It is probably hard to find a person who does not know the answer to the question: Casanova - who is this? This word has long come into use and is familiar to everyone. The name of the famous adventurer and writer from Venice Casanova Giacomo Girolamo has become a household name today. This “citizen of the world” has become one of the most interesting personalities and a symbol of the bygone 18th century.
Who is Casanova? He is certainly an outstanding personality of his time. To begin with, it is worth noting that Casanova is an Italian writer, author of a long list of historical essays, the Iskameron science fiction novel. And also he wrote popular memoirs entitled "The Story of My Life", in which Casanova appears as a great and loving heartthrob. In his memoirs, Giacomo gave a clear description of the mores of the era.
The versatility of Casanova’s personality
So who is Casanova? For his contemporaries, as well as readers and descendants, Giacomo was a versatile and erudite personality. Casanova in literature was known as a prose writer, poet, playwright, philologist, translator, historian, mathematician, lawyer, chemist, musician, financier and diplomat. But in the rest of the world, Casanova is a lecherous gambler, an alchemist who revealed the secret of creating the philosopher's stone and creates gold, a duelist, Rosicrucian, a secret agent, a healer, a fortuneteller, and so on. What of all this was true, now no one will say for sure.
The adventurer carefully maintained his versatile but uniquely majestic reputation with the diverse stories of his adventures and love affairs, which were certainly told at dinner parties and dinners among the audience absorbing them like a sponge. Stories passed from one table to another - rumors multiplied.
Memoirs of Giacomo Casanova
The famous Italian could not get used to the idea that his descendants would not remember him. Therefore, he described his fascinating life on paper. Moreover, the writing of memoirs is dedicated to the era of the death of the old society: the fall of the French monarchy, the partition of Poland, the disappearance from the world maps of the Venetian Republic. The manuscript conveys all social and moral norms of behavior of that time.
The Venetian writer at the same time belonged to both Italian culture and French. Despite all the implausibility of the events described in the memoirs, they are reliable. Many of the life episodes on the manuscript pages have been documented. Trying to present herself in the most favorable light, Giacomo Casanova in the process of writing reverses events, confuses the chronology. With all this, the roguish memoirs are presented in the form of a list of victories in the love field, a career novel, an adventurous psychological narrative.
Love affairs
All manifestations of love were interesting for the Italian, however, none of the novels culminated in a wedding, because freedom for Casanova was more expensive than any state. He taught some young people secular customs, and other carnal pleasures. At the same time, he entered into love affairs with absolutely everyone: prostitutes, aristocrats, poor, rich, nuns, even with his niece.
History of Casanova Giacomo: childhood
The famous Venetian was born on April 2, 1725, on Easter, near the church of St. Samuel, in the family of the artist Casanova Gaetano Giuseppe and actress Farussi Zanetta. After him, another five children were born in the family. During the growing up of Giacomo, Venice was a European center of pleasure, the rulers of which encouraged the arrival of tourists with vicious intentions. The republic was an indispensable point in the famous aristocratic Grand Tour and was famous for its gambling houses and beautiful courtesans.
At the age of 11, Giacomo first experienced the affection of the opposite sex in the face of Gozzi Bettina's younger sister. Young Casanova showed an enviable thirst for knowledge, which instilled in his mentor, abbot, faith in the future of the young man in the legal field. At 17, Giacomo already had a degree. In addition to jurisprudence, he was also interested in many other sciences, especially medicine. While studying, he also became addicted to gambling.
Entry into adulthood
Giacomo began to work as a lawyer at the church, and was accepted as novice by the Patriarch of Venice. By that time, the young Casanova had acquired a special charm and charm and acquired power in her own patron senator Malipiero. He received excellent instructions from him about behavior in the upper strata of society, and also learned to understand food and wine.
In January 1744, Giacomo arranged to work with the influential Cardinal Aquaviva d'Argon as secretary. However, after the scandal that occurred in the love field, Casanova was dismissed.
Fitting the role of a soldier
Without stopping at church work, Giacomo decided to acquire a patent for an officer of the Republic of Venice in August 1744. The new role for him seemed very boring, and promotion was very slow. Casanova was drawn to feats and not to the military. Therefore, already in October, he interrupted his service and returned to his native republic.
San Samuele Theater Violinist Career
Being a musician of the theater, Casanova did not fail to try on the skin of her fallen colleagues, participating in violent orgies and evenings with scandalous rallies. However, soon luck again smiled at his beloved, who already disgusted the role of musician. Senator Giovanni Bragadina, who was wounded in a gondola while swimming, became his obliged life. At that time when everyone was ready to call the priest, so that he would forgive sins and then pray over the dying, Casanova took the treatment into her own hands and saved the life of the senator. He subsequently adopted Giacomo and became his good patron until the end of his days.
All 1749 Casanova traveled to Italy. And after a significant win in cards, he went to the Grand Tour. In Lyon, he joined the community of Freemasons, the Order of the Roses and the Cross. Having learned French in Paris, the Italian translated the tragedy “Zoroaster” into his native language, which he himself staged at the Royal Theater of Dresden.
Piombi Prison
During travels in Austria and Germany, Casanova wrote a lot of comedy plays. And returning to Venice and incurring the wrath of the Inquisition with his antics, Giacomo was arrested. The prison in which the dissolute Venetian was imprisoned was intended for well-known political criminals. He made a desperate attempt to escape. However, he was captured and placed back in prison. The second escape attempt was successful, and Giacomo left for Paris.
"Casanova": the meaning of the word in the modern world
Several centuries passed, but the womanizer remained in human memory. Today everyone knows the common name "Casanova". This word is very popular among the people. There is no such person who would not use it. There are many literary characters, movie heroes, who unwittingly called Casanova. The synonyms of the common name today are diverse: a womanizer, seducer, womanizer, ladies man, playboy and many others. This is due to the fact that Giacomo Casanova gained the most popularity precisely thanks to her love affairs, which were described in autobiographical memoirs. Romance books and feature films are being written about them today.