That they played upon it as amateurs seems never to have occurred to them.
The study of Greek which followed the activities of Petrarch was at first confined to a narrow circle and it never spread far beyond the limits of university walls.

But the study of Greek thought and ideals, as obtained from the ancient works, speedily found its way through the entire society of cultivated Italians.

The people had their own poets and their own songs, but the aristocracy, which was highly cultivated, plunged into the contemplation of Grecian art.

The influence of all this on Italian literature was deep and significant.
But there were other significant facts in the history of this era.

Italy was not yet a nation.