Approaches to Teaching Dante’s Divine Comedy, second edition: Materials (original) (raw)

2020, Approaches to Teaching Dante’s Divine Comedy, second edition

For those numerous courses taught in En glish we highly recommend duallanguage editions for the fa cil i ty they offer those instructors who wish to note certain aspects of the Italian text. In par tic u lar, we would note the translations with commentary by Allen Mandelbaum; Robert Hollander and Jean Hollander; and Robert Durling and Ronald L. Martinez; as well as those by Robin Kirkpatrick and Stanley Lombardo for their readability, valuable notes, and sometimes extended commentary on points of interest. We recognize the appeal that some earlier versions have for many instructors (e.g., those by Mark Musa, John D. Sinclair, Charles S. Singleton, John Ciardi, and Henry Wadsworth Longfellow). We also would note that, among the many recent translations, those by Robert Pinsky, Anthony Esolen, Clive James, and Mary Jo Bang have been used to good effect by instructors. Madison Sowell's essay on evaluating En glish versions of the Comedy discusses the vari ous ele ments involved in choosing translations for a course on Dante. Readings from Dante's minor works are also used profitably in many courses. At times, the entire Vita nuova is assigned and relevant sections of the Monarchia, the Letter to Can Grande, Convivio, and De vulgari eloquentia are incorporated to provide background material for the study of the Comedy or to highlight their intrinsic importance in the more general medieval context. John Took provides a fine overview of these writings in Dante: Lyric Poet and Phi loso pher. Therefore, in addition to the editions and versions of the Comedy noted above, we call attention to several recent En glish translations of Dante's minor works that are impor tant additions to class syllabi. The most frequently used text in classes is the Vita nuova, often read in its entirety, and instructors should note the debate concerning its division and presen ta tion, even though these considerations do not affect its meaning vis-à-vis the Comedy. 2 Generally, earlier En glish translations of the Vita Nuova-those of Musa and Barbara Reynolds-still enjoy great popularity, although the more recent versions by Anthony Robert Mortimer and by Andrew Frisardi have received favorable comments. Dante Gabriel Rossetti's nineteenth-century version is also available in a 2002 edition. Small but representative se lections from the other minor works often find their way into course syllabi and can be impor tant additions. For investigations of Dante's views on language and lyric poetry, readings from De vulgari eloquentia are very impor tant, and two translations have recently appeared by Marianne Shapiro and Steven Botterill, respectively. Similarly, for Dante's ideas about the proper relationship between church and state, the Monarchia is the crucial document, and some recent translations include those by Richard Kay and by Shaw, although for classroom purposes the latter is more manageable.