<p>The novel "The Flame" (Italian: Il fuoco) is set in 1883 Venice and tells the story of a young artist and his mistress, a famous actress. This novel reflects D'Annunzio's romance with Eleonora Duse, an Italian actress, rated by many as the greatest of her time. Duse was five years older than her lover, and this theme got a reflection in the novel. The protagonist of the story, an alter-ego of D'Annunzio, is a young poet Stelio Effrena, a close...