35th Annual Bernardo Lecture with guest speaker Justin Steinberg

This paper will argue that Dante draws on medieval representations of Jews to depict the character Virgil. Like one of the authors of the Hebrew Bible, Virgil’s texts illuminate those who will come after him, though he is himself blind to their true meaning. His poetry can save Statius, but he is himself damned. The tragedy of the obtuse Virgil is the tragedy of the obtuse Jews. More broadly, Dante found in Christian supersessionism a strategy to deal with his classical and pagan predecessors—incorporating them into his work but also relegating them, forcing them to serve the Christian poet.

This talk is presented by The Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies.

Hors d'oeuvres and refreshments will be served!

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Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies; Misty Lou Finch
Co-hosted with: Center for Medieval and Renaissance Studies

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