| abstract | - The Renaissance, inspired by the rediscovery of the philosophy and art of the Classical period, was also a new dawn for homoerotic expression. A male's desire for another male was primarily constructed as an adult's desire for an adolescent, beardless youth. Consequently, pederastic aesthetics influenced art and literature throughout Europe. Among the luminaries of the time who praised or depicted romantic liaisons with youths were Marsilio Ficino, Benvenuto Cellini, and Leonardo da Vinci. A philosophic defense — possibly tongue-in-cheek — of the practice was provided by Antonio Rocco, in his infamous L'Alcibiade, fanciullo a scola (Alcibiades the Schoolboy) a reasoned polemic in which a schoolmaster gradually overcomes his handsome pupil's objections to carnal relations.
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