Beatrice Archives - Page 3 of 18

The Mathematics of The Divine Comedy

November 19, 2021 By Sephora Affa, FSU '24

“As God’s Creation, we experience a physical realm of differentiated entities and perceive multiplicity in our material reality. The character of Beatrice utilizes this fact in Paradiso 2 when she proposes the mirror experiment. The experiment combines mathematical, geometrical, and optical/physical principles to demonstrate spiritual truths. This experiment, especially its utilization of reflection, plants a seed in Dante, prodding him on his journey to the Divine: ‘Nature offers to the symbolic poet clearly denotable objects in-depth and in the round, which yield the analogies to the higher senses.’ [19] In the Primo Mobile, Dante the poet utilizes these same principles as he approaches the dimensionless punto of the Divine, the source and ground of all being.”[. . .] –Matthew Canonico, University of Notre Dame: Church Life Journal, April 28, 2021

Read the full analysis here.

Valley of the Painted Stones Murals in Sicily, Silvio Benedetto (1992)

November 10, 2021 By Harrison Betz, FSU '25

“La Valle Delle Pietre Dipinte, or the Valley of Painted Stones (also known as the Park of the Divine Comedy), is a series of 110 painted marble slabs that depict events and people from Dante’s Divine Comedy. Artist and sculptor Silvio Benedetto began this endeavor in 1992. Benedetto, born in Buenos Aires, Argentina in 1938, moved to Italy in 1964 and completed other well-known works there, such as the murals for Cinque Terre National Park. He has been called the ‘last of the great mural artists.’

“La Valle delle Pietre Dipinte is located in Campobello di Licata, Sicily. The park is a physical experience as well as an artistic one. Visitors walk through it, going from Hell to Purgatory to Paradise. The journey begins with a downward path into Hell, which features such recognized figures as La Lupa, Beatrice, Francesca and Paolo, and Ulysses. The viewer goes up from Hell to Purgatory, finally ascending the hill to Paradise, where a mural of the Virgin Mary can be seen. The last mural of the series says, ‘E quindi uscimmo a riveder le stelle’ or ‘And then we went out to see the stars.'” –Contributor Abigail Williams

See also a collection of photographs of the murals at the Valley of Painted Stones here.

For more information about Campobello di Licata and the Valley of Painted Stones, click here.

Contributed by Abigail Williams (University of Arkansas, ’22)

Escape from Paradise “Found” Letter From Dante’s Beatrice to Petrarch’s Laura, Sante Matteo (2021)

November 10, 2021 By Harrison Betz, FSU '25

This “found” letter drafted by Sante Matteo recounts the story of Beatrice Portinari’s faked death in Florence and reestablishment as a different woman in Venice. The letter acts as Beatrice’s advice to Petrarch’s muse Laura on “how to deal with the consequences of being made the object of love poetry” (Contributor Sante Matteo). Throughout the text, various references are made to Dante, the Divine Comedy, and other poetic and literary works written by Dante.

The following is an excerpt from the letter explaining Beatrice’s identity:

“Before escaping from Florence, I was Beatrice Portinari. Yes, the Beatrice made famous by Dante Alighieri. I’m told that his poetry is well known in Avignon because of the community of Florentine expatriates who live there. . . If you do know the Commedia, you will know me as Dante’s guide from Purgatorio through Paradiso.” [. . .] –Sante Matteo, Twelve Winters Journal

For the full content of the letter, visit Twelve Winters journal here.

Contributed by Sante Matteo

The Sky Over Kibera (2019 film)

November 5, 2021 By Sephora Affa, FSU '24

“THE SKY OVER KIBERA is an art film: it tells us about the ‘bringing to life’ of the Divine Comedy in the immense slum of Nairobi, Kibera, where the director has worked with 150 children and adolescents, reinventing Dante’s masterpiece in English and Swahili. And he does so with his poetic and visionary style, interweaving other images with the filming of the play, sequences shot specifically in the slum to carry out the alchemical operation of transforming theatre into cinema. Three teenagers from Nairobi offer face and voice to Dante, Virgil, and Beatrice: they are the guides that lead the viewer into the labyrinth of Kibera, where the ‘dark forest’ in which the poet is lost is more than just a metaphor: in Swahili, Kibera means ‘forest.’ Around them a chorus swarming with bodies recites the tumult of being both beasts and damned, thieves and murderers, devils and corrupt politicians and poets who indicate the ways of salvation: between songs and acting, frenetic races and wild dances, the 150 protagonists give life to a fresco full of moving poetry, further confirmation of the universality of Dante’s masterpiece.” [. . .] —Teatro Delle Albe

View the trailer here.

Image credit Andrea Signori

Contributed by Silvia Valisa (Florida State University)

Beatrice Costume

November 2, 2021 By Harrison Betz, FSU '25

Sold by Italian costume company Carnival Pegasus, this Beatrice costume consists of a one-piece white and gold tunic with a white cap and blonde wig. It is available in two sizes from Adult Small to Medium and can be purchased for 41.00 euros online here.

The description notes that it may be “perfetto per recite, saggi scolastici, rappresentazioni, feste di Compleanno, Travestimenti, feste a tema, Cosplay, giochi di finzione, giochi di ruolo, Carnevale e sfilate di Carnevale.”[. . .] —Carnival Pegasus

The company also makes costumes for Virgil and Dante.

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