Romano Luperini, one of Italy’s most respected literary scholars and critics, has died at the age of 85. A leading figure in the study of modern and contemporary Italian literature, Luperini left an enduring mark on academic and cultural life through both his teaching and his publications.
Born in Lucca in 1940, he served for many years as Professor of Italian Literature at the University of Siena, where he trained generations of students and researchers. Throughout his career, Luperini contributed significantly to the critical interpretation of major Italian authors and literary movements, from Giovanni Verga to Eugenio Montale and Franco Fortini.
He was widely known for co-authoring La scrittura e l’interpretazione alongside Pietro Cataldi and Lidia Marchiani, one of the most influential and widely adopted literature textbooks in Italian schools. His work helped modernize literary criticism and remains a cornerstone in the teaching of Italian literature across the country.