Margherita Guidacci (April 25, 1921 – June 19, 1992), was an Italian poet born in

Florence Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilancio demografico an ...

, Italy. She graduated from the University of Florence in 1943 and traveled to England and Ireland in 1947. Guidacci married the sociologist Lucca Pinna in 1949, and they moved to Rome in 1957. The poet taught English language and literature at the '' Liceo Scientifico Cavour'' for ten years, from 1965 to 1975.

Literary style

The poetry of Margherita Guidacci is deeply spiritual but not in the religious sense. Rather her poems include profound sentiments and a view of life as a search for regeneration and resurrection from death. Guidacci regarded life as a passage and its desolation and pain a means toward transformation beyond death.

Translator of English poets

Guidacci is noted for her Italian translations of English poets, including

John Donne John Donne ( ; 22 January 1572 – 31 March 1631) was an English poet, scholar, soldier and secretary born into a recusant family, who later became a clergy, cleric in the Church of England. Under royal patronage, he was made Dean of St Paul's ...

's sermons and

Emily Dickinson Emily Elizabeth Dickinson (December 10, 1830 – May 15, 1886) was an American poet. Little-known during her life, she has since been regarded as one of the most important figures in American poetry. Dickinson was born in Amherst, Massach ...

's poetry. T. S. Eliot and

Elizabeth Bishop Elizabeth Bishop (February 8, 1911 – October 6, 1979) was an American people, American poet and short-story writer. She was Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress from 1949 to 1950, the Pulitzer Prize winner for Poetry in 1956, the N ...

are among other poets Guidacci translated into her native language.

English education

Guidacci obtained the ''libera docenza'' in the English language and literature in 1972. From 1975 to 1981, she taught English and

American Literature American literature is literature written or produced in the United States of America and in the colonies that preceded it. The American literary tradition thus is part of the broader tradition of English-language literature, but also inc ...

at the

University of Macerata The University of Macerata ( it, Università degli Studi di Macerata) is a public university located in Macerata, Italy. It is one of the oldest universities in Europe that are still functioning.https://thefunkonme.com/top-10-oldest-universities- ...

and the College of Maria Assunta attached to the

Vatican Vatican may refer to: Vatican City, the city-state ruled by the pope in Rome, including St. Peter's Basilica, Sistine Chapel, Vatican Museum The Holy See * The Holy See, the governing body of the Catholic Church and sovereign entity recognized ...

in Rome, where she lived until her death in 1992.

Literary awards

The year following her husband's death in 1977, Guidacci was awarded the ''Biela Poesia'' literary prize for her collection ''Il vuoto e le forme''. Guidacci traveled to the United States in 1986, and was the recipient of the 1987 ''Premio Caserta'' for her complete works. Among literary prizes Guidacci was awarded are: Carducci Prize, 1957; Ceppo Prize, 1971; Lerici Prize, 1972; Gabbici Prize, 1974; Seanno Prize, 1976.

Coined "paparazzi"

The English usage of the word ''

paparazzi Paparazzi (, ; ; singular: masculine paparazzo or feminine paparazza) are independent photographers who take pictures of high-profile people; such as actors, musicians, athletes, politicians, and other celebrities, typically while subjects ...

'' is credited to Margherita Guidacci’s translation of Victorian writer George Gissing’s travel book ''By the Ionian Sea'' (1901). A character in Margherita Guidacci's ''Sulle Rive dello Ionio'' (1957) is a restaurant-owner named Coriolano Paparazzo. The name was in turn chosen by

Ennio Flaiano Ennio Flaiano (5 March 1910 – 20 November 1972) was an Italian screenwriter, playwright, novelist, journalist, and drama critic. Best known for his work with Federico Fellini, Flaiano co-wrote ten screenplays with the Italian director, including ...

, the screenwriter of the

Federico Fellini Federico Fellini (; 20 January 1920 – 31 October 1993) was an Italian film director and screenwriter known for his distinctive style, which blends fantasy and baroque images with earthiness. He is recognized as one of the greatest and most i ...

film, ''

La Dolce Vita ''La Dolce Vita'' (; Italian for "the sweet life" or "the good life"Kezich, 203) is a 1960 satirical comedy-drama film directed and co-written (with Ennio Flaiano, Tullio Pinelli and Brunello Rondi) by Federico Fellini. The film stars Marcell ...

'', who got it from Guidacci's book. By the late 1960s, the word, usually in the Italian plural form ''paparazzi'', had entered the English lexicon as a generic term for intrusive photographers.''The Hollywood Scandal Almanac''
by Jerry Roberts, p. 120

Published works

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Translations

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References

External links

*
Contemporary Italian Women Poets
'
''Encyclopedia of Italian Literary Studies'' - Margherita Guidacci
edited by Gaetana Marrone, Paolo Puppa {{DEFAULTSORT:Guidacci, Margherita Italian women poets 1921 births 1992 deaths 20th-century Italian women writers 20th-century Italian poets Writers from Florence