Dante Alighieri (29 page)

    
Book
III.—
Canzone
: “Amor, che nella mente mi ragiona”.—
Chap
. 1. Three reasons which impelled Dante to give expression to his passion for the gentle lady, viz. the desire of gaining honour for himself through his friendship
with her, the desire that this friendship should be lasting, and the desire to avoid reproach by stating who the lady was. Division of the canzone into three principal parts.—
Chap
. 2. Explanation of the first part. Love defined as the spiritual union of the soul with the object loved. Of all things the human soul has most affinity with God, and consequently is most closely united with whatever most nearly resembles God. The love of which Dante speaks is the union of his soul with the gentle lady. The place where love discourses is the mind, or thinking faculty, which is the highest of the three faculties of the soul, and which belongs only to man and to divine substances.—
Chap
. 3. Man, though his essence be one, is capable of feeling every sort of love, such as is felt by simple and composite bodies, by plants, and by animals. The love which is the poet's theme is the highest of all; he can neither fully apprehend it nor express it.—
Chap
. 4. Explanation of this incapacity of mind and speech, for which Dante is not to be blamed, since blame attaches to want of will, not to want of power.—
Chap
. 5. Discussion of the second stanza of the canzone, in which the lady is praised as a whole, both in soul and body. Long digression explaining and illustrating the revolution of the Sun round the Earth.—
Chap
. 6. Explanation of the meaning of “temporal” and “equal” hours. The Intelligences on high gaze on his lady, as a thought existing in the divine mind. She is beloved by God as being endowed with a special portion of the divine nature, and admired by man inasmuch as her soul dignifies the body, which is the actuality of the soul.—
Chap
. 7. Praise of the lady as regards her soul. The goodness of God is diffused over all things, but enters into various substances, as light does, in proportion to their receptivity. In the intellectual order are infinite gradations, hence it may be assumed
that some human being is little lower than the angels. Such is this lady. Her speech and acts afford an example to others, and are an aid to the faith of all mankind, whereby they gain everlasting life.—
Chap
. 8. Praise of the lady in respect of her body, especially of those parts in which the soul chiefly operates, viz. the eyes and mouth. Explanation of sundry expressions in the fourth stanza of the canzone. Distinction between innate and habitual vices. Definition of the end and source of this lady's beauty.—
Chap
. 9. Discussion of third division of the canzone. Explanation why the lady, who was formerly called proud and disdainful, is now called humble. Illustration drawn from the sky, which always has the quality of brightness, but does not always appear bright. Statement of. the theory of vision. Reference to Dante's own weakness of sight.—
Chap
. 10. Of judgment by outward appearance at the prompting of desire; and of the rhetorical figure known as dissimulation.—
Chap
. 11. Allegorical meaning of the canzone discussed. Origin of the terms “philosophy” and “philosopher,” i.e. lover of wisdom. Of the nature of friendship. The name of philosophy given to the sciences, natural, moral, and metaphysical, above all to the last, which is called philosophy
par excellence
.—
Chap
. 12. Of two kinds of devotion (
studio
). Reasons why the Sun is worthy to be a type of God. As the Sun illumines first itself, and then all other sensible objects, so God illumines first Himself, and then all other intellectual beings. As injury done by the Sun is not intentional but accidental, so badness in things which partake of intellectual light, as in bad angels, is not designed but accidental. Philosophy part of the divine essence, and as it were the bride, the sister, and daughter of the Emperor of heaven.—
Chap.
13. Philosophy resides also in the celestial Intelligences, Her highest gifts enjoyable only in use,
not merely in possession, though he who only possesses her is still a philosopher, for philosophy is always transcendent.—
Chap
. 14. The allegorical interpretation, following the literal, passes from general commendation of the lady to particular. Discussion and explanation of various expressions in the third stanza of the canzone. Of the distinction between “light” and “splendour”. The ancient philosophers indifferent to all things save wisdom. Of the effect of philosophy on the soul, especially in aiding faith.—
Chap
. 15. Discussion of the fourth stanza. The eyes of philosophy explained to be her demonstrations, and her smiles her persuasions. The difficulty of understanding her obliges man sometimes to be content with negations; but the desire of wisdom is not futile in man or angels, because it is always proportionate to their nature. The beauty of wisdom signifies the moral virtues, which are impaired by vanity and pride; hence she teaches humility. Her highest praise is that she is mother of first principles, hence she was the partner of God in the creation of the world. Passing to the
tornata
, Dante explains why at first he called philosophy fierce and disdainful.

