23 “Un libro ch’ io intendo di fare, Dio concedente, di Volgare Eloquenza” (i 5, 11. 67-9).
24 V.E. i. 12, 11. 36-9.
25 It is, of course, possible that Dante may have had the two works on hand concurrently.
26 The arguments at the head of the chapters in A. G. Ferrers Howell’s translation have occasionally been utilised in this analysis.
27 See the introduction (pp. lxxxv ff.) to Rajna’s critical edition, Il Trattato De Vulgari Eloquentia (Florence, 1896). Rajna, who prints specimens of Cittadini’s version (pp. ccxii-xv), shows that this translation was made from Corbinelli’s edition of the Latin text, with the help of Trissino’s version (p. xcvi). An English translation, by A. G. Ferrers Howell, was published in 1890, and reissued in a revised form in 1904, in Translation of the Latin Works of Dante (pp. 3-115).
28 See above, pp. 93-9, 195-6. Such as we possess were mostly discovered in the last century through the exertions of Karl Witte, who in 1827 printed at Padua (in Dantis Alligherii Epistolae quae exstant) the letters which had up to that date been brought to light.
29 According to the numeration of the Epistolae in the Oxford Dante (pp. 403-20).
30 Epistole di Dante Alighieri edite e inedite, Livorno, 1842 (pp. 2-4).
31 Op. cit. p. 8.
32 In Dante Alighieri’s Lyrische Gedichte, übersetzt und erklärt von K. L. Kannegiesser und K. Witte, Leipzig, 1842 (Zweiter Theil, pp. 235-36). A critical text was printed by O. Zenatti, in Dante e Firenze (pp. 431-2); but see L’ Epistola di Dante a Moroello Malaspina, by F. Novati, in Dante e la Lunigiana (pp. 507-42).
33 Dantis Alligherii Epistolae quae exstant, Patavii, 1827 (pp. 14-16),
34 See above, p. 92 note.
35 See above, p. 93.
36 Op. cit. pp. 28-32.
37 See above, pp. 93-6,
38 Op. cit. pp. 36-42.
39 See below.
40 See above, p. 94.
41 Dantis Alligherii Epistolae quae exstant, Patavii, 1827 (pp. 30-46).
42 In Prose Antiche di Dante, Petrarcha, et Boccaccio, etc., pp. 9-12.
43 See below.
44 See above, p. 97.
45 Op. cit. pp. 53-61.
46 Actually, Cremona.
47 Bk. ix. ch. 136.
48 See above, pp. 98-9.
49 In the fifth volume of his Aneddoti (p. 176).
50 See above, pp. 195-6.
51 See N. Zingarelli, Dante, pp. 723-4.
52 See Scartazzini’s Companion to Dante (translated by A.J. Butler), pp. 359-60.
53 In Galleria di Minerva, vol. iii. pp. 220-8 (see Torri’s Epistole di Dante Alighieri (p. 158).
54 There are two English translations of these letters, viz. by C. S. Latham, in A Translation of Dante’s Eleven Letters, 1891; and by P. H. Wicksteed, in Translation of the Latin Works of Dante, 1904 (pp. 295-368).
55 These letters, which are preserved in the Vatican (MS. Palat. 1729), were first printed by Torri, op.cil. pp. 64-8; their authenticity as compositions of Dante is upheld by F. Novati and others (see Novati’s article L’ Epistola di Dante a Moroello Malaspina, in Dante e la Lunigiana (pp. 509, 537).
56 By Doni, in Prose Antiche di Dante, Petrarcha, et Boccaccio, etc., Fiorenza, 1547 (pp. 75-6).
57 Vita di Dante, ed. Macrì-Leone, § 16, p. 74.
58 See above, p. 54 note.
59 See above, pp. 54, 57 note.
60 See above, p. 74.
61 See above, p. 91.
62 Vita di Dante, ed. Brunone Bianchi, 1883, pp. xv, xvii, xxi.
63 Vita Dantis, ed. 1828, pp. 111-14.
64 See C. Ricci, L’ Ultimo Rifugio di Dante, pp. 68 ff.
65 Vita di Dante, ed. Macrì-Leone, § 16, p. 74. They are also twice mentioned by Bruni, Vita di Dante, ed. cit. pp. xxv, xxvii.
66 Edited by F. Pasqualigo, Lonigo, 1887. For the MSS., see Wicksteed and Gardner, Dante and Giovanni del Virgilio, pp. 268 ff.
