In the state of thought at that time prevalent in Italy, burdened as he was with an irresolute and diffident self-consciousness, Tasso could not deviate from the theory he had promulgated.

How this hampered him, will appear in the sequel, when we come to notice the discrepancy between his critical and creative faculties.

For the moment, however, the Dialogues on Epic Poetry only augmented his fame.
Scipione Gonzaga, one of Tasso's firmest and most illustrious friends, had recently established an Academy at Padua under the name of Gli Eterei.

At his invitation the young poet joined this club in the autumn of 1564, assumed the title of Il Pentito in allusion to his desertion of legal studies, and soon became the soul of its society.

His dialogues excited deep and wide-spread interest.