Adele Benedetta Craveri (born 23 September 1942) is an Italian literary critic, academic and writer. She was born in

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

, the daughter of the historian and political activist Raimondo Craveri and the writer and translator Elena Croce (herself the daughter of the philosopher

Benedetto Croce Benedetto Croce, ( , ; 25 February 1866 – 20 November 1952) was an Italian idealist philosopher, historian, and politician who wrote on numerous topics, including philosophy, history, historiography, and aesthetics. A Cultural liberalism, poli ...

). She studied literature at the University of Rome, graduating in 1969, and went on to teach at

Tuscia University University of Tuscia (, UNITUS) is a university located in the city of Viterbo, Italy. Founded in 1979, the University comprises 6 academic departments. Much of the campus occupies the former monastic complex of Santa Maria in Gradi, Viterbo, Sa ...

Viterbo Viterbo (; Central Italian, Viterbese: ; ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) in the Lazio region of Italy, the Capital city, capital of the province of Viterbo. It conquered and absorbed the neighboring town of Ferento (see Ferentium) in ...

. Since 2005 she has taught at the

Suor Orsola Benincasa University of Naples The Suor Orsola Benincasa University of Naples () is a private university located in Naples, Italy. It was founded in 1895, named after the venerable sister Ursula Benincasa and is organized into 8 departments. Organization The university is divid ...

. Her book, ''Madame du Deffand e il suo mondo'' (1982) was translated into English by

Teresa Waugh Lady Teresa Lorraine Waugh (''née'' Onslow; born 26 February 1940) is a British novelist and translator. Early life Waugh was born at 11 Ormonde Gate, Chelsea, London, the daughter of William Onslow, 6th Earl of Onslow (then Viscount Cranley) ...

; the English version was first published in the United States. A ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' critic described Craveri's writing as having "the subtlety of a novelist and the precision of a scholar" and the book as "a work of stunning originality". Craveri's first husband was the critic and writer Masolino D'Amico, by whom she had two daughters, one of whom,

Margherita Margherita is an Italian feminine given name. It also is a surname. As a word, in Italian it means " daisy". The name is related to Margaret. Given name As a name, it may refer to: * Margherita da Trento (anglicized as Margaret of Trent) compa ...

, is a well-known writer and activist. Following her divorce from D'Amico, she married a French diplomat, Benoît d'Aboville. The couple lived for a time in

Brussels Brussels, officially the Brussels-Capital Region, (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) is a Communities, regions and language areas of Belgium#Regions, region of Belgium comprising #Municipalit ...

as a result of his diplomatic duties. Craveri is a member of the

Istituto dell'Enciclopedia Italiana Institute Giovanni Treccani for the publication of the Italian Encyclopedia (), also known as Treccani Institute or simply Treccani, is a cultural institution of national interest, active in the publishing field, founded by Giovanni Treccani a ...

. From 1976 until 1986 she produced the cultural review ''Spazio 3'' on Italy's

Rai Radio 3 Rai Radio 3 (''Radio tre'') is an Italian radio channel operated by the state-owned public-broadcasting organization RAI and specializing in culture and classical music. It is currently directed by Andrea Montanari. Founded on 1 October 1950 ...

. In 2017, Craveri was awarded the

Prix mondial Cino Del Duca The Prix mondial Cino Del Duca (Cino Del Duca World Prize) is an international literary award from France. With an award amount of , it is among the richest literary prizes. Origins and operations It was established in 1969 in France by French b ...

, which recognises an author whose work constitutes, in a scientific or literary form, a message of modern humanism.

Selected works

*''Vita privata del maresciallo di Richelieu'' (1989) *''La civiltà della conversazione'' (2001) *''Amanti e regine. Il potere delle donne'' (2005) *''Maria Antonietta e lo scandalo della collana'' (2006) *''Gli ultimi libertini'' (2016) (translated into English as ''The Last Libertines'' New York Review Books (2020))

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Craveri, Benedetta 1942 births Italian women writers Italian writers Writers from Rome Living people