Dino Campana
| Dino Campana | |
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| Born | Dino Carlo Giuseppe Campana 20 August 1885 Marradi, Italy |
| Died | 1 March 1932 (aged 46) Scandicci, Italy |
| Occupation | Poet |
| Nationality | Italian |
Dino Campana (20 August 1885 – 1 March 1932) was an Italian visionary poet. His fame rests on his only published book of poetry, the Canti Orfici ("Orphic Songs"), as well as his wild and erratic personality, including his ill-fated love affair with Sibilla Aleramo. He is often seen as an Italian example of a poète maudit.
Campana was born near Faenza in the small town of Marradi, which is found in the Apennines along the border between the regions of Emilia-Romagna and Tuscany. His father Giovanni, who was always affecionate and understanding with Dino, was an elementary school principal, and forthright member of the community, but had a weak and neurotic character. His mother, Fanny Luti, came from a wealthy family but was an eccentric and compulsive woman, affected by mental illness. She would often wander the hills, forgetting about family duties, but was overly attached to Dino's brother Manlio, born in 1888. After his younger brother arrived, Dino was overlooked by his mother and had to fight for her affection.
In 1900, at approximately fifteen years of age, Campana was diagnosed with the first symptoms of nervous disturbances, was medicated and sent to an asylum. This did not, however, prevent him from completing most of his schooling. He completed his elementary education in Marradi - his third, fourth and fifth gymnasium years at the Salesiani di Faenza. Afterwards, he began the lyceum at the Liceo Torricelli in Faenza and then in Carmagnola near Turin where he earned his high school diploma in July 1903. When he returned to Marradi his nervous condition worsened and he suffered frequent mood swings - due to the difficult relationship with his family (especially his mother) and the town. To overcome the monotony of winter evenings in Marradi, Dino used to go to the nearby town of "Gerbarola", where he spent time with the locals enjoying roasted chestnuts (marroni chestnuts grow near Marradi). This type of activity appeared to have a positive effect on his mental health. At the age of 18, in the Autumn of 1903 he enrolled in faculty of chemistry at the University of Bologna. In 1905, after being denied entry into the military as an officer in Ravenna, Dino enrolled in faculty of pharmaceutical chemistry in Florence, but afer only a few months he returned to Bologna. Some of his first poetic work would be written here, and later included in Orphic Songs. Campana did not finish university and had a difficult time finding his true calling.
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