The Genesis of Tasso's Narrative Theory: English Translations of the Early Poetics and a Comparative Study of Their Significance.

Lawrence Rhu's The Genesis of Tasso's Narrative Theory provides much-needed translations of three prose texts by Tasso: the prefatory remarks to Rinaldo (1562), the Discorsi dell'arte poetica (1562-65), and the "Allegoria del poema" (1575-76), which first appeared in the Bonna editions of Gerusalemme liberata (1581). The book also includes a three-part introductory essay consisting of sections entitled "Authority and Tradition: Young Tasso's Reckoning with Aristotle and Ariosto"; "Romancing the Word: Neo-Aristotelian and Protestant Poetics in Tasso and Spenser"; and "Milton's Change of Note: Italian Precedents for Tragedy in Eden."

In the first part of the Introduction Rhu discusses Tasso's relationship to the neo-Aristotelian critics and commentators of the sixteenth century and the effect of that relationship in shaping Tasso's attitude toward Ariosto. Rhu focuses on Tasso's theoretical treatments of neo-Aristotelian principles as expressed in the works R. hu translates, and he analyzes specific episodes from the Gerusalemme, notably Armida's and Clorinda's conversions, to demonstrate "how issues broached by Tasso in his early Discorsi are elaborated in his narrative practice" (34). Rhu then turns his attention to Tasso's Allegoria and the Gerusalemme liberata, which Rhu approaches, intriguingly, not only by way of Ariosto but also Erasmus and the Praise of Folly.

In "Romancing the Word," Rhu examines Tasso's Counter-Reformation context and his development of a "Protestant poetics," as well as the implications of that poetics for later authors, notably Spenser. In a persuasive comparative reading, Rhu argues that the episode of Errour's den in Book I, canto 1 of The Faerie Queene, with its connotations of a Reformation textual "nightmare" (65) resonates with Tasso's anxieties in the face of the kind of multiplicities of plot found in Ariosto, multiplicities that he seeks to avoid through the justifying principles of neo-Aristotelian theory. Rhu demonstrates that Spenser employs similar principles in bringing order to the "threatening profusion of substance in the Garden of Adonis" (71) and elsewhere in The Faerie Queene. Rhu continues in "Milton's Change of Note" to explore the ways in which Milton demonstrates his awareness of the Spenserian pre-text, which frequently proves to be the Liberata. Here Rhu focuses on the Discorsi, noting that in this treatise, Tasso is concerned with similar questions to those addressed by Milton in the proem to Book LX of Paradise Lost. The questions of narrative presence and authorial control are central to our understanding of Ariosto, Tasso, and Milton, and Rhu uses his exploration of these questions as a transition to a broader discussion of the varied critical approaches to both Tasso and Milton. Rhu goes on to suggest that the translations themselves constitute "an effort to make such judgments [about Tasso] more fully informed than has been possible heretofore, especially for readers without Italian" (89).

Rhu's prose is lucid and often witty, and he displays considerable familiarity with all three bodies of critical material - classical, Renaissance, and modern - that he addresses. In general he does a masterful job of presenting complex critical and historical material accessibly, although I found some passages to be heavy going. The translations themselves are fluid and highly readable versions of Tasso's prose. Rhu's decision to modify some of Tasso's lengthier, more Latinate sentences in favor of a shorter, more contained syntax enables him to present Tasso's often tortured prose gracefully and clearly. The result is a volume that is a genuine pleasure to read, in addition to being of scholarly value. Rhu's learning and good humor make the interpretive essays informative and stimulating, and the sensitive translations render Tasso's complex theoretical writings not only accessible but enjoyable as well.

MIRANDA JOHNSON-HADDAD Folger Shakespeare Library