101-447: (Redirected from Human Comedy ) The Human Comedy may refer to: The Human Comedy , or La Comédie humaine , an 1829–1848 collection of interrelated novels and stories by Honoré de Balzac The Human Comedy (novel) , a 1943 novel The Human Comedy (film) , a 1943 film The Human Comedy (musical) , a 1983 musical See also [ edit ] La Comédie humaine (film) ,
202-439: A "secretary" who is transcribing society's "history"; moreover, he posits that he is interested in something that no previous historian has attempted: a history of "moeurs" (customs, manners and morals). He also notes his desire to go behind the surface of events, to show the reasons and causes for social phenomena. Balzac then professes his belief in two profound truths — religion and monarchy — and his concern for understanding
303-552: A 2010 Hong Kong film Lost Illusions (2021 film) , whose working title was Comédie humaine Topics referred to by the same term [REDACTED] This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the title The Human Comedy . If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Human_Comedy&oldid=1038220908 " Category : Disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description
404-637: A biographical truth (Taillefer's murderous fortune, Goriot's deals with the Revolutionary army), and as a sign of French collective guilt at the horrors of the Revolution (and most notably by the death of Louis XVI of France ). The other source of power is rank. People of good blood aspire to a title, while people with titles aspire to the peerage. The opening section of The Secrets of the Princess Cadignan provides an explanation of why
505-649: A fair degree of prosperity. Cangrande was admitted to Dante's Paradise ( Paradiso , XVII, 76). During the period of his exile, Dante corresponded with Dominican theologian Fr. Nicholas Brunacci (1240–1322), who had been a student of Thomas Aquinas at the Santa Sabina studium in Rome, later at Paris, and of Albert the Great at the Cologne studium . Brunacci became lector at the Santa Sabina studium , forerunner of
606-469: A happy or amusing ending but one influenced by a Providential will that orders all things to an ultimate good. By this meaning of the word, as Dante himself allegedly wrote in a letter to Cangrande , the progression of the pilgrimage from Hell to Paradise is the paradigmatic expression of comedy, since the work begins with the pilgrim's moral confusion and ends with the vision of God. A number of other works are credited to Dante. Convivio ("The Banquet")
707-557: A jail in Paris. The difference in outcome is partly explained by Balzac's views on heredity: Rastignac comes from a noble family, while only Rubempré's mother comes from a noble family (he had to obtain royal permission to use his mother's family name instead of his father's name Chardon). This deficit is compounded by the fact that his mother had not only married a commoner far beneath her in rank, but she had also performed menial labour to support herself when her husband died. Another contrast
808-428: A letter written to Madame Hanska in 1834, Balzac decided to reorganize his works into three larger groups, allowing him (1) to integrate his "La physiologie du mariage" into the ensemble and (2) to separate his most fantastic or metaphysical stories — like La Peau de chagrin (1831) and Louis Lambert (1832) — into their own "philosophical" section. The three sections were: In this letter, Balzac went on to say that
909-421: A limited quantity of spiritual energy and that this energy is dissipated through creative or intellectual work or through physical activity (including sex), and this is made emblematic in his philosophical tale La Peau de chagrin , in which a magical wild ass's skin confers on its owner unlimited powers, but shrinks each time it is used in science. The following are some of the major themes that recur throughout
1010-812: A party of one. He went to Verona as a guest of Bartolomeo I della Scala , then moved to Sarzana in Liguria. Later he is supposed to have lived in Lucca with a woman named Gentucca. She apparently made his stay comfortable (and he later gratefully mentioned her in Purgatorio , XXIV, 37). Some speculative sources claim he visited Paris between 1308 and 1310, and other sources even less trustworthy say he went to Oxford ; these claims, first made in Giovanni Boccaccio 's book on Dante several decades after his death, seem inspired by readers who were impressed with
1111-657: A phenomenon developed in French and Provençal poetry of prior centuries. Dante's experience of such love was typical, but his expression of it was unique. It was in the name of this love that Dante left his imprint on the dolce stil nuovo ("sweet new style", a term that Dante himself coined), and he would join other contemporary poets and writers in exploring never-before-emphasized aspects of love. Love for Beatrice (as Petrarch would express for Laura somewhat differently) would be his reason for writing poetry and for living, together with political passions. In many of his poems, she
SECTION 10
#17327832353171212-680: A poem of epic structure and philosophic purpose, he established that the Italian language was suitable for the highest sort of expression. In French, Italian is sometimes nicknamed la langue de Dante . Publishing in the vernacular language marked Dante as one of the first in Roman Catholic Western Europe (among others such as Geoffrey Chaucer and Giovanni Boccaccio) to break free from standards of publishing in only Latin (the language of liturgy , history and scholarship in general, but often also of lyric poetry). This break set
