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The Meaning of Love through the works of Dante Aligner Devon Strand-Brown “O all ye whose intellects are sound, Look now and see the meaning that is hidden Beneath the veil that covers my strange verses:” (Inferno 9:61) Dante Aligner is indisputably the most famous Italian poet in history. His seminal work, The Divine Comedy still inspires 700 years after its writing and has not yet yielded all of its secrets, though it is one of the most widely studied works ever to be written.
The name “Dante” and that of The Divine Comedy are known the world over, but what of the man Dante? What of the allegory beneath his verses? The history of the Divine Poet, his life, his love and the mysteries of his great achievements are known to relatively few, compared to the number of people who have read the Comedy. My purpose here to open those doors to you, to give a taste of the lessons and mysteries of Dent’s work, to give a glimpse of a man, famous in his time and forevermore, and to recount the greatest tale of Love ever told.
His definition of love may be the most potent and intricate definition ever described, told through four separate levels of allegory, culminating in the rise of the universal goal of Love itself. The Man In that book which is my memory, On the first page of the chapter that is the day when I first met you, Appear the words, ‘Here begins a new life’. ” (Vita) Dante was born in 1 265, though the month is not known. His given name was ranted Delhi Aligner, Dante being a shortened version which he himself, and subsequent ??2?? writers and translators would adopt.
His family name Aligner comes form the Latin word ‘aligner’, which can be translated to “winged. ” Though it came from his father, it was originally passed from a mother, Algeria Loudhailer ?? wife of Suicidal Elise, founder of Florence ?? to her son. Thus Dante can trace his lineage directly back to the founders of his beloved Florence. The root meaning of Durance (and Dante) is more obvious, enduring, as names were of the most importance in those days.
Dante would be happy to know that he has far surpassed the destiny of an enduring name. His father was a man of finance, buying and selling property as well as lending money, something Dante later disapproved of and which found its way into his Inferno. His mother Was also from a well respected Florentine family, the Bait. Her father Durance (whom Dante was named after) was a judge at the time. Much of the Poet’s history we can find in the Comedy because although it is the story of his enlightenment, it also tells the tale of his past.
We see this with his mother, whom we find in the circle of violence in Inferno, for she committed suicide while Dante was still very young, somewhere between 1270 and 1275. After his mother’s death, his father soon remarried and had two more children. It seems Dante had a good relationship with these siblings as he refers affectionately to a sister who visits him while he is sick in “La Vita Nova. ” These references require that I move ahead, to describe the works of Dante or it is especially through them that we learn so much of the man.
I shall discuss The Divine Comedy at greater length in a future section. But as an overview it is the tale of Dent’s journey through Inferno, rising up through Purgatory, then finally moving through Paradise, guided ??3?? by his beloved Beatrice, with his pilgrimage ending with the vision of God. The other work that I shall mention often is “la Vita Nova”, The New Life, which is a compilation of poems, sonnets and stories from throughout his life. It particularly focuses on his love for Beatrice which pervaded his life from the GE Of nine until he died at fifty-six.
At this time Florence was a burgeoning hub of trade and culture, becoming one of the richest and most powerful cities in Italy, and even in Eastern Europe. However the city was divided along many lines; there was a split between the populace and the gentry, yet also among the gentry. The largest of these rifts was that between the Gullah, whom Dante supported, and the Gibberellins. Once the Gibberellins were expelled from Florence another divide occurred; Between the Black Gullets, those who supported the Papacy, and the white Gullets, who wished for more autonomy from Rome.
With the support of Pope Boniface the Black Gullets took control of Florence, destroying many White Gullah homes and exiling Dante. If he were ever to return to his beloved Florence to ‘ airship at his baptismal fount” he would suffer death by burning. Following his exile, Dante wandered from city to city. Reigniting his intellectual spirit in Bologna and moving as far field as Paris. F-anally he settled in Raven, a small city not far from Florence. It is during this time that it is believed that be began his masterpiece, The Divine Comedy. It was completed just prior to his death, sometime between 1318 and 1 321.
The final Canto of Paradise was said to be lost for months following Dent’s death, until in a dream, one of Dent’s sons saw his father who showed his where the final pages were hidden. His son, Pitter, searched for the pages and found them just where ??4?? his father had indicated, and so, just as a dream had begun the Comedy, a dream completed it. The Divine Comedy tells the tale of the poet, Dante, and his journey down into Inferno, up mount Purgatory and into Paradise where “the Love that moved the sun and the other stars” is finally revealed to him.
It is divided into three Antilles, Inferno, Purgatorial and Paradise. Each canticle is then further divided into 33 cantos, similar to chapters, except for Inferno which has a II particularly focuses c age of nine until HCI die At this Tillie Florence w oaf the richest and moss However the City was c populace and the gent Once the Gibberellins Between the Black GUY Gullets, who wished f Ape the Blat White Gullah homes a beloved Florence to “w rolling his exile, Dark spirit in Bologna and a carnal city n believed that be began just prior to his death, Paradise was said to just where his father had Indicate dream completed it
The Divine Comedy tell Inferno, up mount Purl the sun and the other Inferno. Purr divided into 33 cantos, single introductory canto bringing the total to 100. Ii into three line sections, each line with a precise 11 fictively occurs in the year 1300 and Dante is faithful including people who had died before 1300 in any though often referencing those who are still living. Inferno, the first volume, is by far the most famous a three. It begins: “Midway upon the journey of our life. ” Simi premise to the Comedy being both a literal journey TTL earth but also a figurative voyage through the life of
Dante, though it can be expanded to include a more Through inferno Dante is guided by another great PC he is a virtuous infidel has been confined to neutrality But who has been tasked by Beatrice to guide Dante up Mount Purgatory. Their journey through Hell take nine levels, on each level pausing to watch the pun is’ sometimes speak to them, talking of their crimes or ( living world. Finally in the lowest ??5 level ??Judea, reserved for the traitors?? gravity rev back out of the pit of inferno to once more observe t At the base of Mount Purgatory seven Fays are instinct Each tanning for Peculate or sin in Latin.
As they pass thru levels of purgatory, each P is purged from his before, place of perpetuity as many believe; it is a place of apt suggests. Virgil continues as his guide and offers DVD questions along the way. However on questions off asking Dante to await her for his answer. At the peak Garden of Eden, earthly paradise. Here in paradise D heavens above him, while Virgil is reserved and distant from his guide to gaze at four bright stars above him Virgil is gone. In his place stands Beatrice.