Mario Alberto Labate

Biography

Born in Reggio Calabria in 1950, he graduated from the University of Pisa and at the Scuola Normale Superiore di Pisa in 1968-72. He graduated from the Normale School in 1972-74. At the University of Florence he was 'contractor' (1975-1980), researcher (1980-1987), associate professor (1987-1994), and is an ordinary professor of Latin Literature from 1994 to present. He was Director of the Department of Sciences of Antiquity (1998-2001), Coordinator of the PhD in Research in Antiquity, Middle Ages, Renaissance at the Institute of Humanities at the University of Florence (2003-2008), Director of the Institute of Humanist Studies (2007-2010). He has collaborated in research initiatives promoted by the Gramsci Institute and the History of Rome by Einaudi. He is a member of the Scientific Committee on Materials and Discussions for Classical Text Analysis, Dictynna Revue de poétique Latin and Mirtia. Participate as the head of the Florentine unit at an international reseau of research on Augustan poetry, adhering to the Universities of Florence, Udine, Lille, Dublin, London, Heidelberg, Oxford, Cambridge, Geneva, Rome La Sapienza, Berlin FU, Normale Superiore , and organizes international colloquia on common topics each year in different locations.

Research Interest

His studies mainly deal with Augustan poetry, and in this field, he has dedicated his attention to the mixture and to epic poetry, and especially to Ovid. He also takes an interest in Latin narrative, with studies above all on Petronius, both from the literary and the critical-exegetic point of view. Among other authors, he has worked on Horace, Virgil and Tacitus. His methodological approach shows an emphasis on the study of cultural models and poetic imagination, but also for the study of literary forms and intertextuality.