Dante : the poet, the political thinker, the man / Barbara Reynolds.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Reynolds, Barbara, 1914-2015.

Contributor:

Gotham Book Mart Collection (University of Pennsylvania)

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Dante Alighieri, 1265-1321.

Dante Alighieri.

Authors, Italian--To 1500--Biography.

Authors, Italian.

Genre:

Biographies.

Penn Provenance:

Gotham Book Mart (former owner) (Gotham Book Mart Collection copy)

Physical Description:

xiv, 466 pages : illustrations ; 25 cm

Edition:

First Shoemaker and Hoard edition.

Place of Publication:

Emeryville, CA : Shoemaker & Hoard ; [Place of publication not identified] : Distributed by Publishers Group West, 2006.

Summary:

Dante is one of the towering figures of European literature, yet there remain a surprising number of questions about his life and works; Who was the leader that would bring peace to the world, as Virgil and Beatrice prophesied in the Commedia? Who was Beatrice, really? Was De Vulgari Eloquentia truly a treatise on the art of writing? Did he need a medicinal muse? Dante scholar and translator Barbara Reynolds contends the master used cannabis to soar to greater creative heights. Besides proposing a solution to the famous prophecies, this lively, engaging, and elegantly written biography contains a provocative new idea in virtually every chapter, offering alternative interpretations of his work. Drawing from an impressive array of sources, Reynolds provides a comprehensive analysis of the poet, placing him within the context of his culture and society to deepen our understanding of a complicated man who was irritable, opinionated, and vengeful- and an extraordinary genius.

Contents:

1 The Early Years 1

2 Dante and Guido Cavalcanti 18

3 Disaster 33

4 The First Years of Exile 43

5 Language and Poetry 52

6 Invitation to a Banquet 64

7 Main Dishes and Trenchers 75

8 The True Definition of Nobility 83

9 Injustice and Avarice 95

10 Dante the Showman 102

11 The Return of Beatrice 110

12 The Story Begins 116

13 Limbo 122

14 Francesca da Rimini 131

15 Dante in Danger 138

16 Dante the Taxonomist 145

17 Creation of Character 150

18 Down into the Depths 157

19 'Him of Alagna' 165

20 Virgil and Sorcery 169

21 Devil-Play 175

22 A Den of Thieves 183

23 Tongues of Fire 191

24 The Severed Head 199

25 The Valley of Disease 206

26 Towering Giants 211

27 The Frozen Lake 217

28 Lucifer 227

29 The Tragedy of Henry VII 234

30 Better Waters 243

31 The Morning Sun 251

32 From Humour to Invective 258

33 Close of Day and a New Dawn 265

34 Pride and Humility 271

35 Evil and the Freedom of the Will 278

36 Love, Natural and Rational 285

37 The Mountain Trembles 289

38 Dante and Forese Donati 294

39 Body and Soul 300

40 The Christian Sibyl 306

41 Who is Matilda? 317

42 Dante and His Patrons 324

43 Prelude to Paradiso 334

44 Beatrice in Heaven 341

45 Propaganda in Paradiso 348

46 The City Walls 353

47 Justice Unfathomed 359

48 Dante and Monasticism 367

49 The Theme's Great Weight 372

50 Faith, Hope and Love 377

51 Hatred in Heaven 384

52 The Creation 389

53 The Departure of Beatrice 395

54 Approach to the Final Vision 400

55 The Vision of the Trinity 405

1 Chronology of Dante's Life and Works 418

2 Guelfs and Ghibellines 420

3 List of Popes in Dante's Lifetime 421

4 Holy Roman Emperors Referred to by Dante 421

5 The Canzone 421

Select Index 459.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 423-458) and index.

Local Notes:

Gotham Book Mart Collection copy has dustjacket retained.

ISBN:

1593761244

OCLC:

70673248

Publisher Number:

9781593761240