Eleonora Duse and the Poetic Debut of Sara Teasdale

This paper analyzes the impact of the figure of Eleonora Duse on the poetess Sara Teasdale, who included in her first collection a series of lyrics dedicated to her (Sonnets to Duse and Other Poems, 1907), and also considered her in the following collection (Helen of Troy and Other Poems, 1911). Teasdale never saw Duse acting, but the great Italian actress accompanied the young American poetess in her poetic debut, thanks to which she managed to overcome a difficult period due to health problems. Duse became her guide, helping her to develop an aesthetic as a poetess and to reveal her inner world. Some of these compositions were also taken up by the American press in 1922 and 1923, on the occasion of Duse’s last tour in the United States. With her appreciated poetry, Teasdale helped to consolidate the myth of Duse in the Twentieth century.