The first book in English to examine Leon Battista Alberti's major literary works in Latin and Italian, which are often overshadowed by his achievements in architecture
Leon Battista Alberti (1404–1472) was one of the most prolific and original writers of the Italian Renaissance-a fact often eclipsed by his more celebrated achievements as an art theorist and architect, and by Jacob Burckhardt's mythologizing of Alberti as a "Renaissance or Universal Man." In this book, Martin McLaughlin counters this partial perspective on Alberti, considering him more broadly as a writer dedicated to literature and humanism, a major protagonist and experimentalist in the literary scene of early Renaissance Italy. McLaughlin, a noted authority on Alberti, examines all of Alberti's major works in Latin and the Italian vernacular and analyzes his vast knowledge of classical texts and culture.
McLaughlin begins with what we know of Alberti's life, comparing the facts laid out in Alberti's autobiography with the myth created in the nineteenth century by Burckhardt, before moving on to his extraordinarily wide knowledge of classical texts. He then turns to Alberti's works, tracing his development as a writer through texts that range from an early comedy in Latin successfully passed off as the work of a fictitious ancient author to later philosophical dialogues written in the Italian vernacular (a revolutionary choice at the time); humorous works in Latin, including the first novel in that language since antiquity; and the famous treatises on painting and architecture. McLaughlin also examines the astonishing range of Alberti's ancient sources and how this reading influenced his writing; what the humanist read, he argues, often explains what he wrote, and what he wrote reflected his relentless industry and pursuit of originality. Martin McLaughlin (1950-2025) was the Agnelli-Serena Professor of Italian at the University of Oxford from 2001 to 2017 and an emeritus fellow of Magdalen College, Oxford. He was the author of Literary Imitation in the Italian Renaissance and Italo Calvino. He translated Italo Calvino: Letters, 1941–1985 (Princeton), Calvino's Why Read the Classics? and Leon Battista Alberti's Biographical and Autobiographical Writings. "Authoritative and engaging, this book is the most complete map to date of Alberti's literary production and a welcome addition to the field of Alberti studies. Combining close readings of Alberti's major works with philological inquiry into their classical sources of inspiration, McLaughlin portrays an eclectic and erudite humanist increasingly steeped in classical antiquity and a highly original, plain-speaking writer for his times."-Ita Mac Carthy, author of The Grace of the Italian Renaissance
"Martin McLaughlin's erudition and interpretative brilliance illuminate every page of this book, and his analysis is always fresh, insightful, and inventive. Leon Battista Alberti transforms our understanding of one of the most enigmatic and engaging figures of the Italian Renaissance. It will undoubtedly remain a landmark in Alberti studies, literary studies, and Renaissance studies for many years to come."-Caspar Pearson, author of Leon Battista Alberti: The Chameleon's Eye "A fascinating and fitting monument to one of the Renaissance's most formidable literary minds."---Alexander Lee, Literary Review "[A] scholarly study. . . . McLaughlin knows his subject inside and out." "A comprehensive view of the humanist's literary output."---Suzanna Murawski, New Criterion "A genuinely awe-inspiring piece of scholarship and research."---Terry Potter, The Letterpress Project "[A] learned, lucid book. . . . McLaughlin has set out to show what sort of writer Alberti was, and the results are impressive."---Anthony Grafton, London Review of Books "Martin McLaughlin's. . . . scholarly yet lucid writing makes plain just how original and individual a figure [Alberti] was, an
