Ars est celare artes. Zur Rocca di Tristano-Episode in Ariostos Orlando furioso

Abstract

The dissimulatio artis follows, at least, two different traditions since antiquity: on the one hand, it is integrated in the tradition of rhetoric, one the other hand, it is part of the ars amatoria. Furthermore, the dissimulatio artis is neither a theoria nor a praxis in the Aristotelian sense, but could be considered as a poiesis. Ariosto takes advantage of this specific status of the dissimulation artis in his Orlando furioso, especially in the Rocca du Tristano-Episode, in order to present its potential to ennoble specific artistic techniques and to transform these techniques into art: ars est celare artes. By doing this, Ariosto creates an ars fabula narrandi that demonstrates its own capacities by using the dissimulatio artis for the presentation of different arts: ars fabula narrandi est celare artes.