1313-594: A precedent and allowed more literature to be published for a wider audience, setting the stage for greater levels of literacy in the future. However, unlike Boccaccio, Milton or Ariosto , Dante did not really become an author read across Europe until the Romantic era. To the Romantics, Dante, like Homer and Shakespeare , was a prime example of the "original genius" who set his own rules, created persons of overpowering stature and depth, and went beyond any imitation of
1414-434: A preface (an "Avant-propos") to the whole ensemble in which he explained his method and the collection's structure. Motivated by the work of biologists Georges-Louis Leclerc, Comte de Buffon , Georges Cuvier and most importantly Étienne Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire , Balzac explains that he seeks to understand "social species" in the way a biologist would analyse "zoological species", and to accomplish this he intends to describe
1515-430: A realist novelist. The stories are placed in a variety of settings, with characters reappearing in multiple stories. The Comédie humaine was the result of a slow evolution. The first works of Balzac were written without any global plan ( Les Chouans is a historical novel; Physiologie du mariage is an analytical study of marriage), but by 1830 Balzac began to group his first novels ( Sarrasine , Gobseck ) into
1616-422: A series entitled Scènes de la vie privée ("Scenes from Private Life"). In 1833, with the publication of Eugénie Grandet , Balzac envisioned a second series entitled "Scènes de la vie de province" (Scenes from Provincial Life). Most likely in this same year Balzac came upon the idea of having characters reappear from novel to novel, and the first novel to use this technique was Le Père Goriot (1834–35). In
1717-570: A time when most poetry was written in Latin , which was accessible only to educated readers. His De vulgari eloquentia ( On Eloquence in the Vernacular ) was one of the first scholarly defenses of the vernacular. His use of the Florentine dialect for works such as The New Life (1295) and Divine Comedy helped establish the modern-day standardized Italian language. By writing his poem in
1818-441: A tomb for him in 1483. On the grave, a verse of Bernardo Canaccio , a friend of Dante, is dedicated to Florence: parvi Florentia mater amoris Florence, mother of little love In 1329, Bertrand du Pouget , Cardinal and nephew of Pope John XXII , classified Dante's Monarchia as heretical and sought to have his bones burned at the stake. Ostasio I da Polenta and Pino della Tosa, allies of Pouget, interceded to prevent
1919-532: Is a collection of his longest poems with an (unfinished) allegorical commentary. Monarchia ("Monarchy") is a summary treatise of political philosophy in Latin which was condemned and burned after Dante's death by the Papal Legate Bertrando del Poggetto ; it argues for the necessity of a universal or global monarchy to establish universal peace in this life, and this monarchy's relationship to
2020-413: Is between Emile Blondet and Raoul Nathan . Both are multi-talented men-of-letters. Blondet is the natural son of the prefect of Alençon and is described as witty but lazy, incurably hesitant, non-partisan, a political atheist, a player of the game of political opinions (along with Rastignac), having the most judicious mind of the day. He marries Madame de Montcornet and eventually becomes a prefect. Nathan
2121-574: Is depicted as semi-divine, watching over him constantly and providing spiritual instruction, sometimes harshly. When Beatrice died in 1290, Dante sought refuge in Latin literature. The Convivio chronicles his having read Boethius 's De consolatione philosophiae and Cicero's De Amicitia . He next dedicated himself to philosophical studies at religious schools like the Dominican one in Santa Maria Novella . He took part in
SECTION 20
#17327832353172222-468: Is described as half-Jewish and possessing a second-rate mind. Nathan succumbs to the flattery of unscrupulous financiers and does not see that they are prepared to bankrupt him to achieve their purposes. Blondet sees what is happening but does not enlighten Nathan. The downfall drives Nathan to attempt suicide by the method of "any poor work-girl". He then sells out to the government of the day (on Blondet's advice) to secure an income, and returns to living with
2323-639: Is described as the "father" of the Italian language, and in Italy he is often referred to as il Sommo Poeta ("the Supreme Poet"). Dante, Petrarch, and Boccaccio are also called the tre corone ("three crowns") of Italian literature. Dante was born in Florence , Republic of Florence , in what is now Italy. The exact date of his birth is unknown, although it is believed to be around May 1265. This can be deduced from autobiographic allusions in
2424-458: Is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages La Com%C3%A9die humaine La Comédie humaine ( French: [la kɔmedi ymɛn] ; English: The Human Comedy ) is Honoré de Balzac 's 1829–48 multi-volume collection of interlinked novels and stories depicting French society in the period of the Restoration (1815–30) and
2525-516: Is likely he would have undertaken such a work only after he realized his political ambitions, which had been central to him up to his banishment, had been halted for some time, possibly forever. It is also noticeable that Beatrice has returned to his imagination with renewed force and with a wider meaning than in the Vita Nuova ; in Convivio (written c. 1304 –07) he had declared that
