Clues that Guido Cavalcanti had the morbus florentinum (aka an inclination for both sexes)
a masterpost to tidy up years of guidoposting
! morbus florentinum is a condition I just made up. don't go around saying morbus florentinum unironically. for your own credibility.
⚠️ Disclaimer! This post is still incomplete. My idea here is to assemble a list of all the "clues" that support this thesis, and to each one attach a link to another post where I elaborate on the clue and analyse it. This means the list will expand in time, as I collect my sources, and it will take a while before you will find a link to all of them. If you think I should check something that isn't in the list, do write in the comments and I'll be sure to consider it (or even if you just want to help in case I forgot [X] material, which is absolutely realistic yk).
With that said, you can keep reading, have a good day :]
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Primary sources.
1. Dino Compagni, Cronica delle cose occorrenti ne' tempi suoi, I.20. He refers that Corso called Guido “cavicchia” derogatively (which is possibly meant as sodomite), and that jesters reused that in their performances.
2. Lapo degli Uberti, Guido quando dicesti pasturella. He holds that Guido had a homosexual encounter with a shepherd in the woods.
3. Bonagiunta da Lucca, Con sicurtà dirò po' ch'i' son vosso. He opens with a sure declaration of love for Guido, though what he means by it it's unclear.
4. Guido Orlandi, all his correspondence with Guido. It is possible to find a double meaning in Orlandi's words, where he insinuates many things about our Guido, including his homosexual habits.
5. Dante, Divina Commedia, Inferno, XV.106-108. He refers that sodomy was mostly practiced amongst clerical and intellectual circles, which may reflect his own personal experiences.
Picking up from our last source, if we decide to admit to some kind of special relationship between Dante and Guido existed, then we will have to consider a lot of material (like. a lot.), both from Guido but especially from Dante, which is a long and complex work that I think would need a masterpost on its own. For the moment, let's limit ourselves to the most explicit and relevant source:
6. Guido Cavalcanti, I' vegno 'l giorno a te infinite volte. He speaks to Dante, lamenting how they fell apart, in words that explicitly pertain to the sphere of courtly love.
