Vittorio Alfieri e la teoria lombrosiana del genio. Gli studi psicopatologici di Giuseppe Antonini e Leonardo Cognetti De Martiis

Abstract

At the end of the 19th century, the personality and work of Vittorio Alfieri, as well as those of other Italian writers, became a subject of interest for Cesare Lombroso and some of his pupils. The main outcome of these studies is represented by the monograph Vittorio Alfieri. Studi psicopatologici (1898), which brings together two essays by Giuseppe Antonini and Leonardo Cognetti De Martiis, in which, on the ground of Lombroso’s theories, Alfieri is described as a genius suffering from frequent epileptic seizures. Antonini’s study focuses on Alfieri’s Vita, interpreting his nomadism, outbursts of anger and alleged lack of willpower as symptoms of this condition. These studies generated a debate involving psychiatrists, anthropologists and literary critics, including Giuseppe Sergi and Rodolfo Renier.