2626-596: Is not known; the only certain information is that, before his exile in 1301, he had fathered three children with Gemma (Pietro, Jacopo and Antonia). Dante fought with the Guelph cavalry at the Battle of Campaldino (June 11, 1289). This victory brought about a reformation of the Florentine constitution. To take part in public life, one had to enroll in one of the city's many commercial or artisan guilds, so Dante entered
2727-421: Is still published today and has often been adapted for film and television. The title of the series is usually considered an allusion to Dante 's Divine Comedy ; while Ferdinand Brunetière , the famous French literary critic, suggests that it may stem from poems by Alfred de Musset or Alfred de Vigny . While Balzac sought the comprehensive scope of Dante, his title indicates the worldly, human concerns of
2828-571: The Divine Comedy . Its first section, the Inferno , begins, " Nel mezzo del cammin di nostra vita " ("Midway upon the journey of our life"), implying that Dante was around 35 years old, since the average lifespan according to the Bible (Psalm 89:10, Vulgate) is 70 years; and since his imaginary travel to the netherworld took place in 1300, he was most probably born around 1265. Some verses of
2929-607: The Comedy soon became a cornerstone in the evolution of Italian as an established literary language. Dante was more aware than most early Italian writers of the variety of Italian dialects and of the need to create a literature and a unified literary language beyond the limits of Latin writing at the time; in that sense, he is a forerunner of the Renaissance , with its effort to create vernacular literature in competition with earlier classical writers. Dante's in-depth knowledge (within
3030-702: The Comedy , regarding painting and music. Dante, like most Florentines of his day, was embroiled in the Guelph–Ghibelline conflict . He fought in the Battle of Campaldino (June 11, 1289), with the Florentine Guelphs against Arezzo Ghibellines; he fought as a feditore [ it ] , responsible for the first attack. To further his political career, he obtained admission to the Guild of Physicians and Apothecaries around 1295. He likely joined
3131-506: The Comédie Humaine is as follows (projected works are not included; dates are those of initial publication, whether or not the work was initially conceived as part of the Comédie Humaine ): In French , the series is more often published according to the plan of the posthumous "Definitive Edition" that was prepared by Charles Rabou , Balzac's chosen literary executor who he even entrusted to complete some of his unfinished works in
The Human Comedy - Misplaced Pages Continue
3232-587: The Gherardini family , was condemned to exile for two years and ordered to pay a large fine. Dante was accused of corruption and financial wrongdoing by the Black Guelphs for the time that Dante was serving as city prior (Florence's highest position) for two months in 1300. The poet was still in Rome in 1302, as the Pope, who had backed the Black Guelphs, had "suggested" that Dante stay there. Florence under
3333-479: The Inferno had been published by 1317; this is established by quoted lines interspersed in the margins of contemporary dated records from Bologna , but there is no certainty as to whether the three parts of the poem were each published in full or, rather, a few cantos at a time. Paradiso was likely finished before he died, but it may have been published posthumously. In 1312, Henry assaulted Florence and defeated
3434-459: The Inferno , or that this part had been published at the time, but it indicates composition was well underway and that the sketching of the poem might have begun some years before. (It has been suggested that a knowledge of Dante's work also underlies some of the illuminations in Francesco da Barberino's earlier Officiolum [c. 1305–08], a manuscript that came to light in 2003. ) It is known that
3535-596: The July Monarchy (1830–48). La Comédie humaine consists of 91 finished works (stories, novels, or analytical essays) and 46 unfinished works (some of which exist only as titles). It does not include Balzac's five theatrical plays or his collection of humorous tales Les Cent Contes drolatiques (1832–37). A pioneer of the modern novel, Balzac describes the totality of reality as he understood it, and shows aspects of life hitherto ignored in literature, because they were ugly or vulgar. He shows in its various forms
3636-584: The Paradiso section of the Divine Comedy also provide a possible clue that he was born under the sign of Gemini : "As I revolved with the eternal twins, I saw revealed, from hills to river outlets, the threshing-floor that makes us so ferocious" (XXII 151–154). In 1265, the sun was in Gemini between approximately May 11 and June 11 ( Julian calendar ). Dante claimed that his family descended from
3737-515: The Pontifical University of Saint Thomas Aquinas , and later served in the papal curia . In 1315, Florence was forced by Uguccione della Faggiuola (the military officer controlling the town) to grant an amnesty to those in exile, including Dante. But for this, Florence required public penance in addition to payment of a high fine. Dante refused, preferring to remain in exile. When Uguccione defeated Florence, Dante's death sentence
3838-585: The University of Pisa and forensic engineers at the University of Bologna at Forlì constructed the model, portraying Dante's features as somewhat different from what was once thought. In 2008, the Municipality of Florence officially apologized for expelling Dante 700 years earlier. In May 2021, a symbolic re-trial was held virtually in Florence to posthumously clear his name. A celebration
