Book

Dante : a life / Alessandro Barbero ; [translated] by Allan Cameron.

Barbero, Alessandro, (author.). Cameron, Allan, 1952- (translator.).

Summary:

"Dante brings the legendary author--and the medieval Italy of his era-- to vivid life, describing the political intrigue, battles, culture, and society that shaped his writing. Dante Alighieri's Divine Comedy has defined how people imagine and depict heaven and hell for over seven centuries. However, outside of Italy, his other works are not well known, and less still is generally known about the context he wrote them in. In Dante, Barbero brings the legendary author's Italy to life, describing the political intrigue, battles, city and society that shaped his life and work. The son of a shylock who dreams of belonging to the world of writers and nobles, we follow Dante into the dark corridors of politics where ideals are shattered by rampant corruption, and then into exile as he travels Italy and discovers the extraordinary color and variety of the countryside, the metropolises, and the knightly courts"--Book jacket flap.

Record details

ISBN: 1643139134
ISBN: 9781643139135
Physical Description: ix, 304 pages ; 24 cm
Edition: First Pegasus Books cloth edition.
Publisher: New York, NY : Pegasus Books, 2022.

Content descriptions

General Note:	Originally published in Italian as Dante in 2020.
Bibliography, etc. Note:	Includes bibliographical references (pages 271-292) and index.
Formatted Contents Note:	St. Barnabas's Day -- Dante and nobility -- Cacciaguida and others -- The Alighieri clan -- Infancy and the district -- Love and friendships -- Dante's studies -- A mysterious marriage -- Dante's business dealings -- Politics: the magnates and the people -- Politics: the White Guelphs and the Black Guelphs -- Banishment -- An exile's family -- The fate of Dante's wealth -- Keeping company with the wicked -- The mysteries of Verona -- Turncoat -- 'Other people's stairs' -- Henry VII -- Other people's bread -- Ravenna.
Language Note:	Translated from the Italian.