SOURCE: “The Poetry of Ugo Foscolo,” in Proceedings of the British Academy, Kraus Reprint, 1976, pp. 13-25.

In the following essay originally presented in 1924, Cippico provides an overview of Foscolo's life and examines how his various poetic works were affected by—and sometimes stand in contrast to—the historical events and romantic interludes of his life.

If we are to draw our conclusions from events of the last centuries, all great crises in the history of nations, be it wars or revolutions, cause humanity to gather the illusion of an essential renovation of human nature itself. It matters little if wise philosophers and impartial historians, especially if placed at a reasonable distance from such events, are only able to perceive in them the inevitable and monotonous repetition of all that constitutes the deepest instincts of the human soul, from the day on which Adam, our first father, ‘the man...