3939-661: The papacy , and the Ghibellines , who supported the Holy Roman Empire . Dante's family was loyal to the Guelphs. The Ghibellines took over Florence at the Battle of Montaperti in 1260, forcing out many of the Guelphs. Although Dante's family were Guelphs, they suffered no reprisals after the battle, probably because of Alighiero's low public standing. The Guelphs later fought the Ghibellines again in 1266 at
4040-446: The "Etudes de Moeurs" would study the effects of society and touch on all genders, social classes, ages and professions of people. Meanwhile, the "Etudes philosophiques" would study the causes of these effects. Finally, the third "analytical" section would study the principles behind these phenomena. Balzac also explained that while the characters in the first section would be "individualités typisées" ("individuals made into types"),
4141-411: The Battle of Benevento, retaking Florence from the Ghibellines. Dante said he first met Beatrice Portinari , daughter of Folco Portinari , when he was nine (she was eight), and he claimed to have fallen in love with her " at first sight ", apparently without even talking with her. When he was 12, however, he was promised in marriage to Gemma di Manetto Donati , daughter of Manetto Donati, member of
The Human Comedy - Misplaced Pages Continue
4242-588: The Black Guelphs ( Guelfi Neri ), led by Corso Donati . Although the split was along family lines at first, ideological differences arose based on opposing views of the papal role in Florentine affairs. The Blacks supported the Pope and the Whites wanted more freedom from Rome. The Whites took power first and expelled the Blacks. In response, Pope Boniface VIII planned a military occupation of Florence. In 1301, Charles of Valois , brother of King Philip IV of France ,
4343-551: The Black Guelphs, but there is no evidence that Dante was involved. Some say he refused to participate in the attack on his city by a foreigner; others suggest that he had become unpopular with the White Guelphs, too, and that any trace of his passage had carefully been removed. Henry VII died (from a fever) in 1313 and with him any hope for Dante to see Florence again. He returned to Verona, where Cangrande I della Scala allowed him to live in certain security and, presumably, in
4444-410: The Black Guelphs, therefore, considered Dante an absconder. Dante did not pay the fine, in part because he believed he was not guilty and in part because all his assets in Florence had been seized by the Black Guelphs. He was condemned to perpetual exile; if he had returned to Florence without paying the fine, he could have been burned at the stake. (In June 2008, nearly seven centuries after his death,
4545-418: The Italian vernacular rather than in Latin, Dante influenced the course of literary development, making Italian the literary language in western Europe for several centuries. His work set a precedent that important Italian writers such as Petrarch and Boccaccio would later follow. Dante was instrumental in establishing the literature of Italy, and is considered to be among the country's national poets and
4646-539: The Latin motu proprio titled Altissimi cantus , which was dedicated to Dante's figure and poetry. In that year, the pope also donated a golden iron Greek Cross to Dante's burial site in Ravenna, on the occasion of the 700th anniversary of his birth. The same cross was blessed by Pope Francis in October 2020. In 2007, a reconstruction of Dante's face was undertaken in a collaborative project. Artists from
4747-512: The Physicians' and Apothecaries' Guild. His name is occasionally recorded as speaking or voting in the councils of the republic. Many minutes from such meetings between 1298 and 1300 were lost, so the extent of his participation is uncertain. Not much is known about Dante's education; he presumably studied at home or in a chapter school attached to a church or monastery in Florence. It is known that he studied Tuscan poetry and that he admired
4848-720: The Roman Catholic Church as guide to eternal peace. De vulgari eloquentia ("On the Eloquence in the Vernacular") is a treatise on vernacular literature, partly inspired by the Razos de trobar of Raimon Vidal de Bezaudun . Quaestio de aqua et terra ("A Question of the Water and of the Land") is a theological work discussing the arrangement of Earth's dry land and ocean. The Eclogues are two poems addressed to
4949-465: The Western world's greatest literary icons. His depictions of Hell , Purgatory , and Heaven provided inspiration for the larger body of Western art and literature . He influenced English writers such as Geoffrey Chaucer , John Milton , and Alfred Tennyson , among many others. In addition, the first use of the interlocking three-line rhyme scheme, or the terza rima , is attributed to him. He
5050-693: The actress/courtesan Florine. In the end he accepts the cross of the Legion of Honour (which he formerly satirised) and becomes a defender of the doctrine of heredity. The Comédie humaine frequently portrays the complex emotional, social and financial relationships between fathers and their children, and between father-figures and their mentors, and these relationships are metaphorically linked as well with issues of nationhood (the king as father, regicide), nobility (bloodlines, family names), history (parental secrets), wealth (the origin of parental fortunes, dowries) and artistic creation (the writer or artist as father of
5151-453: The ancient Romans ( Inferno , XV, 76), but the earliest relative he could mention by name was his great-great-grandfather Cacciaguida degli Elisei ( Paradiso , XV, 135), born no earlier than about 1100. Dante's father was Alighiero di Bellincione , a businessman and moneylender, and Dante's mother was Bella, probably a member of the Abati family, a noble Florentine family. She died when Dante
