L'intellectuel européen entre la Renaissance et le Libertinage. L'intellettuale europeo tra Rinascimento e libertinismo

Starting from a famous line by Pindar and from its reversal in Alberti’s «Theogenius», this essay intends to shed light on some central features of the Renaissance idea of mankind and life, which proves to be deeply interwoven with dramatic and even tragic motifs. Following this leitmotiv, this essay puts special emphasis on two themes which are closely interrelated, namely ‘shadow’ and ‘dissimulation’, showing that the latter is a fundamental element in Renaissance culture – from painting to literature and philosophy. In addition, this essay delineates in detail the different ways in which the theme of ‘shadow’ is elaborated by different authors and in different philosophical backgrounds, from Alberti to Giordano Bruno.