The theme of love, while a little harder
to look for in Dante’s Inferno, is
one that fascinated me as I read the first half of the poem. Especially with regard to the first two
Cantos, love is an important driving force in this poem; direct references to
it eventually become more and more fleeting as the poem progresses and Dante advances
through the various circles of Hell. The
reader first encounters love early on in Canto I, when Dante makes a reference
to “the Holy Love” as the Divine Creator of al beings rather than the punitive,
unforgiving figure that the reader encounters for the majority of the remainder
of the poem (Canto I, 38-40). Dante also
speaks of love in the context of his muse, Beatrice, who in sending Virgil as
Dante’s guide claims to act out of love:
“For me you’ll go, since I am Beatrice./And I have come from where I
long to be./Love is my mover, source of all I say” (Canto II, 70-72). It is this act of love that not only sets
Dante’s journey through Hell in motion, but also provides for Dante the
motivation to trust in the process and in Virgil as his guide.
I think what truly piqued my interest in
the particular theme of love was how Dante treats it when he writes about it
throughout Inferno. In juxtaposition with the harsh,
matter-of-fact descriptions he utilizes to delineate the various punishments of
Hell’s inhabitants and the atrocities of Hell in general, Dante writes of love
in rare terzas characterized by an undeniably lyrical quality. Perhaps the greatest example of this is in
Canto V, when Dante encounters the lustful in the second circle of Hell and
speaks to Francesca da Ramini about her love for Paolo and the misfortune of
their punishment to drift in the winds of Hell, constantly separated for
eternity:
“Love who so fast brings flame to generous hearts,
seized him with feeling for the lovely form,
now torn from me.
The harm of how still rankles.
Love, who no loved one pardons love’s requite,
seized me for him so strongly in delight
that, as you see, he does not leave me yet.
Love drew us onwards to consuming death” (Canto V,
100-106).
The
language that Dante employs in this passage is romantic in nature, which matches
the wistful tone of the star-crossed lover’s lamentations. It sounds
beautiful—so beautiful in fact, that it moves Dante to faint out of pity for
their misfortune. Passages such as this
one, however short-lived they may be, caught my attention because I wondered about
the purpose of this shift in Dante’s writing. I mean, even in Hell, which is supposed to be
devoid of hope and all things good, love is present. Is it a
symbol of God’s omnipresence? Or
perhaps, a brief reminder that God is not solely punitive and cruel in nature?
Looking back at Inferno, I don't ever remember thinking about love as I read the poem. That being said, I agree with what you had to say. I found it very interesting that you brought up the point that God is showing mercy even when he may not appear to be doing so. Even though Francesca and Paolo were sent to Hell for their sins of lust, they were still had their love for each other: something that not even God could take away. This may have demonstrated an idea that a certain form of free will exists in Dante’s version of Hell.
ReplyDeleteFurthermore, as I got to thinking more and more about this subject, I began to think that maybe this was Dante's way of expressing displeasure at the current system of choosing whom your children would marry. Dante met and fell in love with Beatrice at a very young age, but had to marry another woman that he was promised to. He had three children with his wife and may have even grown to love her over the years, but there was always a special place in his heart for Beatrice. Dante used Inferno and the Divine Comedy to voice his political and religious concerns, so it is possible that he also challenged the cultural norms of the day.
I also liked the points that you brought up here, especially the one that Daniel expanded on about Dante challenging the social norms of his time period. Last semester I read the book Erec and Enide which was a French romance written about 100 years before Dante was born. In this story, and quite possibly in many others of the time period, traditional views on love and marriage were being questioned, which leads me to believe that your claim could be very well supported even further.
ReplyDeleteMany times in the Inferno Dante raises concerns for the way in which society as a whole is functioning, and how it is effecting his beloved city. Dante also raises concerns with several of the shades from Florence about the long civil war that has been fought between opposing factions. Dante-poet might be writing this book with the intention of sharing what he has learned in his exile. Despite Dante-poet being a soldier, and a prominent figure of one of the warring factions, Dante-character voices his desire to see Florence at peace. I'm sure that with more historical context we would be able to see even more critiques of 13th and 14th century Italy.
I agree that this is a fascinating topic. I think that some of Dante’s best writings are when he is talking about love. The example you give of Canto V is one of my favorite lines from the poem. Due to the few examples of love in the poem, I decided to compare it to the film.
ReplyDeleteThe topic of love was something I found difficult to find in the film as well. Dante only briefly discusses his love towards Beatrice. This only happens when Virgil shows Dante who sent him. Instead of spending a lot of time discussing his great love, he discusses his failure with love. We know that he has been on lots of dates throughout his life. We also know he has been married and divorced at least once. Dante does not seem concerned with love in the film. He is more focused on leaving the alley. I think the lack of love in the film is because the film is a satire. The directors have a large amount of pun in the film. By having Dante be a divorcee is just another dig at America. Divorce is such a common and expected thing in my opinion. By adding this factor, the directors show how time has changed since the poem was written.