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... owning them for their opposition to the Emperor. He even sent a letter to Henry, rebuking him for his delay, and urging him to proceed at once against the rebellious city (Gardner 3). Dantes hopes were brought to an abrupt end in 1313 with the death of Henry in Siena.
One positive outcome of Dantes exile was that it produced his most enduring work. His epic masterpiece The Divine Comedy was probably begun about 1307, and completed shortly before his death. The work is divided into three sections: The Inferno (Hell), the Purgatorio (Purgatory), and Paradiso (Paradise). In each section, the poet meets with mythological, historical, and contemporary personages. Each character is symbolic of a particular fault or virtue, either religious or political; and the punishment or rewards given to each, which illustrates the larger meaning of their actions in the universal scheme.
The Divine Comedy is, in many ways, as political as it is religious. It provides a summary of the political, scientific, and philosophical thought of the time, which gives us a written record of medieval thought. As a whole, the work contains many different meanings, and is supreme as a dramatization of Medieval Christian theology. Dante was, in his own right, quite an accomplished philosopher and theologian. His education gave him a mastery of the Latin learning of the day. In the Convivio and De Monarchia, Dante builds on ideas first proposed by Aristotle.
One such being mans place as a social animal, and that man cannot for the purposes of ethics or morality be treated merely as an individual, but must be regarded as an individual forming part of an organized community. He also explored ideas concerning the goal of human civilization as a whole, thinking that goal to be the bringing about of that condition of things in which the intellect of all individuals in the world would be working together in the most effective manner possible. He argues humanity is most free when it can exist for its own sake and not for the sake of something else; in other words, when it is free to pursue its goal and is not deflected from it by being enslaved to the greed of its rulers. And it is under a Monarch alone that humanity is most free (Howell 53). In adopting many of Aristotle's ideas and expounding on them, Dante showed his prowess as an accomplished philosopher.
In Dantes mind, philosophy was a sort of bridge to theology and highly enlightened religious ideals. His masterpiece, The Divine Comedy, is the most important Christian poem. (Compton's Encyclopedia 32). In a letter written to Con Grande, he stated that his object was to remove those living in this life from the state of misery and lead them to the state of felicity. In the Comedy, Dante was conscious of a divine mission to proclaim Gods will and plan of salvation to mankind, and to stamp a deep impression on mens minds of the eternal issues of good and evil-doing in this life (Howell 63). In a way, it seems that Dante valued religion more deeply than philosophy. The well known philosopher Virgil acts as Dantes guide throughout the poem, but in it, Dante says that man must work out his own salvation and he cannot do it by the guidance of philosophy alone, without Gods grace.
Another theological idea brought forth by Dante is that he believed it was only the wicked that were condemned to occupy Hell and that in rejecting their repentance, they were assigned to Hell instead of Purgatory (Gilbert 155). Dantes works, especially the Divine Comedy, have inspired numerous artists throughout history. Editions have been published containing illustrations by Botticelli and Michelangelo, English artists John Flaxman and William Blake, and French illustrator Gustave Dore. The Russian composer Peter Inch Tchaikovsky set parts of the poem to music and it formed the subject of symphonies by Franz Liszt and Giovanni Pacific, as well as contemporary composer Robert W. Smith. It has been translated into more than 25 languages, among the most notable English translations being rendered by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1867), and in the twentieth century, by English writer Dorothy L.
Sayers and American poet and critic John Card. Dante was well known in his own time as a great writer and an accomplished politician, despite setbacks in his political career along the way. But never, perhaps, has his name and works been known as widely as today. He has been ranked among such greats as Homer, Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Shakespeare. And the Divine Comedy has topped many readers and critics charts.
His works are read and studied in classrooms worldwide and there are several societies devoted to the study, appreciation, and analysis of Dantes poems, seven hundred years after they were first written. Dante proposed many ideas to medieval society that challenged contemporary thought concerning the afterlife, the church, and the involvement of the church in government affairs. He also gave us guidelines to Divine Love. But probably the most important reason for Dantes enduring influence is his ability to be deeply complex, and beautifully simple, all at the same time. His poetry in itself is easy enough for most common people to read, and it is beautiful and can be simple enough to understand and appreciate.
Yet it contains enough complexities and symbolism to keep scholars and experts intrigued for the past seven hundred years. This could explain the enormous amount of literature that exists about Dante and his works, and why he is read and loved by millions today. Dante spent the final years of his life as an exile, never being allowed to return to Florence again. After moving from city to city in northern Italy, Dante eventually settled in Ravenna, where he died on September 14, 1321. A small tomb in a monastery there holds the poets remains.
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