The Epistolary Vittoria

To fully understand the importance of epistolary exchange and epistolarity in Vittoria Colonna’s thought and writings, it is necessary to go beyond the conventional categories handed down to us by the critical tradition. Within the limits of what may be achieved in the absence of a complete critical edition, we need both to examine the complex networks of relationships within which Colonna moved in her lifetime, and also to investigate the profound connections between her poetic compositions, her epistolary writing, and her religious reflections, all pervaded by a similar dialogic impulse.