SECTION 50
#17327832353175252-476: The basis of modern research, an earlier account of Dante's life and works had been included in the Nuova Cronica of the Florentine chronicler Giovanni Villani . Some 16th-century English Protestants, such as John Bale and John Foxe , argued that Dante was a proto-Protestant because of his opposition to the pope. The 19th century saw a "Dante revival", a product of the medieval revival , which
5353-411: The books, Purgatorio is arguably the most lyrical of the three, referring to more contemporary poets and artists than Inferno ; Paradiso is the most heavily theological, and the one in which, many scholars have argued, the Divine Comedy 's most beautiful and mystic passages appear. With its seriousness of purpose, its literary stature and the range—both stylistic and thematic—of its content,
5454-783: The bulk of the Comédie humaine takes place during the Restoration and the July Monarchy, there are several novels which take place during the French Revolution and others which take place in the Middle Ages or the Renaissance, including "About Catherine de Medici" and "The Elixir of Long Life". Balzac's later works are decidedly influenced by the genre of the serialised novel (" roman feuilleton ") popular at
5555-517: The catalogue given below represents that last version of that process. Balzac's works were slow to be translated into English because they were perceived as unsuitable for Victorian readers. John Wilson Croker attacked it in the April 1836 issue of the Quarterly Review , excoriating Balzac for immorality, saying "a baser, meaner, filthier scoundrel never polluted society …" The consensus of
5656-483: The characters of the "Etudes philosophiques" would be "types individualisés" (types made into individuals"). By 1836, the "Etudes de Moeurs" was already divided into six parts: In 1839, in a letter to his publisher, Balzac mentioned for the first time the expression Comédie humaine , and this title is in the contract he signed in 1841. The publication of the Comédie humaine in 1842 was preceded by an important preface or "avant-propos" describing his major principles and
5757-446: The city council of Florence passed a motion rescinding Dante's sentence.) In 1306–07, Dante was a guest of Moroello Malaspina [ it ] in the region of Lunigiana . Dante took part in several attempts by the White Guelphs to regain power, but these failed due to treachery. Bitter at the treatment he received from his enemies, he grew disgusted with the infighting and ineffectiveness of his former allies and vowed to become
5858-598: The city in 1318 by its prince, Guido II da Polenta . Dante died in Ravenna on September 14, 1321, aged about 56, of quartan malaria contracted while returning from a diplomatic mission to the Republic of Venice . He was attended by his three children, and possibly by Gemma Donati , and by friends and admirers he had in the city. He was buried in Ravenna at the Church of San Pier Maggiore (later called Basilica di San Francesco ). Bernardo Bembo , praetor of Venice , erected
5959-815: The compositions of the Bolognese poet Guido Guinizelli —in Purgatorio XXVI he characterized him as his "father"—at a time when the Sicilian School ( Scuola poetica Siciliana ), a cultural group from Sicily , was becoming known in Tuscany. He also discovered the Provençal poetry of the troubadours , such as Arnaut Daniel , and the Latin writers of classical antiquity , including Cicero , Ovid and especially Virgil . Dante's interactions with Beatrice set an example of so-called courtly love ,
6060-425: The crooked banker and the venal politician triumph. A keen observer, Balzac created human types that are strikingly true. Some of his characters are so vivid that they have become archetypes, such as Rastignac , the ambitious young provincial, Grandet , the miserly domestic tyrant, or Father Goriot , the icon of fatherhood. He gives an important place to financiers and notaries, but also to the character of Vautrin ,
6161-548: The day was that only Eugénie Grandet , Le Curé de Tours , Le Médecin de campagne and a few of the early short stories were suitable for females. Individual works appeared, but not until the 1890s did "complete" versions appear, from Ellen Marriage in London (1895–8, forty volumes edited by George Saintsbury , five omitted as too shocking) and from G. B. Ives and others in Philadelphia (1895–1900). In 1842, Balzac wrote
SECTION 60
#17327832353176262-603: The destruction of Dante's remains. Florence eventually came to regret having exiled Dante. The city made repeated requests for the return of his remains. The custodians of the body in Ravenna refused, at one point going so far as to conceal the bones in a false wall of the monastery. Florence built a tomb for Dante in 1829, in the Basilica of Santa Croce . That tomb has been empty ever since, with Dante's body remaining in Ravenna. The front of his tomb in Florence reads Onorate l'altissimo poeta — which roughly translates as "Honor
6363-414: The disputes that the two principal mendicant orders ( Franciscan and Dominican ) publicly or indirectly held in Florence, the former explaining the doctrines of the mystics and of St. Bonaventure , the latter expounding on the theories of St. Thomas Aquinas . At around the age of 18, Dante met Guido Cavalcanti , Lapo Gianni , Cino da Pistoia and, soon after, Brunetto Latini ; together they became
