dublinka

Although he is more widely known today for his cyclical theory of history (from rise, development, acme [the highest point], to decline and fall), Giovanni Vico's earliest publications were in poetry rather than philosophy; he authored the Lucretian poem "Affetti di un disperato" ("The Feelings of One in Despair") (composed in 1692) and "Canzone in morte di Antonio" ("Ode on the Death of Antonio Carafa")- both published in 1693. As such he left us a number of interesting ideas on poetry and its function, in his masterpiece The New Science including the idea of a transition from a poetic consciousness to a rational consciousness of humankind. It's worth a look if you have the time.