1. Warm-up #10 Who was Niccolo Machiavelli? What was he famous for?
Describe Machiavelli’s ideal ruler.

2. Renaissance Authors of…
Dante
(Durante degli Alighieri)

3. Introduction to Dante Dante Aligheri (1265-1321), of Florence, Italy.
One of the 4-5 greatest poets of the Western tradition (with Homer, Virgil, Milton, Goethe).
Revolutionary because most medieval authors wrote in Latin but he wrote in Italian.
Considered the people’s language to be as good as the noble’s.
His masterpiece (The Divine Comedy) combines Greek philosophy & the Biblical worldview.

4. Dante’s Divine Comedy

5. What was Dante’s message? How do you think that people reacted to it.?

6. Structure of the Divine Comedy
Three Parts:
The Inferno (Hell). A depiction of the consequences of unchecked evil.
The Purgatorio (Purgatory). A representation of human nature in this life (of which purgatory is an extension): the conflict between good and evil.
The Paradiso (Heaven). The ultimate, supernatural end of human life. The vision of God.

7. Issues to Consider Love as the source of both good and evil.
The paradox of free will: is it compatible with a scientific (Aristotelian) picture of the workings of human nature?
The relationship between body and soul.

8. Faith & Reason Dante gives a high status to natural reason.
Virgil, Dante’s guide through hell and purgatory, was a pre-Christian Roman poet.
Aristotle is described as “the father of them that know.”
The philosophers and poets in limbo, although unbelievers, are treated with great respect, and suffer only the sadness of the loss of heaven.

9. Limits of reason
At the same time, Dante clearly asserts the limits of reason, and that it must be supplemented by faith.
Beatrice (representing grace) must take over for Virgil as Dante enters heaven.
Certain mysteries (like that of free will) lie beyond the scope of reason to explain completely.
The souls in heaven, enjoying the vision of God, have transcended all natural limitations.

10. Dante Reader Read the text. Mark the text
Number the paragraphs
Circle key words
Underline main ideas
Annotate (write in the margins)
Answer the review questions on the back.