Dante lived in a time of intense political strife and competition over land, resources, and people. Many factions competed for power in the region, including the Holy Roman Emperors, an organization of “german aristocrats who claimed an ancient right to rule Christendom” (Moss, Wilson p. 174), the Papal authorities in Rome, lead by the controversial and power hungry Pope Boniface VIII, and smaller groups in city-states such as Florence, Tuscany and Rome. These groups were often made up of noblemen and other aristocracy in the cities that desired to consolidate local power under a “small, select group” (Moss, Wilson p. 174) that would allow them to exercise their will on the cities’ populace. Another class that emerged in the period was the merchant class, impelled by the increasing move towards urban centers and the lessening control of local feudal lords and vassals, in favor of more overarching rule by kings over a wider area. This rise in consumerism and capitalism lead to a desire for power by the merchant class to “establish a system of rule that would protect their newly acquired wealth.” (Moss, Wilson p. 174) Florence, the home city of Dante, was particularly rife with political strife from the city being dominated by two rival factions, the Guelphs and the Ghibellines. Dante, coming from a “nonaristocratic but respectable family” (Moss, Wilson p. 175), originally supported the Guelphs, who “represented ordinary citizens and were aligned with the papacy” (Moss, Wilson p. 174), but later moved more towards supporting the Ghibellines, who believed in a united empire under which Florence would be stabilized, rather than the current state of fracture and dissension among the various groups. Both groups desired greater rule, b... ... middle of paper ... ...he power to name a person as Holy Roman Emperor, and that his “absolute spiritual authority over all Christians” (Moss, Wilson p. 176) extended to a right to governmental authority and a position of physical power. This conflict in beliefs led to a war, in essence if not in name, between the two powers, and hostilities and tension throughout all of Europe. The fight lasted throughout the entirety of Dante’s life up to the writing up the Comedia, finally ending with the death of Pope Boniface VIII in 1303, and the crowning of Emperor Henry VIII in 1308. Works Cited Ruud, Jay. Critical Companion to Dante: a Literary Reference to His Life and Work. New York: Facts On File, 2008. Print. Moss, Joyce, and George Wilson. Literature and Its Times: Ancient times to the American and French Revolutions: (prehistory - 1790s). Vol. 1. Detroit: Gale Research, 1997. Print.
Black takes a thoroughly intellectual and social approach to the study, by examining the changing interpretations of ideas and social interactions in Milan. Black writes on the ways in which the families secured their absolute power and legitimized it through legal arguments. Black argued that the Sforza and Visconti were able to legitimize their absolutist rules through the use of their lawyers, and that when the legal rhetoric turned against them, their power waned. This is significant to the study of Italian Imperial Renaissance power first and foremost because it shows how Milanese rulers functioned, and secondly, because it’s argued excellently. Black is in conversation with sources like Kenneth Pennington frequently in her work, she builds off of his and other similar sources on imperial governance and applies legal imperial theory to Milan specifically. Black successfully knocks home her point and simultaneously studies the significance of the Sforza and Visconti ruling families in wider Italy. My only knock on Black is that I would like more on other rulers or cities, perhaps more comparison between the Sforza and Visconti, it is there but it would not hurt the work at all to expand on it, but Milan is undoubtedly the best example of native non-Papal imperial power in
Pattenden, M. (2012). The Papacy since 1500: From Italian Prince to Universal Pastor- Edited By James Corkery and Thomas Worcester. Journal of Historical Association. 97(325), 123-125
Renaissance Italy was full of famous powerful families: The Medici who ruled Florence, the Sforza ruled Milan and Forli. But out of all of them, the Borgia Family were the most famous and infamous that have ever graced the pages of history. The Borgia’s are a fascination to study because history is so divided over them. They used the power of the Catholic Church for their own personal fortune and political power. They were rumored to have committed every sin and vice under the sun. Many in their time period believed that they were mass poisoners. Yet at the same time, their sins paralleled those of most the nobility and royalty of that age, including previous popes. The Borgia’s presided over some of the most important events of the times; the Bonfire of the Vanities, the Spanish inquisition, the expulsion of the Jews from Spain, the Italian Wars, and, Treaty of Tordesillas. They can also be traced to the beginnings of the Protestant Reformation. This paper tells of the Borgia’s rise and fall in the Papacy and their deeds and impact on the world at the time.
Savonarola, being a politically ambitious man, sought out a life beyond the simplicity of a friar. On November 9th, 1494, Savonarola was elected one of five ambassadors to the “Christian King”, Charles VIII, in Pisato to discuss the renegotiation of the submission of Florence. The Florentines had agreed to pay 120,000 florins and make concessions to the Medici family. Within the next week, the king had left the city without bloodshed. The serious danger posed by the French troops disappeared before the eyes of Florence. In 1495, Savonarola depicted the Pope as a heinous fiend in his sermon in his quoting of Psalm 2:2 “the devils, the lukewarm, and the powerful of the earth rage this war, and because the lukewarm have neither virtue nor truth in them, the powerful.” At the turn of the century, the powerful members of society were found in good relation with the Pope. In his Treatise on the Rule and Government of the City of Florence Savonarola’s speech was captured, “humankind is very prone to do evil, especially when it is without law or fear…there is no animal more evil than a man without law.” Despite the treatise having the claim that the subject is Florence, the link is made between “evil” and a “man without law”. The Pope, being a supreme figure in all ecclesiastical ways, was able to supersede the law...
Alighieri, Dante. “Inferno.” The Bedford Anthology of World Literature: The Middle Period, 100 C.E.-1450. Ed. Paul Davis, Gary Harrison, David M. Johnson, Patricia Clark Smith, John F. Crawford. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2004. 678-848. Print.
