Dante's Divine Comedy

Contrast/Comparison with Canto I

Structure

Allusions/Symbols

Aeneas and Paul

• Paul in 2 Corinthians 12:2-4 claims to have been “caught up into paradise (specifically the “third heaven” where he “heard secret words which it is not granted man to utter.”
• Virgil scribes Aeneas’ visit to the underworld in the Aeneid, Book VI.
  • St. Paul and Aeneas are linked with Rome, seat of both empire and church.

Epic Conventions

Invocation of the Muses, line 7-9

• The ancient Greek Muses were the daughters of Mnemosyne (Memory).
• The Muse of epic poetry was Calliope; epic poets called upon her for inspiration
• Translators have rendered the invocation in the Iliad with these words:
  • “Sing, goddess, the anger . . . (Richmond Lattimore)
  • “Rage – Goddess, the anger . . .” (Robert Fagles)
  • “Sing, goddess, of the ruinous wrath . . .” (Caroline Alexander)
• Translators have rendered the invocation In the Odyssey in different ways:
  • “Tell me, Muse, of the man . . .” (Richmond Lattimore)
  • “Sing to me of the man, Muse . . .” (Robert Fagles)
  • “Tell me, O Muse, of that ingenious hero . . .” (Samuel Butler)
• In the Aeneid, Virgil’s invocation (Arma virumque cano) does not explicitly name the Muse in line 1, but he invokes her shortly after in line 8.
  • American translators use variations in their translations:
    • “Arms and the man I sing . . .” (Rolfe Humphries)
    • “I sing of arms and of the man . . .” (Allen Mandelbaum)
    • “Wars and a man I sing . . .” (Robert Fagles)
  • Both Virgil and these translators refer to the Muse directly in the eighth line of Book I (“Musa, mihi causas memora…”).
• Dante calls upon all the Muses with no elaboration.
  • As Esolen points out, he rather seems to rely on his own ingenuity. In Italian, he writes “o alto ingegno.”
  • Ingegno is the noblest cognitive power according to medieval psychology. It allows men to grasp divine truths, imagine what lies beyond ordinary experience, and even compose poetry worthy of sacred themes.
  • Still, his intellect depends on divine grace to narrate his grand journey. In short, he is asking for the elevation of his mind in order to accomplish this worthy task.
  • In a sense, he is both humble and aspirational.
  • We might paraphrase it in this way: “I cannot recount this story with my ordinary mind. I need the highest, God-assisted power of intellect and imagination.”
  • He is using a classical form to express a Christian value.
• Epithets
  • The epithet — a stock word or phrase almost inseparably associated with a character, circumstance, condition or idea — is used. Nicknames are a sort of informal epithet.
  • At this point distribute epithet exercise.
  • Even comic book writers use epithets. After all, they are attempting to tell epic stories.
    • Superman has several: Man of Steel, Last Son of Krypton, Champion of the Oppressed, Man of Tomorrow, the Metropolis Marvel, the Big Blue Boy Scout, or just Big Blue
    • The first three are all quite Homeric or Virgilian. The fourth expresses a futurist vision. The last three are playful and mock-derogatory.
    • Batman has quite a few, too: The Dark Knight, the Caped Crusader, the World’s Greatest Detective, Gotham’s Knight, the Night’s Avenger
  • Dante refers to God as “the Adversary of all evil” (line 16)
  • He refers to Virgil as “Poet” (Line 10)
  • He refers to St. Paul as “the Chosen vessel” (line 28)
  • He refers to Mary as “A gentle Lady in Heaven” (line 94)
  • In Inferno, Dante never uses a direct reference to God by naming Him.
  • He refers to Virgil only twice by his given name, both times in Canto I. for the rest of Inferno, he will typically refer to Virgil as “guide,” “teacher,” or “lord.” (all appear in line 140)
• Epic similes
  • Lines 37-42: Dante compares himself to a person who lacks commitment to a plan.
  • Lines 127-132: Dante compares his ultimate commitment to little flowers that open their petals and stand upright when the sun warms them after a frosty night.
• Beginning in medias res (lines 94-120)
  • The events that prompted Dante’s journey have already happened, prior to the opening action of the poem.
  • Virgil explains how he was summoned by Beatrice to guide Dante.
  • The chain of events leading up to that summons involves another set of three, this time three women: Beatrice, St. Lucy (Santa Lucia), and the Mary (recounted in lines 94-120).

