Noble Blood – "The Example of an Honest Courtesan"

Host: Dana Schwartz
Date: November 11, 2025
Podcast: Noble Blood (iHeartPodcasts and Grim & Mild)

Overview

In this episode, Dana Schwartz delves into the life and legacy of Veronica Franco, the legendary Venetian courtesan, poet, and intellectual of the 16th century. Using both popular culture (notably the 1998 film "Dangerous Beauty") and primary historical sources, Schwartz examines Franco’s extraordinary rise in a society both captivated and threatened by women like her, her intellectual duels in poetry, her advocacy for women, and her harrowing experience with the Inquisition.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Framing Veronica Franco: Fact, Fiction, and Cinema

• Comparison to "Dangerous Beauty": The episode opens with a detailed breakdown of the iconic dueling scene from the movie "Dangerous Beauty," analyzing how the film uses creative license to dramatize Franco's life.
  • Schwartz highlights the feminist revisions in the film versus the real-life poetic feuds (not actual swordfights) between Franco and her rivals.
  • [03:26] Dana Schwartz: "The movie takes a lot of artistic liberty as a biopic... The basic story of the movie is factual... More extraordinarily, though, in real life, Veronica used her accumulated influence to publish her own writing and advocate for the rights of her fellow Venetian women."

2. Life and Social Standing of a Courtesan in Renaissance Venice

• Schwartz unpacks the crucial differences between a "courtesan" and other sex workers (meretrice), situating Franco within Venice’s cultural landscape.
• Highlights the educational privilege—however limited—Franco had compared to other women of her day.
  • [10:25] Dana Schwartz: "Fewer than 4% of Venetian women had any public schooling in the 1580s... Veronica’s rise to prominence as a writer and courtesan was... fueled by her determination to educate herself later in life."
• The blend of performance, intelligence, and seduction required to succeed as a courtesan, drawing comparisons to the Japanese geisha.

3. Veronica’s Early Life and Entry Into Courtesanship

• Franco was born in 1546, the only daughter of a bureaucratic family of moderate means. Her mother was a courtesan and her ‘go-between’ (manager) as Veronica began her career (~age 18).
• The famous “catalogue” of Venetian courtesans lists Veronica and names her mother as her pieza (manager)—“talk about momager. You can imagine the ‘you’re doing amazing sweetie’ of the 16th century.” [23:13]
• Veronica experienced a brief, failed arranged marriage, documented via her wills made at ages 18 and 24.

4. Franco’s Wills and Financial Autonomy

• Her wills reveal her determination to control her own finances and provide for other women—a radical act.
  • [26:55] Dana Schwartz: "Making sure that women have money, and importantly, access to that money, is a recurring point of order in Veronica’s will."
• She bequeaths money and dowries to female relatives and even seeks to help prostitutes escape the trade by marrying or entering convents.

5. Intellectual Circle & Published Works

• Through the patronage of Domenico Venier, Franco joins a unique literary circle supportive of women writers.
• Her first publication, "Poems in Terza Rima" (1575), explores themes of love, power, and female agency through poetic exchanges with male poets (notably Marco Venier).
  • [36:12] Dana Schwartz: "By publishing a collection including poetic exchanges... Veronica was seeking to elevate her status by putting her work on the same level as her male contemporaries."
• The poetic dialogue with Marco questions the meaning of love, respect, and collaboration between men and women, subverting the male gaze.

6. Battles of Verse: Literary War With Maffio Venier

• The real-life “duel” with Maffio Venier was fought in satirical poems, not swords.
• Maffio’s misogynistic attacks—vile as they were—were met with Franco’s sharp, witty, and public defenses, standing up not merely for herself but all women.
  • [41:28] Dana Schwartz: Franco responds, “We women too have weapons and training, we will be able to prove to all men that we have hands and feet and hearts like yours...”
• Franco turns insults into arguments for her own and her peers’ dignity, foreshadowing modern battles over language and identity.

