Cesarotti, Melchiorre (1730–1808)

Italian writer. His Filosofia delle lingue/Philosophy of Language (1785) advocates a free development of language, as opposed to the teaching of the Accademia della Crusca in Florence.

He also wrote Filosofia del gusto/Philosophy of Taste and was responsible for the definitive edition of James Macpherson's works attributed to Ossian, 1773. This exercised a great influence in Italy and elsewhere. He also made a prose translation of the Iliad, which he followed with a long verse paraphrase, running into ten volumes, called La Morte d'Ettore.

He was born in Padua, where he was professor of Greek and Hebrew at the university from 1768 until his death. When Italy was invaded by the French, he wrote in defence of their cause, and Napoleon I made him a knight of the Iron Crown and gave him a pension. By way of expressing his gratitude he wrote an epic poem, Pronea, in praise of the emperor.