The Lyric Myth of Voice: Civilizing Song in Enlightenment Italy

The Lyric Myth of Voice explores how voice became a metaphor for selfhood in the Western imagination, combining music and literature to shape the singing voice into a tool for civilizing modern Italian subjects.

Format: Hardback
Length: 300 pages
Publication date: 15 November 2022
Publisher: University of California Press

The Lyric Myth of Voice explores the fascinating relationship between voice and selfhood in the Western imagination, tracing its emergence in late eighteenth-century Italy. This period witnessed a convergence of political anxieties and new ideas about cultural enlightenment, giving rise to the mythical figure of the lyric poet-singer. Through a multidisciplinary approach encompassing historical musicology, gender studies, disability studies, anthropology, and literary theory, Jessica Gabriel Peritz delves into the intricate processes that shaped the singing voice into a powerful tool for civilizing modern Italian subjects.

The emergence of an ideological connection between voice and subjectivity in late eighteenth-century Italy is the central focus of The Lyric Myth of Voice. This connection was shaped by a complex interplay of political anxieties, cultural enlightenment ideals, and the evolving concept of the individual in society. Historical musicology provides valuable insights into the musical practices and traditions of the time, revealing how music was used to convey social and political messages. Gender studies shed light on the gendered implications of voice, exploring how it was perceived and interpreted differently by men and women. Disability studies explore the ways in which the singing voice can be seen as a site of resistance and empowerment for individuals with disabilities.

Anthropology examines the cultural significance of voice across different societies and time periods, highlighting its role in religious rituals, storytelling, and social bonding. Literary theory provides a framework for analyzing the symbolic and metaphorical meanings of voice in literature and music, exploring how it can be used to express and explore the self.

Through a comprehensive examination of these various approaches, The Lyric Myth of Voice offers a rich and nuanced understanding of the evolution of the singing voice as a metaphor for selfhood in the Western imagination. It demonstrates how music and literature together shaped the singing voice into a powerful tool for expressing and exploring the complexities of human subjectivity, enabling individuals to negotiate their identities and engage with the world around them.

The publisher would like to express its gratitude to the AMS 75 PAYS Fund of the American Musicological Society for their generous support of this project. The support of the National Endowment for the Humanities and the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation is also acknowledged.

Weight: 544g
Dimension: 160 x 238 x 27 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780520380790