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Lorenzo Geri is an Associate Professor in the Department of Modern Literature and Culture at Sapienza University of Rome's Faculty of Letters and Philosophy. His academic work focuses on Italian literature from the Middle Ages through the Renaissance, with particular expertise in Petrarchan studies, humanism, and Baroque literature. He teaches multiple courses including Italian Literature I, Texts and Questions of Italian Literature III, Italian Renaissance, and Italian Culture and Literature across various degree programs. Professor Geri's research spans eight major areas: meta-literary paths in Petrarch's work; Petrarch's relationship with religious culture; Petrarch's courtly connections; Italian lyric poetry from its origins to the 16th century; Baroque literary genres; Lucian's influence in the 15th century; connections between Italian and Northern European humanism; and Guicciardini's political experience. His work demonstrates deep engagement with textual analysis, historical context, and interdisciplinary approaches to literary studies. His recent publications show a strong focus on Petrarch's epistolary works, Erasmian studies, and Italian lyric poetry. The trend in his scholarship reveals increasing attention to the intersection of religious culture with literary production, particularly examining how theological concepts shape poetic expression across different historical periods. His editorial work on collections like 'Paths in Free Will' demonstrates his ability to synthesize complex interdisciplinary topics. Professor Geri has co-edited significant collections including 'Italian Lyric Poetry: A Fundamental Lexicon (13th-14th centuries)', 'Paths in Free Will: Theology, Philosophy and Literature from the Late Middle Ages to the Reformation', and 'Lirica e sacro tra Medioevo e Rinascimento'. His research has been supported by projects such as 'The political poetry in Curia from Avignon to Rome (1334-1513)' and studies on the manuscript circulation of Petrarch's anticurial texts. His office hours are held on Thursdays from 3-4pm, and he conducts exams in Room 1 of the Department of Modern Literature and Cultures on the fourth floor of the Faculty of Letters and Philosophy building.

• Italian Literature
• Francesco Petrarca
• Middle Ages
• +10 more

Laura Refe is a researcher and faculty member in the Department of Italian Language, Literature, and Arts in the World (LILAIM) at the University for Foreigners of Perugia, where she has been conducting research and teaching in Philology of Italian Literature since December 2021. She holds a fixed-term research position under Italian national law and is actively involved in both research projects and academic instruction, including in Digital Humanities and Italian language teaching programs. Her academic background is distinguished by numerous prestigious fellowships and research appointments, including at Villa I Tatti (Harvard University), the Warburg Institute (University of London), Ca’ Foscari University of Venice, and the Herzog August Library in Wolfenbüttel. She earned her Abilitazione Scientifica Nazionale for Associate Professor in both Italian Philology and Italian Literature. Dr. Refe's research centers on Italian Renaissance literature, with a particular focus on Francesco Petrarca, his annotations of classical texts, and the transmission of Aristotelian philosophy in the vernacular. Her work spans textual criticism, manuscript studies, paratextual analysis, and intellectual history. She has led a national PRIN PNRR research project on 'Petrarch and the Reformation' and contributed to other major initiatives, including an ERC Starting Project on Aristotle in the Italian Vernacular. Her recent publications reveal a sustained and deep engagement with Petrarchan studies, particularly his marginalia on Cicero’s De natura deorum and the complex textual history of his Ad Posteritatem . She also investigates Renaissance translators, manuscript provenance, and the intellectual networks of humanists like Poliziano and Boccaccio. Among her notable honors are the 'Young Researchers 2006' Prize from the University of Messina and the 12th 'Marino Moretti' Prize for Philology (2015) for her critical edition of Petrarch’s Epistle to Posterity . She has advised and collaborated on research projects, though specific names of students are not listed in the provided text. She is actively involved in scholarly communities, with a strong publication record in peer-reviewed journals and edited volumes. Dr. Refe is a member of academic networks and contributes to editorial and research teams, including work on the Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani and collaborative volumes on Renaissance humanism. Her work bridges traditional philology with digital and interdisciplinary approaches.

