Tra stelle e pianeti: i nomi nella poesia astronomica del Settecento

Abstract

In the didactic poetry of the 18th century, the poems devoted to astronomy assumed a particular importance: through an elegant writing, this genre favoured the divulgation of astronomical knowledge, often by the literary expedient of the dream. A significant case is Il sistema de’ cieli, by Carlo Castone Della Torre. In this short poem, besides the names of the classic mythology, you can find the names of modern philosophers and scientists, such as Galilei, Newton, Keplero, etc. The presence of both kinds of names reveals the need for new scientific theories without neglecting an important tradition.