Natasha Piano: 'Medieval Tyranny and Modern Elections'

Professor Natasha Piano of UCLA presents “Medieval Tyranny and Modern Elections: Chaucer and the Italian Tyrants.” By going back to Chaucer’s Italian literary and political sources of inspiration – Petrarch, Bocaccio, Bernabò Visconti, and others – this lecture investigates the nature of medieval tyranny and its modern manifestations in the contemporary political landscape.

About the speaker and events

Natasha Piano is an assistant professor of political theory in the Department of Political Science at UCLA. She specializes in democratic theory and the history of political thought, focusing on the realist and empirical traditions in political science and Italian political philosophy.

The event is part of the 9th Biennial Chaucer Celebration at ASU, March 14-15, 2024, which commemorates the life and work of medieval author Geoffrey Chaucer. This year's celebration is themed "Chaucer and Tyranny" and features a public lecture by Professor Natasha Piano (UCLA), a roundtable discussion, and an exhibition of ASU Library’s collection of early printed editions of Chaucer’s works.

All events are free of charge, open to the public, and take place at ASU's Tempe campus.

The 2024 Chaucer Celebration is sponsored by ASU’s Dean of Humanities in The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences; Department of English; Arizona Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies; ASU Library; Humanities Institute; School of Historical, Philosophical and Religious Studies; and School of Politics and Global Studies.