6464-532: The district judge (learned) and a retired soldier (worldly). We are left in no doubt that it is the second option that produces what Balzac considers to be the ideal woman. Ursula is pious and prone to collapsing in tears at the slightest emotion. The representation of women in the Comédie humaine is extremely varied — spanning material from both the romantic and pulp traditions — and includes idealized women (like Pauline in La Peau de chagrin or Eugénie Grandet),
6565-422: The doomed capitalist. At one end of the scale we have 100% maternal involvement – as depicted by the upbringing of the sisters de Granville ( A Daughter of Eve ) later Mesdames Felix de Vandenesse and du Tillet. At the other end of the scale we have 0% maternal involvement – as depicted by the upbringing of Ursule Mirouët by four men: her half-uncle-in-law (an atheist and republican), the local priest (saintly),
6666-508: The era. Italy's first dreadnought battleship was completed in 1913 and named Dante Alighieri in honor of him. On April 30, 1921, in honor of the 600th anniversary of Dante's death, Pope Benedict XV promulgated an encyclical named In praeclara summorum , naming Dante as one "of the many celebrated geniuses of whom the Catholic faith can boast" and the "pride and glory of humanity". On December 7, 1965, Pope Paul VI promulgated
6767-451: The guild due to association between philosophy and medicine, but also may have joined as apothecaries were also booksellers. His guild membership allowed him to hold public office in Florence. As a politician, he held various offices over some years in a city rife with political unrest. After defeating the Ghibellines, the Guelphs divided into two factions: the White Guelphs ( Guelfi Bianchi )—Dante's party, led by Vieri dei Cerchi—and
6868-435: The individual in the context of his family. In the last half of his preface, Balzac explains the Comédie humaine ' s different parts (which he compares to "frames" and "galeries"), and which are more or less the final form of the collection (see below). Because of its volume and complexity, the Comédie humaine touches on the major literary genres in fashion in the first half of the 19th century. The historical novel
6969-516: The infernal power is traded from person to person in the Parisian stock exchange until it loses any of its original power. Several of Balzac's characters, particularly Louis Lambert, traverse mystical crises and/or develop syncretic spiritual philosophies about human energy and action that are largely modelled on the life and work of Emanuel Swedenborg (1688–1772). As depicted in his works, Balzac's spiritual philosophy suggests that individuals have
7070-510: The interrelations of men, women and things. The importance of the woman is underlined by Balzac's contention that, while a biologist may gloss over the differences between a male and female lion, "in Society the woman is not simply the female of the man". Balzac then gives an extensive list of writers and works that influenced him, including Sir Walter Scott , François Rabelais and Miguel de Cervantes . He then describes his writer's role as
7171-496: The leaders of the dolce stil nuovo . Brunetto later received special mention in the Divine Comedy ( Inferno , XV, 28) for what he had taught Dante: "Nor speaking less on that account I go With Ser Brunetto, and I ask who are his most known and most eminent companions". Some fifty poetical commentaries by Dante are known (the so-called Rime , rhymes), others being included in the later Vita Nuova and Convivio . Other studies are reported, or deduced from Vita Nuova or
7272-484: The limits of his time) of Roman antiquity, and his evident admiration for some aspects of pagan Rome, also point forward to the 15th century. He wrote the Comedy in a language he called "Italian", in some sense an amalgamated literary language predominantly based on the regional dialect of Tuscany, but with some elements of Latin and other regional dialects. He deliberately aimed to reach a readership throughout Italy including laymen, clergymen and other poets. By creating
7373-639: The magical ass' skin in La Peau de chagrin for example becomes a metaphor for diminished male potency and a key symbol of Balzac's conception of energy and will in the modern world. In a similar way, Balzac undermines the character of Melmoth the Wanderer in his "Melmoth Reconciled": Balzac takes a character from a fantastic novel (by Charles Robert Maturin ) who has sold his soul for power and long life and has him sell his own power to another man in Paris... this man then sells this gift in turn and very quickly
7474-545: The memory of this youthful romance belonged to the past. An early indication that the poem was underway is a notice by Francesco da Barberino , tucked into his Documenti d'Amore ( Lessons of Love ), probably written in 1314 or early 1315. Francesco notes that Dante followed the Aeneid in a poem called "Comedy" and that the setting of this poem (or part of it) was the underworld; i.e., hell. The brief note gives no incontestable indication that Barberino had seen or read even
7575-574: The most exalted poet" and is a quote from the fourth canto of the Inferno . In 1945, the fascist government discussed bringing Dante's remains to the Valtellina Redoubt , the Alpine valley in which the regime intended to make its last stand against the Allies . The case was made that "the greatest symbol of Italianness" should be present at fascism's "heroic" end, but ultimately, no action
7676-431: The other delegates and asked Dante alone to remain in Rome. At the same time (November 1, 1301), Charles of Valois entered Florence with the Black Guelphs, who in the next six days destroyed much of the city and killed many of their enemies. A new Black Guelph government was installed, and Cante dei Gabrielli da Gubbio was appointed podestà of the city. In March 1302, Dante, a White Guelph by affiliation, along with
