Who was Victor Alfieri?
Count Vittorio Alfieri (Jan. 16, 1749, Asti, Piedmont--d. Oct. 8, 1803, Florence) was an Italian tragic poet whose predominant theme was the overthrow of tyranny. In his tragedies, he hoped to provide Italy with drama comparable to those of other European nations. Through his lyrics and dramas he helped to revive the national spirit of Italy and so earned the title of precursor of the Risorgimento.
... His rough, forthright, and concise style was chosen deliberately, so that he could persuade the oppressed and the resigned to accept his political ideas and inspire them to heroic deeds. Nearly always, Alfieri's tragedies present the struggle between a champion of liberty and a tyrant.
Of the 19 tragedies that he approved for publication in the Paris edition of 1787-89, the best are Filippo, in which Philip II of Spain is presented as the tyrant; Antigone; Oreste; and, above all, Mirra and Saul. Saul, his masterpiece, is often considered the most powerful drama in the Italian theatre.
Alfieri's autobiography, published posthumously as Vita di Vittorio Alfieri scritta da esso (1804; The Life of Vittorio Alfieri Written by Himself), is his chief work in prose. He also wrote sonnets, comedies, satires, and epigrams.
-Encyclopedia Brittanica
What and Why is the Victor Alfieri Project?
Located on North Main Avenue in West Scranton, Pa., The Victor Alfieri Society was founded on March 11, 1911 to help young Italian men meet fellow immigrants to help each other find jobs and adjust to American ways. The social club was named after Vittorio Alfieri, a popular playwright and poet who lived in Italy from 1749 to 1803, to attract the attention of the young immigrants, but, in accord with Americanizing the club’s members, the writer’s Italian name was anglicized to “Victor.”
One hundred years later, most of Scranton's residents, and even many current club members, have no concept of who Alfieri was. The idea of a playwright restoring a sense of pride to an entire nation is astonishing. It is our hope people might reconsider the influence of the arts and literature in our society today. What would it do for us as a community and a nation to make the arts a part of our everyday lives; the names of our inspirational writers and creators known to households as readily as "Snooki."
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