The poem narrates the events of the war between Charlemagne and the Arabs, tracing the journey of Ruggiero, progenitor of the House of Este, toward the Christian faith and his allegiance to the Carolingian king.
Alongside Ruggiero, the stories of the other characters unfold, weaving innumerable tales—some grafting onto the main plot, while others appear as seemingly random digressions.
From reading the poem, an immensely enjoyable and engaging experience, several salient considerations emerge:
its modernity.
The relentless pace of the narrative, the closing of each Canto (leaving anticipation for what will follow in the next), the interweaving of diverse storylines (reminiscent of a soap opera), the delight in imagination and marvelous, incredible events (an extraordinary succession of special effects).
Orlando Furioso stands as a precursor to the prevailing approach in literature and cinema, offering tangible proof of how narrative quality can evoke and construct scenes and settings within the mind—unlike contemporary cinema, which demands a passive spectator.
A close reading of Orlando Furioso through a modern lens would provide valuable material for reflecting upon and re-evaluating contemporary literature and cinematic production;
the pleasure of the imagination.
In Orlando Furioso, critics have often detected an ironic stance on the author's part toward chivalric literature: the renowned Ariostean irony.
In my view, however, what strikes one above all is the primacy of illusion and imagination.
Throughout the poem (especially in the first thirty cantos), one senses how much the author relishes creating fantastical, paradoxical, and extraordinary situations.
And it is precisely from this pursuit of delight (of writing as an escapism for oneself) that the freshness and originality of the entire work spring;
woman and femininity.
The true protagonists of the poem are women, who consistently exhibit a strong, distinctively feminine character.
Consider the figures of the warrior women (Bradamante and Marfisa), who, despite far surpassing men on the battlefield, display a sense of care and affectionate feelings that are quintessentially feminine.
Angelica’s very choice to marry an obscure shepherd over Orlando, driving the latter into madness, seems to underscore the contradiction between the depth of female sentiment and the underlying vacuity of male conduct (dominated by pride and a rigid code of honor).
The author clearly takes the women’s side, often overtly, and at other times allowing his preference to emerge through the characterization and the flow of events;
realism toward politics.
One often speaks of Ariosto’s discretion in avoiding burdening the poem with his personal circumstances and ideas.
Despite this reticence, it is evident that Ariosto held a realistic and melancholic—yet not cynical—view of the Italian situation, and specifically of the rulers' inability to resolve the country’s fragmentation and its resulting subjugation to foreign powers.
In this sense, Ariosto’s perspective as a "public official" surfaces beyond the author’s explicit intentions, offering a glimpse of a figure of profound stature who, unlike Machiavelli, confronts the subject of politics with realism, yet also with profound civic passion.
It is therefore likely that the characters and their fates also symbolize political ideas, thus embodying messages that remain to be deciphered.
The literary style is exquisite, with verse clearly derived from Petrarch, yet undoubtedly more accessible to read.
Perhaps it is precisely this harmonious rhythm that renders it at times somewhat repetitive, especially when the events and the narrative pace fail to hold the reader’s undivided attention.