7777-567: The outlaw with multiple identities. His work includes many courtesans and grisettes, as well as admirable and angelic women. The importance of these women and their psychology earned him an enthusiastic female readership very early on. Despite the opposition of the Catholic Church, this work quickly became a printing phenomenon and greatly influenced the development of the novel both in France and elsewhere. Translated into many languages, it
7878-502: The patterns of earlier masters; and who, in turn, could not truly be imitated. Throughout the 19th century, Dante's reputation grew and solidified; and by 1865, the 600th anniversary of his birth, he had become established as one of the greatest literary icons of the Western world. New readers often wonder how such a serious work may be called a "comedy". In the classical sense the word comedy refers to works that reflect belief in an ordered universe, in which events tend toward not only
7979-437: The poet Giovanni del Virgilio. Dante is also sometimes credited with writing Il Fiore ("The Flower"), a series of sonnets summarizing Le Roman de la Rose , and Detto d'Amore ("Tale of Love"), a short narrative poem also based on Le Roman de la Rose . These would be the earliest, and most novice, of his known works. Le Rime is a posthumous collection of miscellaneous poems. The major works of Dante's are
8080-433: The poet's wide learning and erudition. Evidently, Dante's command of philosophy and his literary interests deepened in exile and when he was no longer busy with the day-to-day business of Florentine domestic politics, and this is evidenced in his prose writings in this period. There is no real evidence that he ever left Italy. Dante's Immensa Dei dilectione testante to Henry VII of Luxembourg confirms his residence "beneath
8181-623: The powerful Donati family. Contracting marriages for children at such an early age was quite common and involved a formal ceremony, including contracts signed before a notary . Dante claimed to have seen Beatrice again frequently after he turned 18, exchanging greetings with her in the streets of Florence, though he never knew her well. Years after his marriage to Gemma, he claims to have met Beatrice again; he wrote several sonnets to Beatrice but never mentioned Gemma in any of his poems. He refers to other Donati relations, notably Forese and Piccarda, in his Divine Comedy . The exact date of his marriage
8282-423: The rise of capitalism and the omnipotence of money, leading to the disappearance of nobility and the dissolution of social ties. La Comédie Humaine refers to the medieval poem Divine Comedy . Balzac’s world is grounded in sociology, not theology, where love and friendship are of prime importance and which highlights the complexity of people and the deep immorality of a social mechanism where the weak are crushed while
8383-565: The series: Rabou's "definitive" revisions and additions were generally panned by literary critics, and that has left Balzac's final ordering more common in English translation than Rabou's. dans la Societe la femme ne se trouve pas toujours etre la femelle du male Dante Alighieri Dante Alighieri ( Italian: [ˈdante aliˈɡjɛːri] ; most likely baptized Durante di Alighiero degli Alighieri ; c. May 1265 – September 14, 1321), widely known mononymously as Dante ,
8484-546: The springs of Arno, near Tuscany" in April 1311. In 1310, Holy Roman Emperor Henry VII of Luxembourg marched into Italy at the head of 5,000 troops. Dante saw in him a new Charlemagne who would restore the office of the Holy Roman Emperor to its former glory and also retake Florence from the Black Guelphs. He wrote to Henry and several Italian princes, demanding that they destroy the Black Guelphs. Mixing religion and private concerns in his writings, he invoked
8585-456: The thirteenth century. However, Dante's commentary on his own work is also in the vernacular—both in the Vita Nuova and in the Convivio —instead of the Latin that was almost universally used. The Divine Comedy describes Dante's journey through Hell ( Inferno ), Purgatory ( Purgatorio ), and Paradise ( Paradiso ); he is first guided by the Roman poet Virgil and then by Beatrice. Of
8686-477: The time, especially the works of Eugène Sue which concentrate on depicting the secret worlds of crime and vice that hide below the surface of French society, and by the ethos of melodrama typical of these part-works. Many of Balzac's shorter works have elements taken from the popular "roman noir" or gothic novel , but often the fantastic elements are used for very different purposes in Balzac's work. His use of
8787-462: The title of prince is not prevalent nor coveted in France (compared to contemporary Germany or Russia). Two young men dominate the Comédie humaine : Lucien de Rubempré and Eugène de Rastignac . Both are talented but poor youths from the provinces, both attempt to achieve greatness in society through the intercession of women and both come into contact with Vautrin , but only Rastignac succeeds while Lucien de Rubempré ends his life by his own hand in
8888-446: The tragic prostitute Esther Gobsek ( Splendeurs et misères des courtisanes ), the worldly daughters of Goriot and other women in society who can help their lovers advance, the masculine and domineering Cousine Bette, and the alluring and impossible love object (Foedora in La Peau de chagrin or the heroine of La fille aux yeux d'or ). The latter category also includes several lesbian or bisexual characters. Balzac's final plan (1845) of
