Dante I: Dante's Hell

(3 Credit Hours) · Undergraduate

Dante's Comedy is one of the supreme poetic achievements in Western literature. It is a probing synthesis of the entire Western cultural and philosophical tradition that produced it, a radical experiment in poetics and poetic technique, and a profound exploration of Christian spirituality. Dante I and Dante II are an in-depth study, over two semesters, of the entire Comedy, in its historical, philosophical and literary context. Dante I focuses on the Inferno and the works that precede the Comedy (Vita nova, Convivio, De vulgari eloquentia); Dante II focuses on the Purgatorio and Paradiso, along with the Monarchia. Students may take just one of Dante I and II or both, in either order. Lectures and discussion in English; the text will be read in a facing-page translation, so we can refer to the Italian (but knowledge of Italian is not necessary). Counts as an Italian Studies course for the Italian major, secondary major, and minor. Students with Italian have the option of also enrolling in a one-credit pass/fail Languages Across the Curriculum section, which will meet one hour per week to read and discuss selected passages or cantos in Italian. LIT - Univ. Req. Literature. Cross-listed with LLRO 40145 , MI 40552 , PRL 40115 , THEO 40212 . Ways of Knowing Core designations: Catholicism and the Disciplines; Fine Arts and Literature.