67 See G. Albini, Dantis Eclogae (Firenze, 1903), p. xvi.
68 In Dante and G, del Virgilio, pp. 146 ff.
69 There are three English translations of the Eclogues, viz. one (in blank verse) by Dean Plumptre, in The Commedia and Canzoniere of Dante (1887), vol. ii. pp. 326-41; and two by P. H. Wicksteed, one (in prose) in Dante and G. del Virgilio, pp. 147 ff.; the other (in blank verse) in Translation of the Latin Works of Dante (1904), pp. 373 ff.
70 Beginning, “Pieridum vox alma, novis qui cantibus orbem”; the Carmen and Dante’s two Eclogae, with Giovanni’s Ecloga Responsiva, are printed in the Oxford Dante (pp. 185-90). The Carmen appears from internal evidence to have been written in the spring of 1319. (See Ricci, op, cit. p. 71).
71 Beginning, “Vidimus in nigris albo patiente lituris”.
72 Apparently the same individual who related to Boccaccio the story of the finding of the lost cantos of the Commedia (see above, p. 209 note).
73 Beginning, “Forte sub irriguos colles, ubi Sarpina Rheno.”
74 It appears from a note of the anonymous commentator that this second eclogue (which some critics hesitate to accept as entirely from the hand of Dante) was not composed until a year after the receipt of Giovanni’s eclogue, and did not reach the latter until after Dante’s death (see Pasqualigo, op. cit. p. 13).
75 Beginning, “Velleribus Colchis praepes detectus Eous”.
76 So identified by the anonymous commentator, who describes him as a physician of Certaldo resident at Ravenna.
77 Polyphemus is thought by some to indicate King Robert of Naples, the protector of the Guelfs; others hold the reference to be to a member of some Bolognese family whom Dante had offended, e.g. the Caccianimici (cf. Inf. xviii. 48-66) (see Ricci, op. cit. pp. 105 ff.).
78 Quaestio florulenta ac perutilis de duobus elementis aquae et terrac tractans, nuper reperta que olim Mantuae auspicata, Veronae vero disputata et decisa ac manu propria scripta, a Dante Florentine poeta clarissimo, quam diligenter et accurate correcta fuit per reverendum Magistrum Joannem Benedictum Moncettum de Castilione Arretino Regentem Patavinum ordinis Eremitarum divi Augustini Sacraeque Theologiae doctor em excellentissimum. At the beginning of the treatise proper, after the preliminary matter, is the following short title: Quaestio aurea ac perutilis edita per Dantem Alagherium poetam Florentinum clarissimum de natura duorum elementorum aquae et terrae diserentem. Only seven copies are known of the editio princeps, of which one is in the British Museum, one in the Cornell University Library (Fiske Collection) in America, and the remaining five in various public libraries in Italy. The work was reprinted at Naples in 1576, but this edition is also exceedingly rare (see Athenaeum, 16 October, and 13 November, 1897; and 8 July, 1905). A facsimile of the editio princeps, with translations in Italian, French, Spanish, English, and German, was published (by L. Olschki) at Florence in 1905.
79 Studies in Dante, ii. 356.
80 Five English translations of the treatise have been published; viz. by C. H. Bromby, A Question of the Water and of the Land, 1897; by A. C. White, in Annual Report of the Cambridge (U.S.A.) Dante Society for 1903; by P. H. Wicksteed, in Translation of the Latin Works of Dante, 1904 (pp. 389-423); by S. P. Thompson, in the volume containing fac-simile reprint of the editio princeps, Florence, 1905 (pp. 59-86); and by C. L. Shadwell, in Dante’s Quaestio de Aqua et Terra, Oxford, 1909.
81 For the circumstances in which this Credo is alleged to have been composed, see above, pp. 150-2.
82 Two fifteenth century editions (Rome, circ. 1476; and Florence, circ. 1490) are in the British Museum.
83 It is included, together with the Sette Salmi Penitenziali, in the Oxford Dante (pp. 193-202). The Professione di Fede has been translated into English by Dean Plumptre, in The Commedia and Canzoniere of Dante (vol. ii. pp. 318-25).
84 Two fifteenth century editions, both printed at Venice, are in the British Museum.
85 Ave Maria inedita di Dante Alighieri, edited by A. Bonucci (100 copies).
86 Un nuovo Credo di Dante Alighieri, published by A. Manardi on t
he occasion of the inauguration of Dante’s statue at Mantua on 30 July, 1871.
87 See his Prefazione.
88 Bk. ii. ch. 4.
APPENDIX A
GENEALOGICAL TABLE OF THE FAMILY OF DANTE ALIGHIERI
Note.—The dates attached to the names are those of documents in which the individuals in question are mentioned.
aPar. xv. 89, 135.
b Par. xv. 136.
c Par. xv. 136.
d Par. xv. 137-8.
e Par. xv. 91-4.
f Inf. xvi. 37.
g Par, xv. 112; xvi. 99.
h Son. lii*. 8; liii*. 14; liv*. 1.
i Inf. xxix. 27.
j Son. liii*. 10.
k Son. liii*. 10.
l Son. liii*. 11.
