St. Landry democrat., 1886-07-24
DANTE ALiGHiERl.
The Sorrowfu1 and Cherries Life OF
Italy's Most Famous Poet.

Dante Alighieri was born in the city
OF Florence in the year 1865. The fu.
ture poet was of noble family, and he
inherited apparently the bravery of his
ancestors, who fought in the crusades.
Ills education was as thorough as the
facilities of that age permitted. He
studied at the universities of Bologna
and Padua. and perhaps visited Paris
and Oxford, but in his attainment of
learning he never neglected physical
exercise and manly sports
In his twenty-fourth year Dante had
an opportunity to try his metal in bat
Tie. Florence was occupied by two par
hes' the Guelphs and Ghibellines, each
OF which was determined upon the su-
premacy. BY series of complications
"hich 1t would require pages to de-
scribe, the tlorentines engaged in war
with two neighboring cities, and in these
battles young Dante proved himself
worthy of his sires.
There is q little romance connected
with the early years of the poet which
had marked influence on his life and
writings. When only nine years old he
fell in love with a little girl, Beatrice,
who had scarcely grown to be woman
when she died. Dante never ceased to
worship her ideal as long as he lived,
and she became to him kind of deity.
In the year 1900 a misfortune came to
Dante which changed his career. He
had been elected an official of Florence,
and while in office he was compelled to
act in a way that offended one party.
Whlle Dante was away at Rome this
factlon came into power, and immedi-
ately passed a decree of Punishment
against the absent citizen. Thus, like
Cicero, Dante found himself an exile
from the city he so dearly loved. But
not like the great orator was he to be
recalled la few short months. His
wassa lifelong Punishment, and but for
those long years of sad wandering from
city to city, those weary hours spent in
and chapel, we might never
have had the Divine Comedy.
The death of his young love, the COM
of a most ill-tempered wife.
and his Punishment from his native CITY
to make Dante melancholy
man. But his deeper feelings were
by these misfortt,nes; they
Nrang from the poet song that has
stirred the hearts of men in all succeed
ng ages. 1t was fitting time for a.
poet to appear. Religious enthusiasm
vas at its height. Chivalry with it's
fascinating attributes of courtesy, love
md honor was in its glory, and the
words liberty and democracy were
N everybody's bps.
Dante wrote, before his exile. little
'olume in which he tells of his love for
'eatrice, and he published other books
the Latin language, one on Mon
rchy' and another on The Vulgar
,ongue." His great work is the Divine
'omedy. This he wrote not in Latin,
ut in the vulgar tongue''-the Italian.
lere we find resemblance between
ne first great English poet, Chaucer.
nd the leader of Italian song. Both
iscarded the artificial languages of
olite letters, the Norman and the
attn, both aimed to reach the hearts
their countrymen through the simple
Very-day language that all could
Understand, and both hoped to give the
speech a higher,p place by show
lg its power in poetry.
The plot of the Divine Comedy is SIM
lie. In company with Virgil whom
ante enthusiastically admired, the
bet visits the lower world The work
divided into three parts which corre-
'ond with the three divisions of the
purgatory and para
Sc. With terrible earnestness and
inuteness Dante describes the scenes
the place of torment. He meets
laracters well-known in history, and
nverses with them, until it all seems
reality. This book is really a grand
view of the world up to the poets
e. Men and women of all times pass
review; future punishment is made a
voting and awful thing, and is con-
'sted with the happiness of paradise
rough which the beloved Beatrice
nducts the visitor.
Try as he may Dante can not make
radise as attractive as purgatorv in
oulsive. Can we wonder at this
len we remember his life of sorrow
d misery. The Divine Comedy was
ltten during the years of wandering
M the time of his exile until his
18th at Ravenna in 1921. The patron
his latter years, Guido Novello de
enta, shad the poet buried with
'at solemnity, and it is gratifying to
DIV the Florentines a century later
tardy homage to their disting uished
zen.-W stle Avake.