PRATI, Giovanni, j6-van'ne prate, Italian poet: b. Dasindo, near Trent, 27 Jan. 1814; d. Rome, Italy, 9 May 1884. He studied law at the University of Padua, from which' he was graduated in 1834, but soon turned to litera ture. Strongly anti-Austrian and deeply in sympathy with the movement for national inde pendence and unity under the rule of the royal house of Savoy, he was frequently in political difficulties during the period of Italy's unifica tion. He lived successively in Milan, Turin, Florence and Rome. His first major work, (1841), a narrative poem of the Romantic school, was received with ex traordinary favor. Several volumes of lyric poetry still further increased the poet's reputa tion, but during the last years of his life he wrote but little. In 1862 he was elected to the Italian Parliament and in 1876 became senator. He was a prolific writer of rather uneven merit. Endowed with rich imagination and facility of style and expression, he was lacking in originality and depth. Some of his lyric poems
are amongst the.best of his time, but much of his work is mediocre. His works include 'Canti Lirici, Canti per it Popolo e Ballate> (2 vols., Milan 1843) ; 'Lettere a Maria' (Turin 1843) ; 'Memorie e Lacrime' ; 'Nuovi Canti' (Turin 1844) ; 'Poesie' (Palermo 1844) • 'Nuovi (Venice 1848) •, 'Poesie (Italia 1850); 'Rodolfo' (Turin 1853) •, 'Satana e le Grazie' (Pinerolo 1855) ; (Ariberto' (Turin 1860)•, (Armando' (Florence 1868) ; 'Psiche' (Padua ; 'Iside> (Rome 1878). A collection of his works was published as 'Opere Vane' (S vols., Milan 1875). Consult Zanichelli, D. 'La Rivoluzione de 1848 e le Poesie Politiche di G. Prati> (Bologna 1895) Cavalluzzi, C., 'La Poesia del Prati' (Citta di Castello 1898) ; Emmett, Bruno, 'Saggio Biblio grafico; Giovanni Prati' (in (Atti della R. I. Accademia di Scienze Lettere ed Arti degli Agiati in Rovereto,' serie III, Vol. 17, pp. 173 and 285, Vol. 18, p. 89, Rovereto 1911).