The Mdvl Mary:Lit-Religion-Art

3 Credits · Level: Undergraduate

The crowning achievement of the western medieval literary tradition, Dante Alighieri’s Divine Comedy, begins and ends with images of Mary, the mother of Jesus. Dante pilgrim sets off on his journey through Inferno by her intercession; he climbs the mountain of Purgatory by responding to her roles as Christian exemplar; and he articulates a beatific vision in Paradise by singing her praises as mystical rose and Queen of Heaven. Dante’s attention to Mary is a poetic summation of medieval teachings, devotion, and artistic representations of Christ’s mother. This course traces the development of these Marian cultural expressions in religion, art, and literature, from their biblical foundations through the late Middle Ages in Western Europe. Scriptural writings prepare us for how medieval thinkers and artists interpreted Mary in relation to Eve and a fulfillment of Hebrew prophecy. Medieval interpretations of her role in Christian salvation history explore paradoxes she embodies: virgin mother, daughter of her Son, humble maid and Queen of Heaven. Theological writings on major Marian themes help us appreciate intense spiritual and emotional expressions in art, architecture and literature. Readings will be supplemented with appropriate images from the visual arts in an effort to understand the full medieval ramifications of Dante’s culminating description of Mary as “the face that most resembles Christ.” Mary and Mariology: Themes for the course: Immaculate Conception, Incarnation, Virginity, New Eve, Theotokos, Assumption/Dormition, Mater misericordiae, Mater dolorosa, Mater sponsi, Sedes sapientiae, Magistra scholastica