Kendall Weinert
The Last Letters of Jacopo Ortis
In Ugo Foscolo’s novel, The Last Letters of Jacopo Ortis, Foscolo discusses the idea of
love and its boundaries. Throughout the novel, Jacopo knows very well that he
cannot be with the one love in his life that makes him truly happy, Teresa,
because of her fiancé Odoardo. Even though Teresa wants to love Jacopo she
knows she cannot because Odoardo promises her family wealth and happiness and
he cannot. Jacopo has committed his life to loving Teresa and only Teresa. “And
who would not love her, even though unhappy?” (Foscolo 63) This quote shows
that even if he is unhappy or in pain he will still want to be with her.
As the novel
carries on, Jacopo is still in love with Teresa. Jacopo knows he cannot have
Teresa, but once again refuses to give up hope. He wants her to love him as
much as he loves her even if he cannot offer what Odoardo can provide. He
states, “if you cannot be my bride, will you at least be my companion to the
tomb.” (Foscolo 63) At the end of the novel, Jacopo has finally come to the
realization that he will never be with Teresa. He knows that it will never work
out and that there is in fact a boundary that cannot be crossed. Once Jacopo
realizes this he decides to write a letter to Teresa that confesses everything
and stab his heart because it cannot be given to her. In the letter he states,
“You will lament our love which was useless and sad like...the dead.” (Foscolo
134) After he finishes the letter, he carries threw with his plan to stab his
heart in agony. In this process he missed his heart and stabs himself just
below it and bleeds to death. Jacopo was so compassionate that he could no
longer live without having Teresa in his life.
Works Cited
Foscolo,
Ugo. Last letters of Jacopo Ortis. London: Hesperus, 2002. Print.
Your point about Jacopo not being able to give up his love for Teresa is true. He goes so far even as to end his own life. Love requires sacrifice and Jacopo was willing to make sacrifices to be with Teresa. Like you said, he was willing to be unhappy as long as it was with her, that is true love. On the other hand if you believe that you love someone that bad but you know that you never will be, it is time to move on so that you don't hurt yourself. Jacopo should have just moved on with his life and avoided death and found other occupations to make him happy. He is searching for happiness but he is getting to caught up in Teresa. At the same time though, if you really love someone you should do what it takes at all costs to make it work.
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