Jacopone da Todi

Jacopone da Todi (yäkōpô`nā dä tô`dē), 1230?–1306, Italian religious poet, whose name was originally Jacopo Benedetti. After the sudden death of his wife, he renounced (c.1268) his career as an advocate, gave his goods to the poor, and after 10 years of penance became a Franciscan tertiary. Jacopone was excommunicated and imprisoned (1298) for signing a manifesto against Pope Boniface VIII. After his release, he retired to a hermitage. He wrote many ardent, mystical poems and is probably the author of the hymn Stabat Mater Dolorosa. The spiritual value of poverty is frequently the theme of his poetry.

Bibliography

See E. Underhill, Jacopone da Todi, Poet and Mystic (with selections, 1919); H. White, A Watch in the Night (1933).

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Jacopone da Todi 

(real name, Jacopo dei Benedetti). Born circa 1230 in Todi, Umbria; died Dec. 25, 1306, in Collazzone. Italian poet.

Jacopone was educated as a lawyer and practiced law until 1268. He subsequently entered the Franciscan Order. As a result of his vigorous denunciation of Pope Boniface VIII, he was excommunicated from the church and imprisoned; his confinement lasted from 1298 to 1303. Folk legends depicted him as a holy fool.

Jacopone’s poetry was connected with the mass religious movements of the 13th century and expressed their spirit and ideals. In his laudi written in the Umbrian dialect (sacred songs), which made wide use of images from secular lyric poetry, he defended ascetic scorn for earthly riches, glorified poverty, and spoke rapturously of his love for god. One of his best laudi is “The Lady From Paradise,” or “The Lament of the Madonna,” a kind of drama about the execution of Christ. Jacopone also wrote hymns in Latin, including “Stabat Mater.”

WORKS

Laudi. Florence, 1953.

REFERENCES

De Sanctis, F. Itoriia ital’ianskoi literatury, vol. 1. Moscow, 1963.
Trombadori, G. Jacopone da Todi. Venice, 1925.
Russo, L. Ritratti e disegni storici, series 3: Studi sul Due e Trecento. Bari, 1951.
Sapegno, N. Frate Jacopone. Naples, 1969. (Contains bibliography.)

R. I. KHLODOVSKII