Il dissenso letterario nella Firenze Medicea: la condanna dell’ingratitudine, l’elogio degli esiliati e il mito di Scipione l’Africano

Abstract

The Medicean government of the 15th century was characterized by intense political tensions and the banishment of numerous illustrious citizens. While the literary production of 15th-century Florence often praises the actions of the Medici family, there is also a widespread restlessness for justice that seeks various forms without ever being fully appeased. What unifies this "dissenting" literary production is the shared political imagination, suggesting a crisis of justice that is not only individual but collective. The contribution aims to analyze such contestation of the regime by considering the Latin and vernacular literary production of Florence, such as Pulci's Morgante, the works of Vespasiano da Bisticci, and Niccolò Cieco. The analysis aims to highlight the use and recurrence of certain topoi, such as the condemnation of the ingratitude of civic leaders and the praise of exiles, who are equated with Scipio Africanus, a prestigious reflection of an increasingly marginalized urban élite in the management of power.