In the Italian lyrical tradition, Guido Cavalcanti embodies a legendary and elusive figure. His reputation began to build shortly after his death in 1300 and became established during the following century. Cavalcanti has been handed down more as a philosopher and a logician gifted with a formidable intellect than as a poet. The cultural rank he achieved is especially attested by the proliferation of commentaries that, ever since the thirteenth century, have been produced about his major canzone Donna me prega.
Cavalcanti’s body of poems is slender; its content is, however, groundbreaking. The relevance of his poetic production was acknowledged from the beginning by his contemporaries, whose incisive portrayals turn Guido Cavalcanti into a powerful icon. He is mentioned in some of the most crucial fictional and nonfictional literary works of the Trecento...
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Citation: Anichini, Federica. "Guido Cavalcanti". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 03 July 2008 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=5040, accessed 15 December 2025.]
