venetian literature and publishing 639
- having begun his reform with melodrama, Zeno founded Il Giornale
dei letterati d’Italia [The Journal of Italian Men of Letters] in 1696 together
with Maffei. a group of young intellectuals formed around the enterprise
that included future journalist gasparo gozzi. the new publication built
on Venice’s history as a center of the publication of the gazzetta [daily
events] and the giornale [intellectual topics] since the middle of the 17th
century.37 Il Giornale would continue publication at irregular intervals
and with various directors and collaborators until 1740, taking advantage
of the wide range of learned individuals of peninsular and international
scope residing in Venice and Padua.
Goldoni’s Reform: An Overview
in 1734, one of the most significant events in the history of Venetian
theater and literature occurred when Carlo goldoni became associated
with the imer troupe and the grimani theater of san samuele. inspired
by Molière, he began writing his own pieces, at first intermezzi or interact
entertainment. as Franco Fido has noted, the unreal, arcadian world of
the intermezzo and the opera libretto enjoyed a wider creative and moral
latitude than that of plays. goldoni took full advantage of these features
over the long course of his career, with con artist and libertine characters,
satires of noble pretense and “a naturalistic and egalitarian message.”38 Fido
has pointed to this area of goldoni’s production as offering a promising
field for future research.
also facilitating the expression of such popular values were the com-
media ridicolosa tradition and the higher proportion of the popular classes
among the audiences of musical pieces. goldoni included especially in
his musical works episodes of peasant life and customs similar to those
found in ruzante. 39 in particular, the works that combine poetic arca-
dian shepherds with real peasants, such as Uccellatori [The Bird Hunters],
seem to continue a tradition evident in ruzante’s Pastoral, possibly a
private entertainment genre. he also borrowed other features of 16th-
century comedies: the characters Lena and ghitta of Amor contadino
37 Marco Cerruti, “L’erudizione storico-letteraria,” in SCV 5.1, pp. 257–75.
38 Franco Fido, “Carlo goldoni,” in nino borsellino and Walter Pedullà, eds., Il secolo
riformatore. Poesia e ragione nel Settecento, vol. 7 of Storia generale della letteratura italiana
(Milan, 1999), pp. 597–601, p. 599.
39 Compare, for example, the peasant wedding ceremony of Amor contadino, iii. 10 with
ruzante, Betia, V. 1; with goldoni’s access to the grimani palace of s. Maria Formosa, he
could have seen the play in manuscript form.