1 In a document dated 28 April, 1131, mention is made of “Cacciaguida filius Adami” (see Davidsohn, Geschichte von Florenz, i. 440 n.).
2 Eliseo had a grandson (Arrigo), and great-grandsons (Bonaccorso and Eliseo), exiled from Florence in 1268; and great-great-grandsons (Bonaccorso, d. 1303, and Guidotto), returned to Florence in 1280.
3 See above, p. 41 n.
4 Brunetto fought at Montaperti (4 Sept. 1260), where he was in charge of the Carroccio.
5 Cenni, i.e. Bencivenni.
6 Cione, i.e. Uguccione, was alive in I298; his sons are mentioned, together with Dante, in the Riforma di Baldo d’ Aguglione (2 Sept. 1311), viz. “De Sextu Porte Sancti Petri. . . . Filii domini Cionis del Bello et Dante Allighierii.”
7 Bella’s family is unknown; it is conjectured that she was the daughter of Durante di Scolaio degli Abati, in which case Dante’s Christian name (a contraction of Durante) was doubtless derived from his maternal grandfather. Bella is mentioned as deceased in a document dated 16 May, 1332: “dominae Bellae olim matris dicti Dantis, et olim aviae dictorum Jacobi et domini Pieri” (see Scherillo, Alcuni Capitoli dell a Biografia di Dante, p. 29).
8 Lapa was alive in 1332, as appears from the document of 16 May, 1332, quoted in the previous note : “dominae Lapae matris dicti Francisci, et filiae olim Chiarissimi Cialuffi, et uxoris olim Alaghierii supradicti”.
9 Gemma is mentioned in a deed dated 24 Aug. 1329 : “domine Gemme vidue uxori olim dantis allagherii et filie quondam domini Manetti domini Donati” (see Bullettino della Società Dantesca Italiana, N.S. 1902, ix. 184).
10 Francesco is mentioned in at least twenty documents between 1297 and 1343 (see Bullettino della Società Dantesca Italiana, N.S. 1907, xiv. 124-36).
11 This sister of Dante’s is conjectured to be the “donna giovane e gentile . . . la quale era meco di propinquissima sanguinità congiunta “of Vita Nuova, § 23, ll, 86, 94-6; the “Donna pietosa e di novella etate, Adorna assai di gentilezze umane,” of Canz. ii. 12.
12 Pietro and Jacopo are mentioned in the second decree of banishment against Dante (6 Nov. 1315): “Dantem Adhegerii et filios”; as well as (by name) in documents of 1332 and 1342. Many documents relating to Pietro’s life at Verona (1332-1364) have been preserved (see Bullettino della Società Dantesca Italiana, N.S. 1906, xiii. 41-7).
13 Beatrice was alive in 1350 as a nun at Ravenna (“suora Beatrice figliuola che fu di Dante Allighieri monaca nel monastero di San Stefano dell Uliva di Ravenna”), when Boccaccio was commissioned to present her with ten gold florins on behalf of the Capitani di Or San Michele of Florence; she died before 1370, in which year there is a record of the payment of a bequest of hers of three gold ducats to the convent where she had lived (see Giornale Dantcsco, vii, 339-4o).
14 Andrea Poggi supplied Boccaccio with information about Dante’s habits and manner of life (see above, pp. 39, 209-11).
[Besides the authorities mentioned above, see L. Passerini, Della Famiglia di Dante, in Dante e il suo Secolo (pp. 53-78); Frullani e Gargani, Della Casa di Dante; G. L. Passerini, La Famiglia Alighieri; and A. Bartoli, Della Vita di Dante Alighieri, in Storia della Letter at lira Italiana (vol. v. pp. 1-21, 97-110).]
APPENDIX B
LETTER OF FRATE ILARIO TO UGUCCIONE DELLA FAGGIUOLA1
“To the most illustrious and magnificent Lord, Uguccione della Faggiuola, among the Princes of Italy the foremost and most eminent, Frate Ilario, a humble monk of the monastery of Corvo, at the mouth of the Magra, sendeth greeting in His name who verily is the salvation of all men.
