Domenico Vittorini facts for kids
Domenico Vittorini (1892–1958) was an Italian writer and American professor. He was known for his work in Romance Languages and World Literature.
Life and Work
Domenico Vittorini was born in Preturo, L'Aquila, Abruzzo, Italy, on October 28, 1892. He passed away in Havertown, Pennsylvania, on March 9, 1958, at 66 years old.
Early Life and Family
In 1917, Domenico Vittorini moved to the United States. He earned a special degree in English from Princeton University. He married Helen Whitney, who was one of his students. They had two children, Helen, born in 1923, and Carlo, born in 1929.
Teaching Career
Professor Vittorini taught for a short time at Temple University. Then, from 1919 to 1958, he joined the faculty at the University of Pennsylvania. There, he taught Romance Languages and World Literature.
He was a very good teacher. For his beginner classes, he used both grammar lessons and speaking practice. His students became very good at speaking and understanding languages. He especially enjoyed teaching about Dante and modern writers like Luigi Pirandello.
Important Books
Even near the end of his life, Vittorini was very active. He wrote many articles and reviews. He also updated some of his books, including Drama of Pirandello, Attraverso i Secoli, and The Age of Dante.
During this time, he also wrote High Points in the History of Italian Literature. This book was a collection of 23 essays about Italian writers, from Dante to his own time. He also started working on Age of Boccaccio and Petrarch, which was meant to follow his book on Dante.
One of his most famous works is a translation of Italian folk tales for children. It was called Old Italian Tales for Children. Later, in 1995, his son Carlo Vittorini helped to republish some of these stories. The new book was called The Thread of Life and featured colorful pictures by children's book artist Mary GrandPre.
Legacy
After his death, his former students and supporters created the Vittorini Scholarship Fund. This fund is part of the America-Italy Society of Philadelphia. Each year, it gives scholarships to excellent college students at the University of Pennsylvania who study Italian literature and culture.
