Ricerc@Sapienza

This article focuses on the technique of autonominatio in the poems of Occitan
troubadour Marcabru (ca. 1125-1150). The essay considers the distinctive
features of the verbal and pronominal structures of Marcabru’s vers and
examines the social context of his poetry taking into account the passages in
which the name Marcabru appears: where does Marcabru name himself? to
which social group does he address? to which social group does he declare to
belong? Thanks to this enquiry, we propose a new interpretation of some vers,
based on the difference between the textual ‘I’ and the persona designating
himself with the name ‘Marcabru’. Moreover, we present some new hypothesis
concerning the social context of the troubadour’s poetical activity.