"A Room with a View" Reader's Guide

Page 4

FLORENCE, ITALY


In contrast, the beginning and ending of the book take place in Florence, Italy, the cradle of the Renaissance, the quintessential location for the open mind.

 

Florence, Italy
Florence, Italy, at Night
Ponte Santa Trinita over the River Arno
Appennino by Giambologna

Forster quipped, “There is something majestic in the bad taste of Italy.”

 

Michelangelo's David

While few would label little in Florence as bad taste, its features are some of the most majestic and most sought out in Europe. For hundreds of years, artistic pilgrims have flocked here to see Michelangelo’s David, the dome of the city’s famous cathedral, the Gates of Paradise on its baptistery and the countless paintings and sculptures by the great Renaissance masters found in its churches and museums. Public art fills parks, and squares. It seems that no matter where one turns, the view here is varied and inspiring.

Ghiberti's Gates of Paradise

The danger, of course, is that world views here are much less restrained than strict Edwardian society is comfortable with. – And so the struggle begins.

Palazzo Vecchio, Chapel of Eleonora, Frescoes by Agnolo Bronzino
Fountain of Neptune in Piazza della Signoria

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