Giovanni and Lusanna by Gene Brucker - Book Review

Gene Brucker's Giovanni and Lusanna is an incredibly intimate look into the norms of renaissance law, life, and love. It captures a moment of history with the story of two lovers and their run in with Florentine marital law. Brucker takes records of a marriage dispute from the archives in Florence and turns them into a wonderful account of life in the Renaissance. The main themes Brucker emphasizes include marriage, the social interaction of men and women, and the social status and role of women in the Renaissance. It is necessary to understand the parts, in order to understand the whole. Brucker provides an up close look at important splices of renaissance life, helping the academic community as well as casual fans of history better understand the renaissance as a whole.

The most prevalent theme throughout Giovanni and Lussana is that of marriage in the renaissance. Brucker gives excellent insight into marital law and what constitutes a marriage. In the Renaissance, it seems as if any vow exchanged between a man and a woman with witnesses present constitutes as legal marriage, which was the case for Giovanni and Lusanna. Brucker says "Florentine marriages were typically public and ritualized affairs, the product of lengthy and arduous negotiations between relatives and friends of the family"(Brucker 80). This notion is confirmed by the marriage negotiations of the Del Bene and the Strozzi that took place around the same time period. They list the numerous items that are involved in dowry and wedding negotiations. He also talks about the honor of marriage and stipulations imposed by social standards. "A marriage between two individuals of such unequal backgrounds was improbable, indeed, unthinkable" (Brucker 50). It was disgraceful and dishonorable to marry down in class or to a woman with a bad reputation. Marriage was a very important part of Renaissance life and Brucker successfully gives an intimate tale of a young couples journey to marriage.

Understanding marriage in the renaissance is essential to understand the renaissance as a whole. Marriage gives insight into why people act the way they do, build the things they do, and buy the things they do. It also can show what people consider valuable. "The girl wishes to have a satin gown [for her wedding]" (The Del Bene 33). Certainly if she wants satin then it is because it is valuable and will raise her standing in the eye of the public. Brucker seems to be a hopeless romantic as he leaves out a lot of the negatives of Renaissance marriages. "The Householder of Paris," written about fifty years before the drama of Lusanna and Giovanni played out, spelled out the different roles of women in a marriage and shows some negative aspects. The anonymous husband seems to think his wife (although he loves her) is good for nothing but taking care of him and reproducing. Marriage is one of the most important aspects of Renaissance culture and Brucker gives great insight into the world of renaissance marriage.

One of the more fascinating themes discussed by Brucker is the social interaction between men and women. It is the stereotype that premarital relations between men and women are looked down about and infrequent due to the nature of the times. Men were to be in the fields or shops and women were to be with their mother learning from her the way to be a proper wife. It is also often thought that in the renaissance love and seduction were never of importance to people. Brucker does a great job of illustrating the realities of relationships between men and women. He shows, with the case of Giovanni and Lusanna, that marriages actually did happen through love rather than arrangement. He also notes that it was common for young men to woo women and that premarital sex was almost commonplace. "Young men of his age and background did not normally marry until their mid-thirties; they commonly sough sexual partners from among their social inferiors...and married women" (Brucker 78). Brucker gives a look into the personal lives of single men and women of Florence and the renaissance and shows that it is not nearly what it appears to be.

The social life of renaissance men and women is absolutely one of the most important things to understand when trying to become more knowledgeable about renaissance society. Brucker seems to be rooting for the couple of Giovanni and Lusanna because they break the mold of renaissance relationships. So his description of interactions between men and women may be over emphasized and premarital relations may be looked down upon more than he lets on. He does, however, formulate a rarely seen perspective on renaissance relationships. It is important to the academic world to see this side of renaissance relationships in order to break the stereotype of rigid fixed marriages.

Brucker seems biased towards Lusanna right from the start of the book. He constantly refers to how she took initiative in securing her future and how intelligent and passionate she must have been to seek out Giovanni despite public opinion. So it goes without saying that Brucker would incorporate women and their social status as a main theme. Women played a number of roles in the renaissance. Alessandra Strozzi played the part of the match maker for her daughter and others. The anonymous husband in "The Householder of Paris" says women "ought to be very loving and intimate" ("Householder of Paris" 1) but at the same time serve as a means to reproduction. Brucker tends to stick to womens rights under Florence law. He says "Finally, she persuaded her brother Antonio to take her case to the archbishop's court since women could only be represented by their legal guardians" (Brucker 94). Women were very limited as to what they could do, therefore, Lusanna needed her brother to represent her. Something fascinating about the case, was the point made about a woman's reputation. He says that Antoninus is a just man that supports the rich and poor equally. However, he makes it seem like had Antoninus not been so "just", Lusanna's reputation may have swayed his opinion and Giovanni's status would too have swayed the way the court case went. Giovanni's lawyers harped on the fact that Lusanna was lower class and that she obviously was undeserving of Giovanni. This shows a great discrepancy between men and women, especially between social classes. Brucker seems to be an advocate for women and is quite biased towards Lusanna's side of the case over Giovanni's.

Knowing women's status and roll is a fundamental when it comes to understanding the renaissance. It gives major insight into the values of the time period. Brucker finds Lusanna to be a fascinating, standout woman. Those might be qualities that are desirable in the twenty first century, but in the fifteenth century they are the exact qualities you do not want. He seems to be cheering her on as she goes against the social norm, whereas people of the day might be disappointed and ashamed of her actions. Women were the responsibility of men in the renaissance. When they are born they live under their father until they are married in which case they answer to their husband. If their husband is to die, they must return to the care of their family. Brucker does a nice job of portraying this through her Brother Antonio. He shows several cases where Antonio answers for Lusanna and even talks to Giovanni about abandoning his attempts at suiting Lusanna in order to protect her image. Brucker, although biased towards Lusannna, does a good job of accurately portraying the status and role of women in the renaissance.

Giovanni and Lusanna is an incredible look into the personal lives a young couple in renaissance Florence. It serves as a great read for those interested in the renaissance and as an introduction to the workings of marriage and relationships of Florence. The book brings renaissance Florence down to earth through a personal story, rather than through broad historical facts like a normal textbook. This book is a must read for anyone interested in the history of Florence and it's people and the renaissance as a whole. Gene Brucker does an amazing job of piecing together information found in the Florence archives and turning them into a story everyone can relate to.