This book has been inspired by the emphasis that Mark Davie's studies have put on the
cooperative nature of artistic and intellectual pursuits in the humanities. Whilst the
importance of connections between intellectuals is often acknowledged in the form of
intertextual studies research into real dialogue between individuals is little researched
partly due to the practical challenges of such research. The ten chapters of this book -
written by specialists in different cultures - redress in part this imbalance and offer a new
angle on the canon by tracing the impact of concrete partnerships and communities in Italian
and European history. The issues that the volume's contributors keep in mind include: the
reasons that artists and intellectuals choose to collaborate the forms that this collaboration
takes the factors that determine its success and whether some areas of culture lend
themselves to intellectual collaboration better than others.
