Friday, March 6, 2015

Dante

While reading The Divine Comedy, I could not help but wonder if Dante knew how influential his writing would be. So man people have tried to follow his example, and so many others have drawn inspiration from his work. There would be many great works that would not be in existence today if it were not for The Divine Comedy. I wonder if he knew. He probably knew what he was writing was very good, and he might have known that many would like it and many would fear it, but I have a hard time believing that he was confident enough to know that college students, in a country that he did not even know existed, would still be reading this off of there smart phones.
This poem is one of the prime examples of the power that art can hold. I am sure that many of us have heard this work referenced over and over again, or at least have seen it's influence. This is not only seen in other works of literature, but also in politics, religion, and the way people live their life. This work molded society. Poetry is a powerful thing, whether or not the author knows it while he is creating it. This teaches us to be careful with our words.
P.S. I commented on Abbey's blog

2 comments:

  1. I often ponder this idea. I also wonder about authors' intentions behind specific imagery, asking something like, "Did he/she really know that this image can be understood or interpreted in so many ways?" Again, it is interesting to ponder an author's thoughts and intentions regarding his work.

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  2. As I read through your blog it reminded me of Plato. Plato wanted to ban the poets because one he believed them to be far removed from truth, but he also believed that poets led people to lose control of their emotions. Plato knew the power that poetry and art have. That power is shown in Dante's influence through this poem. Now, rather that influence is for good or bad is up to us.

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