Table of Contents

About the Author x 

Preface xii 

The Rationale xii 

The Origin xiii 

Acknowledgments xvii 

Introduction 1 

The Historical Context 1 

The Life of Dante 3 

Later Writings 8 

The Commedia 12 

Dante’s Death 14 

Aims of this Book 15 

Dante as Moral Philosopher 17 

1 Inferno 19 

Dante’s Mission 19 

The Journey Begins 20 

Vestibule (Ante-Hell): The Indecisive Neutrals 21 

Upper Hell: Sins of Unrestrained Desire (the Wolf) 23 

River Styx, Walls of the City of Dis 28 

Lower Hell: Sins of Malice Leading to Violence (the Lion) 30 

Lower Hell: Sins of Malice Leading to Fraud (the Leopard) 34 

Dante’s Existential Lessons in Hell 46 

2 Purgatorio 48 

Purgatory in a Nutshell 48 

The Journey Continues 50 

Ante-Purgatory: Late Repentants 50 

Gate of Purgatory 56 

The First Three Terraces: Misdirected Love 57 

The Fourth Terrace: Deficient Love of the Good 62 

The Final Three Terraces: Excessive Love of Secondary Goods 64 

Dante’s Existential Lessons in Purgatory 71 

3 The Notion of Desert and the Law of Contrapasso 73 

The Notion of Desert 73 

The Contrapasso 81 

The Problem of Proportionality 87 

First Case Study: Francesca90 

Second Case Study:BrutusandCassius92 

Third Case Study:Epicurus 99 

Dante’s Moral Conception 102 

4 Paradoxes and Puzzles: VirgilandCato104 

The Paradox ofVirgil105 

Summary of the Paradox ofVirgil111 

The Strange Case ofCato 116 

“The Perfect Stoic” 117 

Dante’s Decision 120 

Danteand Conflict 123 

5 The Seven Deadly Sins 124 

Historical Background 124 

Superbia (Pride) 127 

Invidia (Envy) 129 

Ira (Wrath) 133 

Acedia (Sloth) 137 

Avaritia (Avarice) 138 

Gula (Gluttony) 139 

Luxuria (Lust) 140 

The Antidote: Righteous Love 142 

The Bridge to Salvation 148 

6Dante’s Existential Moral Lessons 149 

Dante and Existentialism 149 

Jean-Paul Sartre and Hell 150 

Dante’s Ten Existential Lessons 157 

Individualism and Community 176 

Personal Strategies 179 

Bibliography 185 

Index 193

About the Author

Raymond Angelo Belliotti is SUNY Distinguished Teaching Professor of Philosophy at the State University of New York at Fredonia. He has published ten other books, including What Is the Meaning of Human Life? (2001), Happiness Is Overrated (2004), W atching Baseball Seeing Philosophy (2008), Niccolo Machiavelli (2008), and Roman Philosophy and the Good Life (2009). Belliotti has received the SUNY Chancellor's Award for Excellence in Teaching, the William T. Hagan Young Scholar/Artist Award, the Kasling Lecture Award for Excellence in Research and Scholarship, and the SUNY Foundation Research and Scholarship Recognition Award.

Reviews

“In this thought-provoking book Belliotti draws Dante’s Commedia into conversation with existentialist philosophy. . . Despite these questions, Belliotti’s book is essential reading for anyone interested in Dante. In it the reader will find a refreshingly different take on the moral vision underscored by Dante’s Commedia.”  (The Heythrop Journal, 24 July 2015)