Mavro Vetranovic
Encyclopedia
Mavro Vetranović (1482–1576) was a prolific Croatian writer and Benedictine
friar from Dubrovnik
.
Born in Dubrovnik in 1482, he entered the Benedictine Order in 1507 on the island of Mljet
, and after a period of education in Monte Cassino
in Italy
returned to Mljet as the abbot of the monastery. In the 16th century, the monastery was the centre of the Mljet Congregation (Congregatio Melitensem or Melitanam), gathering all the monasteries of Benedictine monks in the area of the Republic of Dubrovnik, and Vetranović was the first president of the Congregation.
He wrote prolifically throughout his life, leaving a large body of work including prose
, drama
, religious and satirical poetry
and an unfinished epic
running to 4374 verses. In his writing he revealed himself to be a patriotic Dalmatian and Croatian.
Croatian academic Franjo Švelec has divided the work of Vetranović into three periods. In the first, up to the end of the 1520s, his topics were primarily youth and poetry with romantic and mythological themes. In the second, until the end of the 1540s, he was dominated by 'serious' themes. In the last, until the end of his life, he returned somewhat to the themes of his youth thus closing the circle of life and creative journey.
He died in 1576.
Order of Saint Benedict
The Order of Saint Benedict is a Roman Catholic religious order of independent monastic communities that observe the Rule of St. Benedict. Within the order, each individual community maintains its own autonomy, while the organization as a whole exists to represent their mutual interests...
friar from Dubrovnik
Dubrovnik
Dubrovnik is a Croatian city on the Adriatic Sea coast, positioned at the terminal end of the Isthmus of Dubrovnik. It is one of the most prominent tourist destinations on the Adriatic, a seaport and the centre of Dubrovnik-Neretva county. Its total population is 42,641...
.
Born in Dubrovnik in 1482, he entered the Benedictine Order in 1507 on the island of Mljet
Mljet
Mljet is the most southerly and easterly of the larger Adriatic islands of the Dalmatia region of Croatia. The National Park includes the western part of the island, Veliko jezero, Malo jezero, Soline Bay and a sea belt 500 m wide from the most prominent cape of Mljet covering an area of...
, and after a period of education in Monte Cassino
Monte Cassino
Monte Cassino is a rocky hill about southeast of Rome, Italy, c. to the west of the town of Cassino and altitude. St. Benedict of Nursia established his first monastery, the source of the Benedictine Order, here around 529. It was the site of Battle of Monte Cassino in 1944...
in Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
returned to Mljet as the abbot of the monastery. In the 16th century, the monastery was the centre of the Mljet Congregation (Congregatio Melitensem or Melitanam), gathering all the monasteries of Benedictine monks in the area of the Republic of Dubrovnik, and Vetranović was the first president of the Congregation.
He wrote prolifically throughout his life, leaving a large body of work including prose
Prose
Prose is the most typical form of written language, applying ordinary grammatical structure and natural flow of speech rather than rhythmic structure...
, drama
Drama
Drama is the specific mode of fiction represented in performance. The term comes from a Greek word meaning "action" , which is derived from "to do","to act" . The enactment of drama in theatre, performed by actors on a stage before an audience, presupposes collaborative modes of production and a...
, religious and satirical poetry
Poetry
Poetry is a form of literary art in which language is used for its aesthetic and evocative qualities in addition to, or in lieu of, its apparent meaning...
and an unfinished epic
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...
running to 4374 verses. In his writing he revealed himself to be a patriotic Dalmatian and Croatian.
Croatian academic Franjo Švelec has divided the work of Vetranović into three periods. In the first, up to the end of the 1520s, his topics were primarily youth and poetry with romantic and mythological themes. In the second, until the end of the 1540s, he was dominated by 'serious' themes. In the last, until the end of his life, he returned somewhat to the themes of his youth thus closing the circle of life and creative journey.
He died in 1576.
See also
- Republic of Dubrovnik
- DubrovnikDubrovnikDubrovnik is a Croatian city on the Adriatic Sea coast, positioned at the terminal end of the Isthmus of Dubrovnik. It is one of the most prominent tourist destinations on the Adriatic, a seaport and the centre of Dubrovnik-Neretva county. Its total population is 42,641...