Résumé
Résumé de La Flamme
À qui s’adresse-t-il ?
For readers who enjoy rich, sensuous prose, passionate love stories and artistic ambition, and anyone curious about Venice, the theatre and the artistic mood of the 1890s.
De quoi parle ce livre ?
The Flame is a novel by the Italian writer Gabriele D'Annunzio, published in 1900. It is set in Venice in the autumn, and it follows a love affair between a young poet and an older actress. The poet is Stelio Èffrena. The actress is known by her stage name, La Foscarina. Around them stand the palaces, the canals, the glass workers, the musicians and the idle rich of the city.
D'Annunzio wrote it from his own life. He was a poet, a novelist and a public showman, and he had been the lover of the great actress Eleonora Duse. Readers of his day saw the portrait at once, and many found the book cruel or shameless. What does it give you? A close look at a mind that treats art as the highest thing in life, and a love story that shows what that belief can cost. It also gives you Venice in lavish detail. Let us begin with the meeting of the two lovers on the water.
Dans ce résumé
- 1Two artists meet again in autumn VeniceFree
- 2Stelio dreams of a new kind of art
- 3La Foscarina loves and fears the loss of youth
- 4A younger woman enters the circle
- 5Art burns the people who serve it
- 6How the novel is built and why it shocked
Point clé 1 sur 6
Two artists meet again in autumn Venice
The story opens in Venice in the late season, when the summer crowds have gone and the city turns dim and golden. Stelio Èffrena is a young poet who is sure of his own gift. He moves through the city as if it were a stage built for him. He is admired, he is talked about, and he enjoys both.
He is joined by La Foscarina, an actress of great reputation who has played in many cities. She is older than he is, and she carries the tiredness of a woman who has given herself to audiences for years. The two have a history, and the novel picks up their bond at a moment when it is about to deepen. A night ride on the lagoon, with the dark water and the lights of the palaces, sets the tone for what follows.
From the first pages, D'Annunzio makes it clear that this is not an ordinary courtship. Both of them think of their feelings as material for art. A kiss, a silence or a glance is described as if it were a scene in a play. The city seems to watch them and to answer them.
For the listener, the point is to notice how little of the early action is plot. Most of it is mood and talk. The meeting itself, in the cool light of autumn, tells you what kind of book you have started.
That’s 1 of 6 key points.
The rest of the summary, written and spoken, and the whole book: free to start.
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Who’s who
- Stelio Èffrena
- Stelio Èffrena is a gifted young poet, La Foscarina’s lover, and the focus of Daniele Glauro’s admiration.
- La Foscarina
- La Foscarina is an admired actress and Stelio’s older lover, who fears losing her youth and his attention.
- Donatella Arvale
- Donatella Arvale is a young singer whose voice and freshness attract Stelio within La Foscarina’s circle.
- Daniele Glauro
- Daniele Glauro is Stelio’s devoted friend and admirer, listening closely to his ideas about artistic creation.
About this edition
Every format is free to start, and print and large print are at cost.
- LengthAbout 88,000 words
- Reading timeAbout 5 h 55 min
- Listening time9 h 50 min
- FormatseBook, large-print eBook, audiobook, 15-minute summary
- LanguagesEnglish and 11 other languages
Questions about La Flamme
What is The Flame by D'Annunzio about?
It is about a love affair in Venice between the young poet Stelio Èffrena and an older actress, La Foscarina. It also deals with art, ambition, aging and the price of living for beauty.
Who is La Foscarina based on?
Readers of the time saw the actress as a portrait of Eleonora Duse, who had been D'Annunzio's lover. The link made the novel a scandal when it appeared in 1900.
Why is the novel called The Flame?
The flame stands for passion and for the fire of creation. The book asks how far a person may give themselves to it, and what it burns away.
Is The Flame hard to read?
No. The story is simple to follow: a young poet and an older actress meet again in autumn Venice and fall into a love affair. The book is also divided into clear parts, and the lovely language is meant to be enjoyed aloud.
When was The Flame written and where is it set?
D'Annunzio published it in 1900, in Italian, under the title Il fuoco. It is set in Venice in the autumn, among its palaces, canals and artistic circles.