8989-406: The various volumes of the Comédie humaine : Balzac frequently bemoans the loss of a pre-Revolutionary society of honor which has now become — especially after the fall of Charles X of France and the arrival of the July Monarchy — a society dominated by money. "At the origin of every fortune lies a crime" : this precept from the "Red Inn" recurs constantly in the Comédie humaine , both as
9090-464: The work of art). Father Goriot is perhaps the most famous — and most tragic — of these father figures, but in Le Père Goriot , Eugène de Rastignac also encounters two other paternal figures, Vautrin and Taillefer, whose aspirations and methods define different paternal paths. Other significant fathers in the series include Eugénie Grandet's abusive and money-hoarding father and César Birotteau,
9191-415: The work's overall structure (see below). For this edition, novels which had appeared in serial form were stricken of their chapter titles. Balzac's intended collection was never finished. In 1845, Balzac wrote a complete catalogue of the ensemble which includes works he started or envisioned but never finished. In some cases, Balzac moved a work around between different sections as his overall plan developed;
9292-415: The worst anger of God against his city and suggested several particular targets, who were also his personal enemies. It was during this time that he wrote De Monarchia , proposing a universal monarchy under Henry VII. At some point during his exile, he conceived of the Comedy , but the date is uncertain. The work is much more assured and on a larger scale than anything he had written in Florence; it
9393-400: Was a European phenomenon in the first half of the 19th century — largely through the works of Sir Walter Scott , James Fenimore Cooper and, in France, Alexandre Dumas, père and Victor Hugo . Balzac's first novel Les Chouans was inspired by this vogue and tells of the rural inhabitants of Brittany during the revolution with Cooper-like descriptions of their dress and manners. Although
9494-461: Was an Italian poet , writer, and philosopher. His Divine Comedy , originally called Comedìa (modern Italian: Commedia ) and later christened Divina by Giovanni Boccaccio , is widely considered one of the most important poems of the Middle Ages and the greatest literary work in the Italian language. Dante is known for establishing the use of the vernacular in literature at
9595-473: Was commuted to house arrest, on condition that he go to Florence to swear he would never enter the town again. He refused to go, and his death sentence was confirmed and extended to his sons. Despite this, he still hoped late in life that he might be invited back to Florence on honorable terms, particularly in praise of his poetry. Dante's final days were spent in Ravenna , where he had been invited to stay in
9696-463: Was customary for such poems. It also contains, or constructs, the story of his love for Beatrice Portinari, who later served as the ultimate symbol of salvation in the Comedy , a function already indicated in the final pages of the Vita Nuova . The work contains many of Dante's love poems in Tuscan, which was not unprecedented; the vernacular had been regularly used for lyric works before, during all
9797-441: Was expected to visit Florence because the Pope had appointed him as peacemaker for Tuscany. But the city's government had treated the Pope's ambassadors badly a few weeks before, seeking independence from papal influence. It was believed Charles had received other unofficial instructions, so the council sent a delegation that included Dante to Rome to persuade the Pope not to send Charles to Florence. Pope Boniface quickly dismissed
9898-584: Was held in 2015 at Italy's Senate of the Republic for the 750th anniversary of Dante's birth. It included a commemoration from Pope Francis, who also issued the apostolic letter Cando lucis aeternae in honor of the anniversary. Most of Dante's literary work was composed after his exile in 1301. La Vita Nuova ("The New Life") is the only major work that predates it; it is a collection of lyric poems (sonnets and songs) with commentary in prose, ostensibly intended to be circulated in manuscript form, as
9999-692: Was itself an important aspect of Romanticism . Thomas Carlyle profiled him in "The Hero as Poet", the third lecture in On Heroes, Hero-Worship, & the Heroic in History (1841): "He is world-great not because he is worldwide, but because he is world-deep… Dante is the spokesman of the Middle Ages; the Thought they lived by stands here, in everlasting music." Leigh Hunt , Henry Francis Cary and Henry Wadsworth Longfellow were among Dante's translators of
10100-476: Was not yet ten years old. Alighiero soon married again, to Lapa di Chiarissimo Cialuffi. It is uncertain whether he really married her, since widowers were socially limited in such matters, but she definitely bore him two children, Dante's half-brother Francesco and half-sister Tana (Gaetana). During Dante's time, most Northern Italian city states were split into two political factions: the Guelphs , who supported
10201-586: Was taken. A copy of Dante's so-called death mask has been displayed since 1911 in the Palazzo Vecchio ; scholars today believe it is not a true death mask and was probably carved in 1483, perhaps by Pietro and Tullio Lombardo . The first formal biography of Dante was the Vita di Dante (also known as Trattatello in laude di Dante ), written after 1348 by Giovanni Boccaccio. Although several statements and episodes of it have been deemed unreliable on
#316683