Who was Dante?
That's actually two questions condensed into one. First, how did this hard-working if not formerly brilliant poet and would-be politician from a rather lackluster family end up writing COMEDY, arguably the greatest work of Western literature?
Second, when was Dante? In other words, what was his historical moment like?
Join me, Mark Scarbrough, as I tell you a bit about the the poet's upbringing, his troubles, and the times he lived in, reaching back to the early 1200s to bring his story up to and just beyond his death in 1321.
Here are the parts of this episode:
[00:52] Dante is a nickname!
[01:56] Some information about Dante's birth
[04:10] Some historical context for the poem
[07:44] Medieval clan warfare on the Italian peninsula
[13:39] Dante's upbringing
[14:45] Beatrice!
[17:59] Dante's "teacher" (that is, maybe): Brunetto Latini
[19:47] Dante's political career and downfall
[22:16] Dante on the run
[26:15] The Avignon papacy
[27:33] Dante's patronages and later life
This episode is not necessary for reading THE DIVINE COMEDY (or COMEDY, as the poet himself called his work). But the episode will give you some context for both the poet and the wild, weird moment when his masterwork was written.