heaven of the Sun as a
Italiane40 (1988): 3-36.
Meditationon Narrative,"Lettere
60 Petrarch'suse of primaand poi suggestively
echoes the Convivio'sdefinitionof
time as "numero di movimento, secondo prima e poi." On 34 as the original
number 1, see Wilkins,147.
61 RegardingPetrarch'shandlingof Ovidian myth,P. R. J. Hainsworthnotesthat
his "disregardof the temporalsequence necessarilyinvolvesa destructionof narrative: in its stead there is the re-combinationof the words denotingthe constituent
elements of the mythin such a way as to point to the presence of the timeless"
ItalianStudies34 [1979]:
("The Mythof Daphne in the Rerumvulgariumfragmenta,"
28-44; quotation p. 38). Likewise,Sturm-MaddoxcommentsthatPetrarch's"repreas a reenactmentof mythologicalstoryis also a desentationof his innamoramento
of Daphne into the evergreenlaurel
fense against temporality:the transformation
symbolizes[the] evasion fromthe imperativesof linear time"(129).
38
TEODOLINDA BAROLINI
subvertsit, preciselyby virtue of its position at the text'sbeginning; a recantationat the outset makes no more sense than Guido
da Montefeltro'sattemptto repent beforesinning."Forse /tu non
pensavi ch'io loico fossi,"says the devil to Guido as he drags him
off to Hell: it is not logical-in narrativeor in life-to renounce
the "breve sogno" before engaging in it, succumbingto it, representingit.62Moving on to the Fragmenta'sversionof a middle, we
arrive at 264, a poem whose resolution regards its failure to resolve: "et veggio '1 meglio, et al peggior m'appiglio." Again, Petrarchcould have avoided invokingthe categoryof a middle altogether; instead, he gives 264 an illuminatedcapital and leaves a
space signifyingtransitionbetween parts 1 and 2, a transitionhis
transitionalpoem then denies. Finally,we arrive at the end, or
betterto that place where an expressed desire for ending is followed by physicalclosure. As we know fromsonnets363 and 364,
the poet is tired: "et al Signor ch'i' adoro et ch'i' ringratio,/che pur
col ciglio il ciel governa et folce,/torno stanco di viver,nonche
satio" concludes 363, and 364 echoes "Omai son stanco" (5). Biological wearinesswas used as a means of ending once before,in the
closing congedoof the canzonidegli occhi.If that series of poems
serves to dramatize the arbitrarinessof all endings, then the fact
that their mode of ending is echoed in the text'sultimateending
mightmake us wonder: what makes the finalending less arbitrary
than the forced resolutionof canzone 73? The answer lies not in
the poet's will,whichin the finalpoem is stillcommandingitselfto
be full,63but in the conditionsto whichhis will,like ours, is subject.
None of Petrarch'stextualtacticscan finallyprevailover the truth
of his assessment,applicable to textsas well as to ladies: "cosa bella
mortalpassa, et non dura."
New YorkUniversity
62 Thus, the comment to poem 1 in the Carducci-Ferrariedition: "Proemio; e
dovrebb'essereepilogo" (3).
63 With regard to the alleged conversion of the Fragmenta's
ending, I will give
Augustinethe last word. The saintis here commentingon the delays in his conversion, shortlyto be achieved: "The reason, then,whythe command is not obeyed is
itselfto
thatit is not given witha fullwill.For ifthewillwerefull,itwouldnotcommand
befull,sinceit wouldbe so already.It is thereforeno strangephenomenon partlyto
8.9; p. 172, italics
will to do somethingand partlyto will not to do it" (Confessions
mine).