This Poem is the result of a sense of duty, which has taken the Author from quieter studies during a great public crisis. He obeyed the impulse with joy, because it took the shape of verse; but with more pain, on some accounts, than he chooses to express. However, he has done what he conceived himself bound to do; and if every zealous lover of his species were to express his feelings in like manner, to the best of his ability, individual opinions, little in themselves, would soon amount to an overwhelming authority, and hasten the day of reason and beneficence. – Summary by Advertisement     [chương_files]  

A long poem telling the tragic story of Francesca da Rimini, the duped and adulterous bride, inspired by the character in Dante’s Inferno. Published in 1816 and dedicated to Lord Byron, it is considered the pinnacle of Hunt’s poetic achievements. Hunt, though having fine artistic sensibilities, was not placed among the first rank of lyric poets, many of whom he championed however. The Story of Rimini was written in prison, where he spent two years for slander of the Prince Regent, and is dramatically and vividly told, with much evocative scene-setting and careful portrayal of emotional conflicts. (Peter Tucker)     [chương_files]