Gabriel's Promise (Gabriel's Inferno 4)

“Thanks are due also to my home institution of Boston University for its support of my research. I also want to thank my lovely wife, Julianne.” Gabriel gestured to her. “Because of her support and the support of Boston University, I will be able to relocate to Edinburgh for the 2013–2014 academic year and deliver the Sage Lectures.

“I have been invited by the principal to say a few words about the series of lectures I intend to deliver next year, here at the incomparable University of Edinburgh. Allow me to begin.”

He cleared his throat. “‘Voi non dovreste mai, se non per morte, la vostra donna, ch’è morta, obliare.’ So speaks Dante in La Vita Nuova, ‘Except by death, we must not any way forget our lady who is gone from us.’

“In this work, Dante gives us poetry from his heart, describing the constancy of his devotion to Beatrice.” Gabriel made eye contact with Julia, looking at her over the rims of his glasses.

“Dante Alighieri was born in Florence, Italy, in 1265. He is known for his poetry and political writings, as well as for his activism in Florentine politics. But he is also known for his passionate and unconsummated love for Beatrice.

“Dante met Beatrice Portinari when they were both nine years old. ‘Apparuit iam beatitudo vestra,’ he writes. ‘Now your blessedness appears.’

“Dante and Beatrice crossed paths again in 1283 and Beatrice’s greeting was so moving, Dante writes that at that moment he saw the culmination of blessedness. This moment is immortalized in Henry Holiday’s painting Dante and Beatrice.” Gabriel nodded toward the back of the room and a projection of the painting appeared on a screen behind him.

Julia held her breath. The painting was personal to her and Gabriel and for more than one reason. He’d purchased a copy of it years ago and had kept it with him ever since. And at the moment, it was hanging on the wall in their bedroom, back in Cambridge.

“Dante’s life is shaken by this second meeting with the virtuous and beautiful Beatrice. He loves her. He worships her. He devotes much time and attention to praising her in thought and in poetry, but Beatrice marries Simone dei Bardi in 1287.” At this Gabriel paused, making eye contact with the audience. “Dante is married, as well. But he doesn’t write poetry in praise of his wife. Indeed, La Vita Nuova paints a picture of a lovestruck, single-minded man who adores another man’s wife from afar.

“Is it love? Is it lust?” Gabriel paused. “It’s certainly passionate. Although Dante and Beatrice have become a model of courtly love, the truth is we don’t know what would have happened if she hadn’t died, suddenly, at the age of twenty-four.

“Dante describes a conversation between himself and the adulterous lover Francesca da Rimini in Inferno canto five. Is this a nod to what might have happened, had Beatrice not died? Or is there a different subtext to Dante’s conversation with Francesca? I’ll explore my answers to those questions in the lectures.”

Gabriel shifted the pages of his notes.

“La Vita Nuova is Dante’s first-person account of his encounters with Beatrice and his love for her. He ends the poem with a solemn pledge to study and show himself worthy, so that he may write something in tribute to her. He hopes his soul will go to be with her in Paradise after he dies.”

Gabriel nodded once again and a new image appeared on the screen behind him. “This is one of Sandro Botticelli’s illustrations of Dante’s Divine Comedy. In this image, we see Dante confessing to Beatrice and Beatrice revealing her face. The conversation is recorded in Purgatorio canto thirty-one.”

Gabriel looked down at his notes. He adjusted his glasses.

“In La Vita Nuova, Dante provides us with an account of a man’s obsessive devotion to his virtuous muse. Many of you know the rest of the story—how Dante mourned Beatrice’s untimely death for the rest of his life and how he penned The Divine Comedy at least in part as a tribute to her. The Inferno begins with Dante’s confession that at the midpoint of his life he’d lost the right path and strayed into shadows.

“The poet Virgil comes to Dante’s aid and explains that he is there at Beatrice’s request. In conversation with Virgil, Beatrice identifies Dante as her friend, and she declares she’s worried he’s beyond rescue. According to her, Dante has been turned aside by fear.

“But it’s the blessed Virgin Mary who sees Dante’s distress first. Mary tells St. Lucy, and it’s St. Lucy who seeks out Beatrice, wondering why she hasn’t helped the man who loved her so much that he left behind the vulgar crowd. At hearing that, and bestirred by her love for him, Beatrice makes haste to seek out Virgil.

“Skipping ahead to Purgatorio canto thirty-one, we have a very different account of Dante and his troubles. Beatrice accuses Dante of forsaking his devotion to her and being deceived by young women, whom she refers to as Sirens.”

A murmur lifted from the audience. Next to Julia, Katherine and Professor Wodehouse exchanged a look.

“Dante responds to her charge with shame.” Gabriel cleared this throat. “But then, a few lines later, the three theological virtues beg Beatrice to turn her holy eyes onto ‘her faithful one,’ Dante.” Gabriel’s eyes met Julia’s and held them.

“What are we to make of the reversal in Purgatorio? Beatrice condemns Dante for faithlessness and he reacts in shame. Then the theological virtues—faith, hope, and charity—declare that Dante is, in fact, faithful to Beatrice.

“Did Dante keep his promise to Beatrice? Or did he fail? On the one hand, we have a written record of Dante’s devotion to Beatrice, and that record includes The Divine Comedy. On the other hand, we have Beatrice’s harsh words—words that Dante himself writes—and the subsequent purging of Dante’s sins in Purgatory.

“In the Sage Lectures, I will juxtapose Dante’s exchange with Francesca with his conversation with Beatrice. I’ll shed light on the literary puzzle of Beatrice’s condemnation and Dante’s pledge by examining the Purgatorio in light of both La Vita Nuova and The Divine Comedy as a whole.

“Dante is the author of the works in question, but he’s also a character in the story. I will offer a metalevel reading of the texts that will contrast Dante the author with Dante the character.” Gabriel grinned impishly, his blue eyes twinkling behind his glasses. “Perhaps Dante’s true purgation consists in penning the Purgatorio itself.”

The audience laughed.

“So I invite you, colleagues and friends, to join me on a journey of redemption. Our path will wend its way through Hell and Purgatory, and eventually arrive in Paradise. Along the way, we’ll meet villains and cowards, as well as great men and women of renown.

“We will explore what Dante can teach us about human nature and humanity at its best and at its worst. And we will learn more about the extraordinary love story of Dante and Beatrice. Thank you.”

The audience erupted in applause.

Gabriel acknowledged the audience with a nod, his gaze finding Julia. She smiled as she clapped and instantly, Gabriel’s shoulders relaxed.