• Italian Philology
• Philology of Italian Literature
• Italian Renaissance Literature
• +9 more

Thomas Persico is a researcher in Italian Literary Philology (Rtd-B) at the Department of Foreign Languages, Literatures, and Cultures at the University of Bergamo. His academic work focuses on Dante studies, medieval Italian literature, and the intersection of poetry and music. He has established himself as a significant scholar in the field of Italian philology with numerous publications and critical editions. Persico specializes in Dante and his exegesis, medieval and modern Italian metrics, and the relationship between poetry and music. His research demonstrates a unique interdisciplinary approach that bridges literary analysis with musicology, particularly in examining how medieval Italian poetry was performed. He has published extensively on these topics in scholarly journals and has contributed to major critical editions, including the "Edizione Nazionale dei Commenti Danteschi" (Antenore Publishing House, 2025). His work often explores the performative aspects of medieval poetry, revealing how textual transmission intersects with musical practices of the time. His recent publications show a clear trend toward philological studies of Dante's commentary tradition and medieval Italian lauds. Persico has made significant contributions to the understanding of Alberico da Rosciate's commentary on the 'Purgatorio' and has co-edited important works on Cristofano Guidini's 'Cantari sulla Legenda aurea.' His scholarship demonstrates particular expertise in textual transmission, manuscript studies, and the relationship between poetry and musical performance in medieval Italy. The interdisciplinary nature of his work connects literary studies with musicology and religious studies, particularly in examining how sacred texts were adapted into vernacular Italian poetry. Persico serves on the scientific committee of the European Research Council project "Laudare, The Italian Lauda: Disseminating Poetry and Concepts through Melody (12th-16th Centuries)" and is a member of the Teaching Committee for the PhD Program in Transcultural Humanistic Studies at the University of Bergamo. He also contributes to the academic community through his membership on the editorial boards of "Dante. International Journal of Studies on Dante Alighieri" and "Sinestesie," as well as the scientific committee of the Acta et Studia series. His academic background includes musical studies with specialization in Renaissance and Early Modern Keyboard Music, which informs his unique approach to studying the relationship between poetry and music in medieval Italian literature. This dual expertise in both literary philology and music provides him with distinctive analytical tools for examining how medieval Italian poetry was performed and transmitted.

• Dante Studies
• Italian Literary Philology
• Medieval Italian Metrics
• +4 more

Monica Berté serves as Full Professor in the Department of Modern Literature and Culture at Sapienza University of Rome. She holds significant institutional roles including Secretary of the Accademia dell'Arcadia, membership on the Commission for the National Edition of the Works of Francesco Petrarca, the Scientific Committee of the Ente Nazionale Giovanni Boccaccio, and the editorial board of Aevum . As editor of the Rivista di Studi Danteschi and Atti e memorie dell'Arcadia , and scientific director of Petrarca on-line (POL), she actively shapes scholarly discourse in Italian philology. Her research centers on the Latin works of Dante, Petrarch, and Boccaccio (the "three crowns" of Italian literature), with groundbreaking contributions to textual criticism and manuscript studies. Berté has produced critical editions of Dante's ancient biographies, Petrarch's Seniles and Impromptus , and annotations on classical texts including Suetonius and Cicero. Her discovery of Petrarch's autograph annotations on Livy's Ab Urbe condita and Mansionario's Ystorie imperiales represents major scholarly interventions in Renaissance manuscript traditions. Berté's publication trajectory reveals deep engagement with material philology, particularly in analyzing marginalia, autograph manuscripts, and textual transmission. Her work consistently bridges medieval and humanistic studies through meticulous examination of codicology, textual variants, and authorial practices, while co-authoring foundational textbooks like Medieval and Humanistic Philology for Il Mulino. She teaches core undergraduate courses including Fundamentals of Rhetoric and Text Analysis and Medieval and Humanistic Philology, maintaining structured office hours for student consultation. Berté's leadership extends to major editorial projects and digital humanities initiatives through POL, demonstrating sustained commitment to advancing Dantean, Petrarchan, and Boccaccian scholarship through both traditional and innovative academic frameworks.

• Philology
• Italian Literature
• Medieval Literature
• +6 more