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    The Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri (Book Analysis): Detailed Summary, Analysis and Reading Guide
    The Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri (Book Analysis): Detailed Summary, Analysis and Reading Guide
    The Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri (Book Analysis): Detailed Summary, Analysis and Reading Guide
    Ebook45 pages22 minutes

    The Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri (Book Analysis): Detailed Summary, Analysis and Reading Guide

    By Bright Summaries

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    About this ebook

    Unlock the more straightforward side of The Divine Comedy with this concise and insightful summary and analysis!

    This engaging summary presents an analysis of The Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri, which follows the writer as he is guided through Hell, Heaven and Purgatory by the poet Virgil and his beloved Beatrice. Along the way, he witnesses the gruesome punishments meted out to sinners and encounters a range of writers and figures from biblical texts and classical mythology, who reflect on their lives and actions. The Divine Comedy is Dante Alighieri’s best-known work, and was written while he was in exile from his native Florence and was plagued with political and spiritual doubts. The poem played a crucial role in shaping our conceptions of Heaven and Hell, and helped to establish the Italian language as it is written and spoken today.

    Find out everything you need to know about The Divine Comedy in a fraction of the time!

    This in-depth and informative reading guide brings you:
    • A complete plot summary
    • Character studies
    • Key themes and symbols
    • Questions for further reflection

    Why choose BrightSummaries.com?
    Available in print and digital format, our publications are designed to accompany you on your reading journey. The clear and concise style makes for easy understanding, providing the perfect opportunity to improve your literary knowledge in no time.

    See the very best of literature in a whole new light with BrightSummaries.com!
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherBrightSummaries.com
    Release dateJun 12, 2018
    ISBN9782808001946
    The Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri (Book Analysis): Detailed Summary, Analysis and Reading Guide

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      Book preview

      The Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri (Book Analysis) - Bright Summaries

      ITALIAN POET

      Born in Florence, c. 1265.

      Died in Ravenna in 1321.

      Notable works:

      La vita nuova (New Life, c. 1293)

      De Vulgari eloquentia (On Eloquence in the Vernacular, c. 1304-1307)

      Convivio (The Banquet, c. 1304-1307)

      Dante Alighieri was born to a wealthy, fairly high-ranking family in Florence. His father, Alighiero di Bellincione, was a White Guelph, meaning that he supported the Pope and his policies, in contrast to the Ghibellines, who backed the Holy Roman Emperor. Politics always played a central role in Dante’s life: he fought as part of the Guelph cavalry at the Battle of Campaldino in 1289, and was involved in the administration of the city of Florence for several years.

      When he was just nine years old, Dante met and immediately fell in love with Beatrice Portinari, although he had never spoken to her. Beatrice provided the inspiration for much of his later work, including New Life and The Divine Comedy, especially after her death in 1290.

      Dante’s political activities saw him sentenced to exile, first for a period of two years, and then permanently, and exile became one of the key themes of The Divine Comedy. This monumental text was a writing project on a scale that had never been seen before in Florence. By the time he finished Paradiso, the third and final part of The Divine Comedy, he was completely disillusioned with politics. He died a year later, almost certainly from malaria contracted in the course of his travels.

      A MASTERPIECE OF ITALIAN LITERATURE

      Genre: narrative poem

      Reference edition: Alighieri, D. (2012) The Divine Comedy: Inferno, Purgatorio, Paradiso. Trans. Kirkpatrick, R. London: Penguin.

      1st edition: c. 1308-1320 (it is impossible to give a precise date, as the

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