Exactly how steamy is this poem?
G
There may be intense desire and sexual longing at the back of these words, but you won't see anything explicit here. (Head on over to Ovid or Boccaccio if you're looking for something more titillating). We might say that Petrarch is being suggestive in places, like lines 43-46:
[there] were flowers in a rain upon her bosom,
and she was sitting there
humble in such glory,
now covered in a shower of love's blooms:
a flower falling on her lap
Or perhaps a flower is just a flower. Petrarch's gaze is also very intently focused on Laura's remembered body—and not just on her bright eyes and charmingly blonde curls. He focuses first on her "lovely body" (3) and her "lovely side" (7), both of which make the beleaguered poet sigh. All occurrences told, however, Canzone 126 is still far tamer than a Disney princess movie.