80 pages • 2 hours read
The Agony and the Ecstasy: A Novel of Michelangelo
A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Character Analysis
Michelangelo Buonarroti
The Agony and the Ecstasy is a fictionalized telling of the life of Michelangelo Buonarroti. The novel’s version of Michelangelo is a tortured genius, a devout and conflicted spiritual seeker, a stubborn craftsman dedicated to perfection, and a man in constant tension with the political and religious forces of his time. From the beginning of the novel, Michelangelo’s identity is inseparable from his creative drive. Stone presents him not merely as a talented artist, but as someone for whom art is a sacred calling, a vocation that transcends worldly concerns such as religious squabbles between the Medici and Savonarola. Even when Michelangelo takes part in the political machinations around him, he does so in service of his art. The title itself, The Agony and the Ecstasy, reflects this duality: the pain and the joy that Michelangelo experiences through his relentless pursuit of artistic perfection, with little heed paid to anything else.
Michelangelo is defined by his reluctance to compromise, even when it would ease his burdens. His resistance to painting the Sistine Chapel ceiling, for example, is not just about the physical strain or his inexperience with fresco, but about staying true to himself as a sculptor. He wants to work in Unlock all 80 pages of this Study Guide Plus, gain access to 9,250+ more expert-written Study Guides. Including features:
Related Titles
By Irving Stone