“In the words of our Saviour in the Gospel, ‘A good man out of the good treasure of his heart, bringeth forth that which is good’. Wherefrom we learn two things,—firstly, that by what cometh out of a man we may judge of that which is in his heart; and secondly, that by our speech, which was given to us for this purpose, we may make manifest that which is in our own hearts. As it is written, ‘By their fruits ye shall know them’. And albeit this was said of the unrighteous, yet it may be understood much more generally of the righteous, inasmuch as these are ever more ready to make known their thoughts, and the others to hide them. Nor is it only the desire of glory which moves the good that is within us to bring forth fruit, but the very commandment of God, which forbids us to leave idle the gifts that are given to us. For God and Nature abhor that which is idle; wherefore the tree that bringeth not forth fruit in due season is cast into the fire. Truly, therefore, this man, whose work, together with mine own exposition thereon, I now purpose to send to you, above all men of Italy appears to have observed from his youth up this precept as to the bringing forth of the treasure of the heart; seeing that, according as I have been informed—and it is a marvel to hear—he tried, even when a child, to express himself upon subjects such as had never been told of before. And, greater marvel still, he set himself to discuss in the vulgar tongue matters which could scarce be expounded by the most accomplished scholars even in Latin—in the vulgar tongue, I say, not in unadorned prose, but in the music of verse. But leaving his praises to his works, where without doubt every wise man will most plainly perceive them, come briefly to my present purpose.
“Know, then, that this man, when he was on his way to cross the mountains, and was passing through the diocese of Luni, whether from reverence for the place, or from some other motive, betook himself to the monastery mentioned above. And when I saw him, and as yet neither I nor the other monks knew who he was, I enquired what he sought. As he returned no reply, but only kept his eyes fixed on the buildings of the monastery, I again asked him what he sought. Whereupon, looking at me and my brother monks, he said ‘Peace’. This made me burn more and more to know what manner of man he was; so drawing him apart from the others I entered into conversation with him, and at last recognised who he was; for though I had never set eyes on him before that day, his fame had long ago reached me. Now when he noted that my whole attention was set on him, and that I was interested in what he was saying, he drew forth from his bosom with a friendly air a small book, which he frankly offered to me. ‘This,’ he said, is part of a work of mine, which perhaps you have never seen. I leave it to you as a memento, that you may the better keep me in mind.’ So saying he handed me the book, which I gratefully accepted; and pressing it to my bosom I opened it, and in his presence lovingly fixed my gaze upon it. And when I caught sight of words in the vulgar tongue, and exhibited some degree of astonishment, he asked what was the cause of my hesitation. To which I replied that I was surprised at the nature of the language; for not only did it seem to me a difficult, nay, an inconceivable, task to express such an arduous theme in the vulgar tongue; but also it appeared not altogether fitting that such weighty matters should be clothed in a popular dress. ‘Your opinion,’ he replied, ‘is certainly in accordance with reason. When at the outset the seed (sent to me perchance from heaven) began to germinate in the form of this undertaking, I made choice of the language most appropriate for it. And not only did I make choice of it, but I made a beginning with it, in the usual poetical style, as follows :—
Ultima regna canam fluvido contermina mundo,
Spiritibus quae lata patent, quae praemia solvunt
Pro meritis cuicunque suis.
“‘But when I came to consider the condition of the present time, I observed that the songs of illustrious poets were rejected as things almost of no worth; and this because the nobles, for whom in better times such things were written, to their shame be it said, had abandoned the liberal arts to men of low estate. For this reason I laid aside the poor lyre which I had ventured to use, and made ready another, better adapted to the intelligence of the public of to-day. For it is vain to put solid food to the lips of sucklings.’ After saying this he added very kindly that if I had leisure for such a task I might furnish this work of his with a running commentary, and send it to you along with my notes. If I have not always succeeded in unravelling his hidden meaning, at any rate I have laboured faithfully and in an ungrudging spirit; and I now, in obedience to the behest of this devoted friend of yours, despatch to you the work in question, as requested. Any ambiguities that may be discovered in it you must set down to my insufficiency, for be assured that the text itself is in every respect to be regarded as unimpeachable. If at any time your Highness should enquire for the other two parts of this work, with the intention of uniting them together into a single whole, you may ask for the second part, which is the sequel to this, from the eminent Marquis Moroello ; and the third and last part will be found in the hands of the most illustrious Frederick, King of Sicily. For as the author assured me was his intention—after surveying the whole of Italy, he made choice of you three, in preference to all others, to be the patrons of this threefold work of his.”
(The original of this letter, with an Italian translation, is printed by Fraticelli in his Vita di Dante, pp. 346-9, 357-9; a critical text is given by Rajna, op. cit.2 pp. 126-8).
* * *
1See above, p. 92 note.
2See above, p. 92 note.
APPENDIX C
Dante Alighieri Page 27
