Fra' Annibale Caro, K.M., (6 June 150717 November 1566) was an

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

writer and

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems ( oral or wri ...

Biography

Born in

Civitanova Marche Civitanova Marche is a '' comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Macerata in the Italian region Marche, located about southeast of Ancona and about east of Macerata. Geography Civitanova Marche borders the municipalities: Montecosaro, Port ...

, then in the March of Ancona, Caro became tutor to the wealthy family of Lodovico Gaddi in

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

, and then secretary to Lodovico's brother Giovanni. At Gaddi's death, he entered the service of the Farnese family, and became confidential secretary to Pier Luigi Farnese, Duke of Parma, and to his sons, Duke Ottavio and

Cardinals Cardinal or The Cardinal may refer to: Animals * Cardinal (bird) or Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **''Cardinalis'', genus of cardinal in the family Cardinalidae **''Cardinalis cardinalis'', or northern cardinal, the ...

Ranuccio and

Alexander Alexander is a male given name. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history. Variants listed here are Aleksandar, Al ...

. Caro's most important work were his translations (see below). He is also the author of poems, sonnets, and a

comedy Comedy is a genre of fiction that consists of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. The term o ...

called ''Gli Straccioni''. His work additionally includes two clever ''jeux d'esprit'': ''La Fichelde'', in praise of figs, and a

eulogy A eulogy (from , ''eulogia'', Classical Greek, ''eu'' for "well" or "true", ''logia'' for "words" or "text", together for "praise") is a speech or writing in praise of a person or persons, especially one who recently died or retired, or as ...

of the big nose of Leoni Ancona, a local figure. His poetry is noted for the freedom and grace of its versification, so that many claim that he brought ''

verso sciolto In Italian poetry, verso sciolto (plural ''versi sciolti'') refers to poetry written in hendecasyllables and lacking rhyme. It is very similar to blank verse in English poetry, and the two terms are often used interchangeably. Music term (Verso ...

'' to its highest form in

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

. Letters he wrote, both in his own name and on behalf of the Cardinals Farnese, are considered remarkable for both the baseness they display and for their

euphemistic A euphemism () is an innocuous word or expression used in place of one that is deemed offensive or suggests something unpleasant. Some euphemisms are intended to amuse, while others use bland, inoffensive terms for concepts that the user wishes ...

polish and elegance. Caro's fame was diminished because of the virulence with which he attacked

Lodovico Castelvetro Lodovico Castelvetro (ca. 1505–1571) was an important figure in the development of neo-classicism, especially in drama. It was his reading of Aristotle that led to a widespread adoption of a tight version of the Three Unities, as a dramatic ...

in one of his ''canzoni'', and by his meanness for denouncing him to the Church for translating some of the writings of Philipp Melanchthon, an associate of

Martin Luther Martin Luther (; ; 10 November 1483 – 18 February 1546) was a German priest, theologian, author, hymnwriter, and professor, and Augustinian friar. He is the seminal figure of the Protestant Reformation and the namesake of Lutherani ...

. In 1555 Caro was installed as a "knight of grace" (a member not taking religious vows) of the

Order of Malta The Sovereign Military Order of Malta (SMOM), officially the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem, of Rhodes and of Malta ( it, Sovrano Militare Ordine Ospedaliero di San Giovanni di Gerusalemme, di Rodi e di Malta; ...

by Cardinal Alessandro Farnese. Caro died in

Frascati Frascati () is a city and ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Rome Capital in the Lazio region of central Italy. It is located south-east of Rome, on the Alban Hills close to the ancient city of Tusculum. Frascati is closely associated wit ...

in 1566 and was buried in the Church of

San Lorenzo in Damaso The Minor Basilica of St. Lawrence in Damaso (Basilica Minore di San Lorenzo in Damaso) or simply San Lorenzo in Damaso is a parish and titular church in central Rome, Italy that is dedicated to St. Lawrence, deacon and martyr. It is incorporated ...

in Rome. His prose includes translations of

Aristotle Aristotle (; grc-gre, Ἀριστοτέλης ''Aristotélēs'', ; 384–322 BC) was a Greek philosopher and polymath during the Classical period in Ancient Greece. Taught by Plato, he was the founder of the Peripatetic school of ph ...

Cyprian Cyprian (; la, Thaschus Caecilius Cyprianus; 210 – 14 September 258 AD''The Liturgy of the Hours according to the Roman Rite: Vol. IV.'' New York: Catholic Book Publishing Company, 1975. p. 1406.) was a bishop of Carthage and an early Christ ...

, and

Gregory Nazianzen Gregory of Nazianzus ( el, Γρηγόριος ὁ Ναζιανζηνός, ''Grēgorios ho Nazianzēnos''; ''Liturgy of the Hours'' Volume I, Proper of Saints, 2 January. – 25 January 390,), also known as Gregory the Theologian or Gregory N ...

The translations

Annibal Caro published a translation of the ''

Aeneid The ''Aeneid'' ( ; la, Aenē̆is or ) is a Latin epic poem, written by Virgil between 29 and 19 BC, that tells the legendary story of Aeneas, a Trojan who fled the fall of Troy and travelled to Italy, where he became the ancestor of th ...

'' of

Vergil Publius Vergilius Maro (; traditional dates 15 October 7021 September 19 BC), usually called Virgil or Vergil ( ) in English, was an ancient Roman poet of the Augustan period. He composed three of the most famous poems in Latin literature: t ...

, which was much admired by contemporaries, and still is read with pleasure by the lovers of the

Italian language Italian (''italiano'' or ) is a Romance language of the Indo-European language family that evolved from the Vulgar Latin of the Roman Empire. Together with Sardinian, Italian is the least divergent language from Latin. Spoken by about ...

. Another translation, which remained the standard one for several centuries, is that of ''

Daphnis and Chloe ''Daphnis and Chloe'' ( el, Δάφνις καὶ Χλόη, ''Daphnis kai Chloē'') is an ancient Greek novel written in the Roman Empire, the only known work of the second-century AD Greek novelist and Hellenistic romance, romance writer Longus ...

'', the ancient Greek novel by Longus.

References

Sources

Bibliography

*Stefano Jossa, ‘Nature vs. Grammar: Annibal Caro’s Apologia as a Manifesto for Orality’, in Luca Degl'Innocenti; Brian Richardson; Chiara Sbordoni (eds), ''Interactions between Orality and Writing in Early Modern Italian Culture'' (London: Routledge, 2016), pp. 173–86. {{DEFAULTSORT:Caro, Annibale 1507 births 1566 deaths People from Civitanova Marche 16th-century translators Latin–Italian translators 16th-century Italian poets 16th-century male writers Italian male poets Knights of Malta Burials at San Lorenzo in Damaso