“Not beauty, not nobility,
Not fortune will suffice to raise a wife
To highest honour and esteem if she
Neglects to lead a chaste and seemly life.”

— Ludovico Ariosto , book Orlando Furioso

A donna né bellezza,
Né nobiltà, né gran fortuna basta,
Sì che di vero onor monti in altezza,
Se per nome e per opre non è casta.
Canto XLIII, stanza 84 (tr. B. Reynolds)
Orlando Furioso (1532)

Original

A donna né bellezza, Né nobiltà, né gran fortuna basta, Sì che di vero onor monti in altezza, Se per nome e per opre non è casta.

Orlando Furioso (1532)

Adopted from Wikiquote. Last update June 3, 2021. History

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Ludovico Ariosto 97

Italian poet 1474–1533

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