Amazon.com description: Product Description: History and Culture in Italy is a scholarly, introductory survey of the history and culture of Italy, focusing on art and architecture, literature and philosophy, politics and historical events, and observations of daily life in modern Italy. The book is based on lectures and tours given over the course of four years to American students in Italy. It is written as a narrative, which readers have found makes it enjoyable to read. Chapters are identified according to subject. The book emphasizes the importance of the history and culture of Italy to modern life and identity in Western culture.