The course is an introduction to Dante and his cultural milieu through a critical reading of the Divine Comedy and selected minor works (Vita nuova, Convivio, De vulgari eloquentia, Epistle to Cangrande). An analysis of Dante's autobiography, the Vita nuova, establishes the poetic and political circumstances of the Comedy's composition. Readings of Inferno, Purgatory and Paradise seek to situate Dante's work within the intellectual and social context of the late Middle Ages, with special attention paid to political, philosophical and theological concerns. Topics in the Divine Comedy explored over the course of the semester include the relationship between ethics and aesthetics; love and knowledge; and exile and history.
Introduction
Vita Nuova
Inferno I, II, III, IV
Inferno V, VI, VII
Inferno IX, X, XI
Inferno XII, XIII, XV, XVI
Inferno XIX, XXI, XXV, XXVI
Inferno XXVI, XXVII, XXVIII
Inferno XXX, XXXI, XXXII, XXXIII, XXXIV
Purgatory I, II
Purgatory V, VI, IX, X
Purgatory X, XI, XII, XVI, XVII
Purgatory XIX, XXI, XXII
Purgatory XXIV, XXV, XXVI
Purgatory XXX, XXXI, XXXIII
Paradise I, II
Paradise IV, VI, X
Paradise XI, XII
Paradise XV, XVI, XVII
Paradise XVIII, XIX, XXI, XXII
Paradise XXIV, XXV, XXVI
Paradise XXVII, XXVIII, XXIX
Paradise XXX, XXXI, XXXII, XXXIII
General Review