Dante, who was in the Guelph party, was deeply involved in the issues and events of his day, which reflected in his writing. He was a member of the Florentine cavalry that routed the Ghibellines at Campaldio in 1289. In 1300 he became one of the six priors, or governors, of Florence (Mojana 56). At the beginning of the thirteenth century, political life was factionalized into the Ghibellines, who represented the old imperial aristocracy, and the Guelphs, a party that was originally bourgeois and looked to the pope as a political power rather than a spiritual leader. At the beginning of the 14th century, the Guelphs held most councils in Italy. The Guelfi split into two groups, t...
A book written by Niccolo Machiavelli, “The Prince,” described the ways in which Machiavelli believed that princedoms should be run. Many of his methods could be characterized by the use of deceit and ruthlessness to stay in power. One main point of Machiavelli’s was his rejection of Christianity and morals in politics. He believed that “politics has nothing to do with God’s intent or with moral precepts originating in a higher world” (Perry, 187). Machiavelli’s, “The Prince,” reflected this belief and in his book; he encouraged princes to do everything in their power to keep control. According to Machiavelli, “the prince may use any means to save the state when its survival is at stake” (Perry, pg. 186). All of his views on how a prince should govern went against the past beliefs that political power came from God. Machiavelli also extended these views to include ways to keep the citizens of a princedom satisfied and how to avoid invasion from other
...exoticism in Dantes longing to be free and in a place of great distance from the Chateau d'If.
During the Renaissance period there were many intellectuals and many different rulers. However, in: The Borgias: and Their Enemies, by Christopher Hibbert, the time period resembles one of which most readers are not familiar with. The book is masked with violence, greed, incest, and many forms of sin that is all too common in the modern world. The book itself aims to reveal how corrupted not only society itself once was, but the church as well. There is an apparent parallel between the church and society during this time period, and modern society and as well as the government we live in today. This parallel can be drawn by the reader by looking into two key elements: greed and corruption. Corruption is defined by many as the use of public
An aspect that Dante’s work shows us that mediaeval Italian culture valued is fair, equitable treatment of others, as well as their view on malicious acts such fraud and violence against others. This is shown in Canto 11 of Dante’s Inferno where it is stated, “All malice has injustice as its end, and end achieved by violence or by fraud, while both are sins that earn the hate of Heaven, since fraud belongs exclusively to man, God hates it more and, therefore, far below, the fraudulent are placed and suffer the most” (1087). This passage shows mediaeval Italian cultures view that fraud and injury against one’s neighbour is one of the most heinous crimes an individual can commit. These values held by Italian culture are equated to the Golden Rule that one should treat others as they would wish to be treated. An individual would never want another to inflict injury upon them, and, likewise, neither would they wish to have fraud committed against them. Dante’s assertion that fraud and violence are the most detestable sins that humans can commit illustrates ancient medieval Italian culture’s strong endorsement in moral maxim of the Golden Rule, and the idea is worth admiration regardless of one’s religious beliefs. Another work that provides insight into the values held by a certain culture is Kafka’s
A post Middle Age Italy was afflicted by medieval wars and the bubonic plague. A change was needed to restore the vision of what Italy could become. This change was found within one family: the Medici’s, who helped to return the glory and influence to Florence. The Medici’s saw the value in contributing to the advancement of the greatest minds of the period. This was evident in their patronage of leading Artists such as Michelangelo and of renowned Teachers such as Galileo. The sphere of influence the Medici’s enjoyed also extended to the political arena, which happened to be heavily influenced by the Catholic Church at the time. The Medici’s were able to capitalize on the power of the Church and through this influence and the use of “amici degli amici” or of mutual favors from “friends of friends” the Medici family was able to usher in a new Italian era: the Renaissance (Medici).
Dante Alighieri. The Italian poet, philosopher, and master. He is defined, like all men and women before and after, by his name, his identity, and his legacy. His name and his work was the light that truly signaled the end of the Dark Ages, and the light that illuminated the dawn of the European Renaissance. His identity is to be the mind behind the greatest poetic work of the Middle Ages, and to be the owner of the hand that wrote one of the great masterpieces of literature of Western culture. His legacy is to be considered one of the best poets to ever live, and the author of The Divine Comedy. Yet what made him? What inspired him? How could such a humble Florentine boy grow up to be one of the most renowned and revered writers ever? We look at his life in detail, with what little we have, and we ask what truly sparked the flame that came to be the Divine Comedy. We look at his life as a flame, building up to the inferno of the Divine Comedy. Dante’s life was filled with various elements that allowed for him to write his, and humanity’s, crown jewel. His experiences and influences in life are reflected in his works, through his words and his thoughts. Dante’s creations are the stories of his life and of the society that surrounded him: of a predominantly Christian society, with a fledgling Renaissance movement. His work expresses the past, the present, and the future; exhibiting classic Latin, Christian, and Renaissance themes. Yet separately and jointly, the more general, human element of his works is a gift. The gift Dant...
Ward & Trent, et al. The Cambridge History of English and American Literature. New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons, 1907-21; New York: Bartleby.com, 2000 http://www.bartleby.com/215/0816.html
The Divine Comedy is a poetic Italian masterpiece by Dante Alighieri composed of three parts which he called respectively: The Inferno, The Purgatorio, and The Paradiso. As this edition’s translator, John Ciardi puts it, originally Dante simply entitled his works as The Comedy, however, in later years, it was renamed The Divine Comedy for the connections that the public saw it had with human behavior and morality (Ciardi, 2003). For the goals and purposes of this review, we will focus specifically on the portion of the book called The Inferno. At a time when religious and secular concerns were at their peak in fourteenth century Italy, a tone of conflict broke out between the church and the government. Beyond the commonalities of corruption