    
Book
IV.—
Canzone
“Le dolci rime d' amor, ch' io solìa”.—
Chap
. 1. Dante's love for philosophy makes him love truth and hate falsehood. Hence his desire to lead men to entertain true and reject false opinions with regard to human goodness, or nobility. Nobility the theme of the third canzone; consequently the exposition will not be concerned with allegory, but will give a fuller treatment of the literal meaning.—
Chap
. 2. Division of the canzone into two principal parts, the preface, and the main argument. The preface subdivided into three parts. Importance of choosing the right time, as well for the speaker as for the hearer. Dante's object both to refute what is
false, and, more especially, to emphasise the truth.—
Chap
. 3. Subdivision of the main argument (
trattato
) of the canzone into three parts, the first of which is again subdivided into two. Nobility defined by the Emperor Frederick II as ancestral wealth and fine manners.—
Chap
. 4. Mention of the Emperor leads Dante to consider at length the nature of the Imperial authority, its origin, and necessity. The Roman Empire shown to be the seat of this authority.—
Chap
. 5. The working of divine Providence demonstrated in the rise and progress of the Roman Empire, and in the noble deeds of her sons.—
Chap
. 6. Discussion of the derivation and meaning of the word “authority”. Aristotle, the master and leader of human reason, declared to be the highest authority. His opinion, and that of other philosophers as to the “end of human life” examined. Aristotle's opinion shown not to conflict with the Imperial authority; both philosopher and emperor needed to constitute the highest authority.—
Chap
. 7. Of the danger of allowing a wrong opinion to prevail unchecked. The defects of popular opinion due to disregard of proper guidance. Those who go astray for this reason the vilest of all, just as he is least excusable who strays from the path with the footprints of others to guide him. Such an one, in the words of the canzone, “is dead while he liveth”.—
Chap
. 8. Of discernment, and of reverence, one of its fairest fruits. In rejecting common opinion Dante appeals from the judgment of sense to that of reason; and in rejecting the opinion of the Emperor, he is not irreverent, since Imperial authority does not extend to the domain of reason.—
Chap
. 9. Imperial authority has jurisdiction over all human activities, but these are limited, some being purely natural, while others are subject to reason and will. Activities with which reason is concerned are of four kinds. That activity which derives its character
solely from the act of the will is most completely under our control; and, generally speaking, responsibility is proportionate to the power exercised by the will. Law intended to be a guide to the will. Action may be compared with art, that is, production. Many processes of production are purely technical, and here art is supreme; but in others art is limited by the laws of its subject-matter. Similarly the Emperor's authority is limited by the law of reason and of nature. The definition of nobility therefore does not come within his scope.—
Chap
. 10. Criticism of previous opinions. In so far as definitions of nobility make fine manners essential to it they are right, though defective. But in introducing the notion of time, or of wealth, they are erroneous. Philosophical arguments against making nobility dependent on wealth.—
Chap
. 11. The inferiority of wealth attributable to three special imperfections, viz. lack of discrimination in its advent, dangers attendant upon its increase, and disasters consequent on its possession. Consideration of the first of these imperfections. Of that most noble exchange, made, alas! by so few, of riches for the hearts of men. Instances of munificence.—
Chap
. 12. Increase of wealth shown to be evil, inasmuch as it brings the torment of boundless and therefore futile desire. Those who would apply this same argument in the case of knowledge, ignore the essential difference between the two kinds of desire.—
Chap
. 13. The desire of riches is uniform and keeps growing, and is therefore never consummated; while the desire of knowledge is a succession of desires, each of which is consummated in turn. Consideration of the disasters consequent on the possession of wealth, which not only inflicts positive evil on its possessor, but also deprives him of good.—
Chap
. 14. Refutation of the error which makes nobility depend on time, by defining it as
consisting in ancestral wealth. The opinion that no one who begins by being a clown can ever become a gentleman, and
vice versa
, antagonistic to the claim that time is requisite for nobility. The contention that nobility begins when low birth is forgotten, shown to be absurd on four grounds. Firstly, a feeble memory, which is a bad thing, would be the cause of nobility, which is a good thing, and the shorter men's memories the quicker would nobility be engendered. Secondly, the distinction between mean and noble would not be applicable to anything but man, whereas we often speak of a noble or mean horse, falcon, pearl, etc. Thirdly, the thing engendered (nobility) would often be in existence before its cause (oblivion) came into operation. Fourthly, some would be considered noble after death who were not noble during life.—
Chap
. 15. Again, if a man cannot change from simple to gentle, and
vice versa
