Reviews for Beatrice's Spell: The Enduring Legend of Beatrice Cenci

The average rating for Beatrice's Spell: The Enduring Legend of Beatrice Cenci based on 2 reviews is 3 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2010-11-22 00:00:00 Lynnette Gunn The first section -- the Cenci family downfall -- was quite interesting. Ms Jack does a good job summarizing basics & adding enough detail that there's no doubt as to Francesco's guilt. She also confirms that Beatrice is (justly) labeled a sympathetic victim in the mess of abuse & political tangles -- no matter if one agrees with Beatrice's solution, her crime is most definitely that of self-defense, whether emotional, physical, or both. She's guilty, yes; but deserving of execution? Not a chance. Beatrice Cenci is another case of domestic abuse that gets swamped in the politics of history & religion. It's fascinating stuff, & I wish the author had focused solely on the crime, the primary sources, the Cenci family, & the historical backdrop to all these things, rather than reverting to the academia & literary analysis of the last 3/4ths of the book. I found it difficult to relate to Beatrice's tragedy through the lens of these other writers, artists, & performers. Their lives weren't nearly so terrible as hers, so why should I care if they considered themselves put-upon & emo? Yawn. So you have a dark side & feel misunderstood & have trouble connecting to your parents? How unique! *eyeroll* Surprisingly, the best chapters were about Melville & Hawthorne. I still don't care for their writing, but I do sympathize with their self-contained moodiness & fumbling social tendencies. ...On the other hand, this book illuminates what I've always suspected: i.e., Percy Shelley was a total dick. I've never liked his poetry, & now I know why -- he was a spoiled brat with sadistic passive-aggressive issues who never gave a crap for anyone but himself. The author claims he struggled with self-identification & saw parts of himself in both Beatrice & her abusive father...and hey, maybe he did. But he was still an asshole.

Review # 2 was written on 2010-04-23 00:00:00 Evan Mcgovern The young Roman noblewoman Beatrice Cenci was executed in 1599 by Papal authorities for arranging the murder of her monstrously abusive father. To modern eyes the case fairly screams 'extenuating circumstances' and popular sympathy was overwhelmingly in Beatrice's favor, but the Pope's view seems to have been that transgressing against the patriarchal order in this way was the most unpardonable of crimes. The case continues to resonate 400 years later, due to its elements of violence and incest and its issues of guilt vs. innocence, parental authority, and filial obligation. Its sheer human drama has lured such writers and artists as Shelley, Hawthorne, Melville, and Artaud to reinterpret the story, each bringing their own emotional baggage to it and some (like Artaud) becoming slightly unhinged themselves in the process. It all makes fascinating if sometimes grim reading. -Alan