The Three Women

• Mary – “A gentle lady in Heaven” (line 94-96)
  • She is never named directly in Inferno.
  • In line with medieval thought, Dante portrays Mary as characterized by pity, in this case pity for Dante “whose way is barred.”
  • Mary’s pity alludes to James 2:13 – “For judgment is without mercy to the one who has shown no mercy. Mercy triumphs over judgment.”
  • That she is described as breaking “the rigid sentence from above” portrays her as pity or mercy which tempers judgment.
  • God judges all humanity, but his judgment is tempered by mercy for those washed in the blood of His Son.
  • Mary summons St. Lucy
• St. Lucy
  • A third century martyr associated with courage and sight.
  • Her name means “light,” derived from the Latin lux/lucis
  • In Catholic hagiology she is the patron saint of eyes and the blind.
  • Mary calls Dante St. Lucy’s “faithful follower.
    • Some regard her as possibly being Dante’s patron saint since he claimed to have suffered a period of poor eyesight due to excessive reading.”
    • Esolen suggests these words may convey Dante’s devotion to “the Light of Truth.”
  • She will appear again in Purgatorio and in Paradiso.
  • St. Lucy goes immediately to Beatrice.
• Beatrice
  • Early commentators recorded that she was the daughter of Folco Portinari, an influential Florentine banker and leader.
    • Sometime in 1286 or 1287, she married Simone de’ Bardi, member of another Florentine banking family.
    • She died in 1290, probably of the Black Plague, only a year or two after her father’s death and four years before Dante released La Vita Nuova, his collection of love poems devoted to her.
    • In Italian, her name means “blessedness” or “the blessed one.”
  • She is seated next to Rachel.
    • Rachel represents the contemplative life. Her sister Leah represents the active life.
  • Lucy asks Beatrice, “Why do you not/come to the aid of him who loved you so/that for your sake he left the common crowd?”
    • One critic believes the question indicates that Dante turned from studying the liberal arts to studying theology.
    • Another believes the question reflects Dante’s turning from conventional love poetry to what Dante called his dolce stil novo, “sweet new style.”
    • Still others suggest that because of his idealization of Beatrice he turned toward Christ.
    • Esolen explains that because of Beatrice Dante withdrew from total dedication to politics to give himself over to poetry infused by the eternal longings of man.
  • This is a good time to discuss the medieval concept of gentilesse, “courtly love.”
    • Under the code of chivalry, a knight was to devote himself to his lady, dedicating his acts of prowess and courage to her. This devotion was frequently adulterous as in the cases of Launcelot and Guinevere and Tristan and Isolt.
    • Dante idealized this concept so that the devotion to the lady is pure – in no way physical – and a metaphor for devotion to the divine.
  • St. Lucy next asks if Beatrice is blind to Dante’s peril: “Do you not see the death he wrestles with upon the flood tide violent as the sea?”
    • This is a much-discussed passage among Dante scholars.
    • In short, I believe the “flood tide” is sin.
  • St. Lucy’s appeal moves Beatrice to go immediately to Virgil to enlist him as Dante’s guide into Hell and Purgatory.

Virgil

• Virgil is moved to instantaneous action by Beatrice’s words and tears.
• Virgil’s first words to Dante after recounting the sequence of events that led to his coming to Dante are an accusation of cowardice in the face of the concerns of three blessed women who desire for him such good.
  • Beatrice’s tears recall Venus’s tears when Aeneas takes on his burden to found a New Troy (Rome) in the Aeneid.

Dante

• Dante’s first response is the epic simile discussed above (lines 127-133)
• He submits to Virgil’s guidance (to be led by Human Reason).
• He calls Virgil “my guide, my teacher, and my lord.” He submits, therefore, to rightful authority.
• He and his guide set forth on their journey.