, one of two absurdities must follow: either nobility does not exist at all, or the world must always have had more than one man in it, which is contrary to both Christian and pagan belief. The error in question is manifest to sound minds. Minds are sound when not hampered by evil dispositions, three kinds of which are specified, viz. boastfulness, dejection of mind, and levity of nature.—
Chap
. 16. Dante now passes to the examination of the true definition of nobility. “Nobility” signifies in each thing the perfection of the nature peculiar to it. The word derived not from
nosco
, as some suppose, but from
non vile
. The quality will be defined by its fruits, viz. the moral and intellectual virtues.—
Chap
. 17. The moral virtues peculiarly our own fruits, as being wholly in our own power. Aristotle's classification of these virtues. His definition of happiness. We have two kinds of happiness, according as we follow the active or the contemplative life, of which the latter is the higher, as Christ
teaches with reference to Martha in the Gospel of Luke.—
Chap
. 18. Every moral virtue springs from right choice. Right choice is also characteristic of nobility. One of these (virtue or nobility) therefore must come from the other, or both from a third. The more comprehensive of the two terms (nobility) must be taken as the original source of the characteristic.—
Chap
. 19. Nobility shown to be a wider term than virtue, as including divers other kinds of excellence, as well bodily as mental; it even extends to regions where virtue is not found, as in the qualities of woman and of the young.—
Chap
. 20. Thus nobility enters into the conception of virtue, and is something divine. But the gift is bestowed only on the soul adapted for its reception. Hence nobility is a seed of blessedness placed by God in the soul fitted to receive it.—
Chap
. 21. Of the agencies, natural and spiritual, by which nobility descends into men. Theories of the ancients as to the nature and origin of the soul. Natural agencies, including the influences of the generating soul, of the heaven, and of the “complexion” of the material, prepare the material to receive the formative virtue which proceeds from the generating soul; the formative virtue in turn prepares it for the heavenly virtue from which life comes. The potential intellect, in which exist potentially the universal forms derived from the primal Intelligence, is imparted by the mover of the heaven. The purity of the soul is in proportion to the goodness of the various agencies; and in proportion to its purity the divine excellence multiplies in the intellectual virtue, and becomes the seed of happiness. Divine agencies impart the sevenfold gift of the Spirit, but man is responsible for the cultivation of the seed.—
Chap
. 22. Of natural appetite, which at first is without discrimination, but afterwards becomes discriminated. Rational desire belonging to the
mind, i.e. the will and intellect, is the highest and brings the highest happiness. Such as have not this desire implanted in them by nature, may get it ingrafted in them. Of the higher blessedness of the contemplative over the active life.—
Chap
. 23. Discussion of the seventh stanza of the canzone. Dante shows how nobility is displayed in the different stages of life. The life of man likened to an arch rising to its highest point (at the thirty-fifth year) and declining. Illustration from the life of the Saviour. Correspondence between the four ages in man (adolescence, youth, old age, decline) and the four divisions of the year (the seasons) and of the day (the canonical tierce, none, sext, and vespers, of which an explanation is given).—
Chap
. 24. Of the duration of the four ages of human life. Adolescence lasts till the twenty-fifth year; youth to the forty-fifth; old age to the seventieth; after which begins decline. Adolescence naturally endowed with four things, obedience, suavity, sense of shame, and comeliness. Of obedience.—
Chap
. 25. Of suavity in adolescence. Of the sense of shame, which consists in awe, modesty, shamefacedness. These three qualities illustrated from the history of Adrastus in the
Thebaid
of Statius. Of bodily comeliness.—
Chap
. 26. Five characteristics of youth, to be temperate, brave, full of love, courteous, and loyal. Temperance and courage respectively the bridle and spur of desire, as exemplified by Virgil in the history of Aeneas in the
A eneid
, whence also illustrations of the other three qualities are drawn.—
Chap
. 27. Of the four virtues most suitable to old age, viz. to be prudent, just, bountiful, and fairspoken (
affabile
). Illustrations of these qualities drawn from the history of Cephalus and Aeacus in the
Metamorphoses
of Ovid.—
Chap
. 28. Of the two qualities most proper to the fourth stage of life (decline), resignation of the soul to God, and
thankfulness for the journey ended. Illustrations from the history of Marcia and Cato in Lucan's
Pharsalia
.—
Chap
. 29. Of those who believe themselves noble because they are of noble lineage. A family may be called noble if the majority of its members are truly noble, but a worthless member of it is not entitled to claim nobility on that score. Illustration from a heap of grain.—
Chap
. 30. Discussion of the
tornata
of the canzone. Its title (
Contra gli erranti
) imitated from that of Aquinas' book
Contra Gentiles
. The canzone bidden to address herself only to such as have some love for the gentle lady, philosophy. The friend of philosophy, mentioned in the last line, explained to be nobility, there being ever the deepest love and admiration between these two.