Three Modern Italian Poets: Saba, Ungaretti, and Montale

by Joseph Cary

Historically, Italian poetic genius has appeared in installments of three. Three Modern Italian Poets focuses on the most recent Umberto Saba, Giuseppe Ungaretti, and Eugenio Montale. Through careful readings of the work of these giants of literary modernism, Joseph Cary facilitates our understanding of their poetry. Cary also presents striking biographical portraits - a complex and poignant Saba, a spiritually nomadic and tormented Ungaretti, and Montale, poet of coscienza - all the while guiding us through the first half of twentieth-century Italy, a most difficult period in its literary and cultural development.

352 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1969

Reviews

[Morbid Swither]

I more or less just skimmed this whole book, just taking in bits and pieces that attracted my attention. The sole intentional reading project I have for 2022 is to revel in Italian poetry. Would love recommendations!

[Paul Kerschen]

Montale, as established, is my favorite; next to him Ungaretti seems needlessly vatic, Saba needlessly coy, but I profited from time with all three. Cary is good company. His casual English renderings of the poems, in small type, are often better than prestige poetic translations by others. The opening chapter, about the previous dismal fin-de-siècle scene, gets off zingers but does not seem unfair.