7. Witchcraft Accusation and Inquisition Trial

• In 1580 Franco is accused of witchcraft—a charge leveled via a petty domestic dispute but carrying extreme dangers for a woman of her position.
• She defends herself with her signature verbal dexterity, redirecting blame and ultimately escaping conviction.
  • [46:14] Dana Schwartz: “Veronica sought to use her command of language to persuade the Inquisitor...”

8. Later Life, Legacy, and Decline

• Franco’s later years are marked by loss of her patron, financial hardship, and eventual obscurity.
• Her last published work, "Familiar Letters," blends personal, intellectual, and moral guidance—remnants of her mission for female autonomy.
• Schwartz emphasizes the brevity but brilliance of Franco’s public career and lasting influence.
  • [49:59] Dana Schwartz: "While her rise and fall in Venetian society was relatively short lived, Veronica’s decade in the spotlight not only produced a body of work that cemented her legacy, but... sought to open doors for other women to do the same..."

9. Cultural Legacy – On Film

• Post-sponsor segment, Schwartz discusses "Dangerous Beauty" and its deliberate storytelling from a woman’s perspective.
  • [55:34] Dana Schwartz: "Few movies have been so deliberately told from a woman’s point of view. Most movies are made by males and show women enthralled by men. This movie knows better."

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the Authenticity of Experience:

  • [23:52] Veronica Franco (as quoted by Dana Schwartz):
    “To make oneself prey to so many men at the risk of being stripped, robbed, even killed... What greater misery, what wealth, what luxuries, what delights can outweigh all this?”

• On the Courtesan’s Power:

  • [40:16] “Among beauties, you are famous for your learning. Among learned women you are known for your beauty. And in both you excel one group and the other.”
    — Marco Venier, from a poem to Franco

• On Agency and Collaboration:

  • [42:32] Veronica Franco (as quoted):
    “Please me more with deeds and praise me less... I do not ask you now to express your love with gold or silver... But... prove your love. You know quite well what I like best. Persevere in this... and you shall be my unique and only lover.”

• On Poetic (and Real) Battles:

  • [47:40] Franco, answering Maffio:
    “We women too have weapons and training, we will be able to prove to all men that we have hands and feet and hearts like yours...”

• On Gender Solidarity and the Legacy of Insults:

  • [48:14] “I undertake to defend all women against you who despise them... It is certain that you miss great pleasure by being unable to savor our sweetness. And I blame your bad habits for being the cause.”

Timestamps for Key Segments

• [03:26] — Introduction to "Dangerous Beauty" and its portrayal of Franco
• [10:25] — Literacy and education of women in Renaissance Venice
• [23:13] — Franco’s origins as a courtesan and her mother’s influence
• [26:55] — Early wills and Franco’s insistence on financial autonomy for women
• [36:12] — Entry into Domenico Venier’s literary circle; publication of her first poetry collection
• [40:16–43:02] — Poetic debates with Marco Venier: agency, love, and intellectual equality
• [47:40] — The virulent poetic battle with Maffio Venier and Franco’s famous counterattack
• [50:56] — The Inquisition trial and Franco’s rhetorical defense
• [53:21] — Decline, poverty, and final years
• [55:34] — Reflection on film adaptation and perspective shift

Tone and Style Notes

Dana Schwartz’s narration is sharp, witty, and empathetic, using humor to bridge the historical and contemporary. She quotes liberally from poetry and primary sources to capture Franco’s voice and determination, while providing clear analysis and context throughout. The language is engaging, often lightly irreverent (“talk about momager; you can imagine the ‘you’re doing amazing sweetie’ of the 16th century”), yet deeply respectful of Franco’s legacy.

Conclusion

Dana Schwartz’s episode on Veronica Franco offers a captivating and comprehensive look at a woman who managed to carve a space for herself—and future women—in a patriarchal society through wit, intellect, and boldness. The blend of lively storytelling, historical rigor, and a focus on female agency make this episode as entertaining as it is instructive, ideally suited for listeners interested in women’s history, literature, or the dazzling, dangerous world of Renaissance Venice.