Cicisbeo in the eyes of British Travellers in Italy in the 18th and 19th centuries
Fecha
2024-09-20
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Jaén: Universidad de Jaén
Resumen
[ES] El fenómeno del cicisbeísmo, junto con otras modas locales y costumbres italianas, se presentó a
los jóvenes nobles británicos durante su Gran Tour educativo en los siglos XVIII y XIX. Este TFM
examina el contexto histórico que sentó las bases del Grand Tour y de los escritos de viaje
posteriores en el contexto de la expansión colonial y del dominio imperial británicos. Los hábitos y
la cosmología de los británicos se comparan con la práctica del cicisbeo a la vez que se examina
cómo los testigos ingleses lo describían y se identifican las razones por las que no cuajó en Gran
Bretaña. Se ha analizado la vida y las obras de Lord Byron, y en concreto el poema Beppo: A
Venetian Story, para profundizar en este tema. Finalmente, se concluye que la reacción británica al
cicisbeísmo revela un sentimiento nacionalista británico de superioridad y puritanismo que ha
resultado crucial en la imagen estereotipada que los viajeros tenían de Italia y de sus costumbres
“corruptas”.
[EN] The phenomenon of cicisbeism, alongside other local manners and Italian customs were introduced to young British noblemen during their educational Grand Tour in the 18th and 19th centuries. This Master’s Dissertation examines the historical context which laid the foundations of the Grand Tour and of the ensuing travel writings in the context of British colonial expansion and imperial rule. British people’s habits and cosmology have been compared with the practice of cicisbeo while examining how it was described by the English witnesses and attempting to identify the reasons why it did not catch on in Britain. Lord Byron’s life and works, specifically the poem Beppo: A Venetian Story, have been analysed for their insight into this topic. Finally it is concluded that the British reaction to cicisbeism reveals a British nationalistic sense of superiority and puritanism which has proved crucial to the stereotyped image that travellers had of Italy and of its “corrupt” customs.
[EN] The phenomenon of cicisbeism, alongside other local manners and Italian customs were introduced to young British noblemen during their educational Grand Tour in the 18th and 19th centuries. This Master’s Dissertation examines the historical context which laid the foundations of the Grand Tour and of the ensuing travel writings in the context of British colonial expansion and imperial rule. British people’s habits and cosmology have been compared with the practice of cicisbeo while examining how it was described by the English witnesses and attempting to identify the reasons why it did not catch on in Britain. Lord Byron’s life and works, specifically the poem Beppo: A Venetian Story, have been analysed for their insight into this topic. Finally it is concluded that the British reaction to cicisbeism reveals a British nationalistic sense of superiority and puritanism which has proved crucial to the stereotyped image that travellers had of Italy and of its “corrupt” customs.