The Education of Love (Complete Translation)

Author: (Italian) Amico
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-04-01
Features: This is the crystallization of the author's twenty years of effort and a thirty-year inner monologue of reason. Anyone who reads this book will be unable to resist its charm. It is an undeniable textbook, filled with benefits, comfort, and stirring emotions that move everyone to tears. Published in 1886, it has remained best-selling ever since and now has over one hundred translations. It is a classic of love that is worth reading for both children and adults. The School for the Heart consists of three parts: one part is the diary of the protagonist Enrico; another part is letters written by Enrico's father, mother, and sister to the protagonist; and the third part is "monthly stories" assigned by the teacher for students to copy. The latter two parts are interwoven with the first part. The diary section records the protagonist's observations and experiences at school, home, and in society, covering a period from October of the first year to July of the following year, totaling ten months. The diary portrays the male and female teachers, classmates, and parents of the classmates at school. They belong to different social classes and have different personalities. Several classmates' personalities carry symbolic meanings, such as Dossi, the top student in class, symbolizing kindness; Goro, symbolizing generosity; Stardi, symbolizing perseverance; Voltini, symbolizing envy; and Nobis, symbolizing arrogance. The letters written by the father, mother, and sister to the protagonist are direct moral teachings, with both persuasion and reprimand, but all delivered in a heartfelt and moving manner. The "monthly stories" section is the most literary part of the book, conveying the author's ideals and morals through the form of stories. Each story features a child as the protagonist, who comes from different regions of Italy and demonstrates excellent qualities such as love for the homeland, love for family, and self-sacrifice through their actions.