Full citation:Bell, Rudolph M. 1987. “Renaissance Sexuality and the Florentine Archives: An Exchange” in Renaissance Quarterly, Vol. 40, No. 3: pp. 485-511
This response (and re-response) to Judith Brown’s Immodest Acts is one of those features of academic discourse in which one scholar takes a public podium to critique the scholarship and conclusions of a colleague. As usual, it includes a rebuttal by the original author.
To be honest, the substance of this article hinges on details of the authorship and chronology of the primary resources but does not substantially dispute the events or conclusions with regard to Benedetta Carlini’s erotic activities. Therefore I see no practical point in summarizing it in detail