The Cenci was a verse drama by Percy Bysshe Shelley written in the summer of 1819, and inspired by a real Italian family, the Cencis (in particular, Beatrice Cenci).

The play was considered unperformable in its day due to its theme of incest, and was not performed in London until 1922.

It was included in the Harvard Classics as one of the most important and representative works of the western canon.

Other works titled "The Cenci" include a true crime story by Alexandre Dumas and a novella by Stendhal.

External links

• Text at Bartleby

• Introductory Note at Bartleby

Poems by Shelley | English plays | 1819 books