Don Ferrante

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Don Ferrante


(Picture: etsy.com)

(Picture: braidense.it)

Don Ferrante e quei professoroni

One could respect writer and poet Alessandro Manzoni (1785-1873), at his day, for many reasons. Giovanni Morelli, for example, admired him for example for a sharp eye, for exquisite observational skills, and not the least: for displaying of an exquisitely fine irony.

But another and certainly less well known reason was that Alessandro Manzoni did not feel it to be necessary to be ornated with a Prussian order of merit Pour le Mérite. In fact, this was something that could impress young men tremendously: that writer Alessandro Manzoni first even refused that order, then, after not other than Alexander von Humboldt had written, yet accepted (probabaly also due to not having to wear that order).

If Manzoni, in his best-known work, the historical novel I Promessi Sposi, does portrait a 17th century scientist, namely Don Ferrante, one cannot help to think that this portrait of Don Ferrante is also redolent of what Manzoni observed in contemporary scientists, and also, perhaps, in Berlin professors. But Don Ferrante is, of course, not the portrait of a Berlin professor, on the contrary: the description of Don Ferrante is probably referring, albeit indirectly referring, if one does like so: ex negativo referring, to individuals that Giovanni Morelli once referred to as quei professoroni (or has Don Ferrante also something of quei professoroni?). Because the portrait of Don Ferrante is the portrait, not lacking fine irony, of a flexible mind. Of a distant relative of uncle Sven, one might say here (and compare here). Of someone disliking to be commanded, but no less disliking to command.

Giovanni Morelli, by the way, accepted the portrait of Don Ferrante as a historical source (see GM to Jean Paul Richter, 13 January 1885). In that Don Ferrante was shown, by Manzoni, as a reader of the medieval writer Albertus Magnus. And when, in the late 19th century one did discuss if Leonardo da Vinci had been a reader of Albertus Magnus, and if the universal genius had believed what Albertus Magnus had transmitted as to the customs of animals, one did refer to Don Ferrante (that is to Manzoni). Yes, one had read Albertus Magnus in the 17th century. Because Manzoni had said so. An authority, at least as far Morelli was concerned, perhaps not necessarily much more respected than certain of quei professoroni, but certainly much more loved and respected.

(Picture: ebay.cit; Liebig pictures of I Promessi Sposi)

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