Francesco de Sanctis facts for kids
Francesco de Sanctis (born March 28, 1817, died December 29, 1883) was a very important Italian writer and teacher. He was known for his deep understanding of Italian language and books. He lived in the 19th century and helped shape how people thought about literature.
Contents
About Francesco De Sanctis
Early Life and Education
Francesco de Sanctis was born in a town called Morra Irpina. This town is in southern Italy. His family owned land and his father was a lawyer. Two of his uncles were involved in the Carbonari uprisings. These were secret groups fighting for Italian freedom in the 1820s. Because of this, his uncles were sent away from their home.
Francesco finished high school in Naples. He then studied at a special Italian language school there. This school was started by Marquis Basilio Puoti.
A Teacher and Critic
Later, De Sanctis opened his own private school. He quickly became famous for knowing a lot about Italian literature. People in academic groups respected his knowledge.
In 1848, he worked for a new government that was trying to change things. Because of this, he was put in prison in Naples for three years. After he was set free, he became a popular speaker in Turin. He gave talks about famous Italian writers like Dante. In 1856, he became a professor at ETH Zürich, a big university in Switzerland.
His Political Life
In 1860, De Sanctis went back to Naples. He became the minister of public education. This meant he was in charge of schools and learning. He held this important job several times. He worked for the Italian Monarchy in 1861, 1878, and 1879. In 1861, he also became a member of the Italian parliament.
In 1871, he became a professor at Naples University. Here, he taught about different types of literature from around the world.
De Sanctis also supported the ideas of Darwinism. This is the theory of evolution by natural selection. He even gave lectures about it.
Lasting Impact
Francesco de Sanctis was highly respected as a literary critic. A literary critic is someone who studies and judges books and writing. His most famous work is called Storia della letteratura italiana. This means "History of Italian Literature." He also wrote many other important studies about literature. Some of these were published after he died in 1883.
Many people followed De Sanctis's ideas. One of his most famous students was Benedetto Croce. De Sanctis's main ideas were about aesthetics. This is the study of beauty and art. His way of looking at literature is still very important in Italy today.
See also
In Spanish: Francesco De Sanctis para niños
