Petrarch has many claims to fame: master of the love sonnet, obsessive curator of the lyric self, father of humanism, stylistic exemplar to the Renaissance. Students will delve deeply into Petrarch's Canzoniere -- his major collection of poetry -- and his pithy works in prose, gaining a nuanced understanding of the 14th-century Italian author's contribution to the Western literary canon. All texts will be read and discussed in English; students with knowledge of Italian or Latin are encouraged to read in the original language.