Dante and Virgil
After the fall of the Roman Empire, Latin remained the official language of the European courts and of the Church. The first works in the vernacular date back to the XIII century. Tuscan poets decided to use their language to describe courtly love and the individual nobless of soul.
Dante Alighieri (1265-1321) is certainly the most famous poet of that time but other important artists lived in the XIII century, as the two dolce-stil-nuovo poets Lapo Gianni and Guido Cavalcanti.
In one of his first works, the
Vita Nuova - or New Life -, Dante describes his love for Beatrice.
Dante`s most famous work, however, is
The Divine Comedy, written between 1306 and 1321. The poem is divided into three "canticas" and describes Dante`s journey through Hell, Purgatory and Paradise. Virgil guides the poet through Hell and Purgatory, whereas Beatrice guides him through Paradise.
Hell is certainly the most comprehensible "cantica" and the most known all over the world, as well. The sinners Dante meets in Hell tell him their stories, which sometimes are extremely touching, like Paolo and Francesca`s, the two protagonistis of the "canto" V. Hell is full of references to the protagonists of Florentine political life.
By writing his
Comedy in the vernacular, Dante could reach a wide audience.
Dante died in exile in 1321 in Ravenna, were his body still rests. In the Basilica of Santa Croce a grave was prepared for his mortal remains but Ravenna authorities have never accepted to give them back to
Florence Florence however, is rich in places where Dante lived.
