Marfisa
Encyclopedia
Marfisa is a character in the Italian romantic epic
s Orlando innamorato
by Matteo Maria Boiardo
and Orlando furioso
by Ludovico Ariosto
. She is the sister of Ruggiero
but was separated from him in early childhood. She becomes queen of India and fights as a warrior for the Saracen
s, taking part in the siege of the fortress Albracca until her sword is stolen by Brunello
. She falls in love with Ruggiero, unaware who he is until Atlante
reveals their background. Learning that her parents were Christian, she converts to the faith and joins the Emperor Charlemagne
's army against the Saracens.
Marphisa raised her face with haughty cheer,
And answered him: "Thy judgment wanders far;
I will concede thy sentence would be clear,
Concluding I am thine by right of war,
If either were my lord or cavalier
Of those, by thee unhorsed in bloody jar:
Nor theirs am I, nor other's, but my own,
Who wins me, wins me from myself alone.
Orlando Furioso
(tr. by William Stewart Rose
,http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/615), 26, 79
Epic poetry
An epic is a lengthy narrative poem, ordinarily concerning a serious subject containing details of heroic deeds and events significant to a culture or nation. Oral poetry may qualify as an epic, and Albert Lord and Milman Parry have argued that classical epics were fundamentally an oral poetic form...
s Orlando innamorato
Orlando Innamorato
Orlando Innamorato is an epic poem written by the Italian Renaissance author Matteo Maria Boiardo. The poem is a romance concerning the heroic knight Orlando .-Composition and publication:...
by Matteo Maria Boiardo
Matteo Maria Boiardo
Matteo Maria Boiardo was an Italian Renaissance poet.Boiardo was born at, or near, Scandiano ; the son of Giovanni di Feltrino and Lucia Strozzi, he was of noble lineage, ranking as Count of Scandiano, with seignorial power over Arceto, Casalgrande, Gesso, and Torricella...
and Orlando furioso
Orlando Furioso
Orlando Furioso is an Italian epic poem by Ludovico Ariosto which has exerted a wide influence on later culture. The earliest version appeared in 1516, although the poem was not published in its complete form until 1532...
by Ludovico Ariosto
Ludovico Ariosto
Ludovico Ariosto was an Italian poet. He is best known as the author of the romance epic Orlando Furioso . The poem, a continuation of Matteo Maria Boiardo's Orlando Innamorato, describes the adventures of Charlemagne, Orlando, and the Franks as they battle against the Saracens with diversions...
. She is the sister of Ruggiero
Ruggiero (character)
Ruggiero is a leading character in the Italian romantic epics Orlando innamorato by Matteo Maria Boiardo and Orlando furioso by Ludovico Ariosto. Ruggiero had originally appeared in the twelfth-century French epic, Aspremont, reworked by Andrea da Barberino as the chivalric romance Aspramonte...
but was separated from him in early childhood. She becomes queen of India and fights as a warrior for the Saracen
Saracen
Saracen was a term used by the ancient Romans to refer to a people who lived in desert areas in and around the Roman province of Arabia, and who were distinguished from Arabs. In Europe during the Middle Ages the term was expanded to include Arabs, and then all who professed the religion of Islam...
s, taking part in the siege of the fortress Albracca until her sword is stolen by Brunello
Brunello (character)
Brunello is a character in the Italian romantic epics Orlando innamorato by Matteo Maria Boiardo and Orlando furioso by Ludovico Ariosto. Brunello is a dwarf and a cunning thief who works for the Saracen army of King Agramante. He first appears in the second book of Orlando innamorato where...
. She falls in love with Ruggiero, unaware who he is until Atlante
Atlantes (Sorcerer)
Atlantes was a powerful sorcerer featured in the chansons de geste. The sorcerer built a castle of iron in the Pyrenees to keep knights and ladies he had captured as a diversion for Ruggiero, a Saracen knight. Atlantes feared that Ruggiero would convert to Christianity and aid Charlemagne against...
reveals their background. Learning that her parents were Christian, she converts to the faith and joins the Emperor Charlemagne
Charlemagne
Charlemagne was King of the Franks from 768 and Emperor of the Romans from 800 to his death in 814. He expanded the Frankish kingdom into an empire that incorporated much of Western and Central Europe. During his reign, he conquered Italy and was crowned by Pope Leo III on 25 December 800...
's army against the Saracens.
Quotation
Marphisa raised her face with haughty cheer,
And answered him: "Thy judgment wanders far;
I will concede thy sentence would be clear,
Concluding I am thine by right of war,
If either were my lord or cavalier
Of those, by thee unhorsed in bloody jar:
Nor theirs am I, nor other's, but my own,
Who wins me, wins me from myself alone.
Orlando Furioso
Orlando Furioso
Orlando Furioso is an Italian epic poem by Ludovico Ariosto which has exerted a wide influence on later culture. The earliest version appeared in 1516, although the poem was not published in its complete form until 1532...
(tr. by William Stewart Rose
William Stewart Rose
William Stewart Rose was a British poet and translator, son of George Rose, who held various Government offices, including that of Treasurer of the Navy...
,http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/615), 26, 79
Sources
- Boiardo: Orlando innamorato ed. Giuseppe Anceschi (Garzanti,1978)
- Ariosto:Orlando Furioso, verse translation by Barbara ReynoldsBarbara ReynoldsBarbara Reynolds is an English scholar, lexicographer and translator, wife of the philologist and translator Lewis Thorpe.-Early life:The daughter of Alfred Charles Reynolds, and the god-daughter of Dorothy L...
in two volumes (Penguin Classics, 1975). Part one (cantos 1-23) ISBN 0-14-044311-8; part two (cantos 24-46) ISBN 0-14-044310-X - Ariosto: Orlando Furioso ed. Marcello Turchi (Garzanti, 1974)