XIII century. The era of the Mongol invasion and the Crusades, not the flourishing of the arts. Dante – not the Prince, not the Bishop, he’s just a wealthy citizen, public figure elected to office and, of course, a writer. What do we know about his Russian contemporaries – fellow in Peru? Right to say nothing. The first Russian writer whom we know by name, – Hermolaus, a monk Erasmus, author of “the Tale of Peter and Fevronia”, lived as much as two hundred years later, in the first half of the XVI century. But Ermolai-Erasmus the than his wonderful double name, we know nothing.
with Dante, we know a lot – article in the Italian Wikipedia is a dozen screens. We know his appearance, the very “shadow of Dante with a profile of the eagle”, which for centuries has inspired poets and artists for distinguishing portraits.
At the same time, I must admit, most of what we know about him we know from his own writings, have come down to us (although they appeared two hundred years before the printing press) in full. In the first place – from the amazing “New life”. Amazing and for its contemporaries and for posterity. Because the author is not “interprets the divine” and not derogatory hiding under the guise of “AZ prekrasnyi”, as the same Erasmus. And directly writes in verse and in prose about that, durante Alighieri, love the feel to it is the earthly girlfriend Beatrice. Although, of course, expresses his feeling in a lush verbal clothing of his time, imbued with a mystical feeling.
more Importantly, not these mystical clothing, and what language it is written. We now think it strange the question itself is an Italian writer, naturally, writes in Italian. But then the question was posed in another way: an educated person, of course, have to write in Latin- the only way he can appeal to the whole civilized world with civilized speech, unlike the simple becausehe on the rough local dialect, because they do not see beyond their village.
Dante has devoted to this fundamental issue of the Latin treatise “De vulgari eloquentia”. This name is traditionally translated as “On national eloquence,” but rather: “On the expressiveness of popular language.” And its not how “expressed strongly the Italian people,” and that the language itself, first and foremost, the language of the native Dante Tuscan valleys – even though he lost natural Latin affixes and acquired not inherent articles, adequate prizemleniya not only realism, but also the sublime mysticism and subtle syllogistic.
However, as usual the poet, the best proof of this was not a scientific treatise, though containing original ideas (classification of languages according to the word, “Yes”) and outstanding literary work, which he in accordance with the “Poetics” of Aristotle called just a “Comedy” (it was still bad, but became good). And Boccaccio, its first commentator, began to call “divine” – but not because it talks about angels and heaven, but because it was too good.
the Plot for 700 years has been known to get lost in the thicket of their sins 35-year-old poet is Virgil and through the funnel of Hell and mountain of Purgatory, where you suffer and languish in anticipation of the End of the world and famous old-time sinners, and political opponents of Dante himself, takes him to Paradise, where the mystic rose of the Empyrean, it’s purified from all earthly Beatrice.
But here the main thing – not the plot, although he struck the contemporaries with courage on the brink of outright heresy (for example, Dante introduces the notion of Limb and finally establishes not evident at the time the idea of Purgatory). From “the divine Comedy” is linked to the second unique trait of Dante, forcing admire and rejoice on the eve of its 755-year anniversary. Which can be stated more simply: “the divine Comedy” can be read.
It seems a joke: well, Yes, to read, and that it still do, it’s a poem, not his same age fresco Giotto! But the thing is that it can be read now. Try to read the old text of the same era. At least the drama “the Story of the destruction of Ryazan Batu”. Yes, of course, it’s written in Russian, not Bulgarian and not Serbian. To understand, in principle, possible. But it is difficult without training. Even though it is not poetry of the terza Rima, and annals of claiming for accuracy and clarity. But all that was written in Russian prior to the eighteenth century – the area of the academic literature, and not literature.
Why it happened – the question is interesting, but Dante’s direct relation not having. Dante did not just can to read and understand – it can be reading, enjoying, as poetry. Full of rage and love, the breathtaking paintings, and hammered strings.
But if we switched from Tuscany to Russia, it is necessary to say that Dante in Russia there is a third reason for the rapture: the translation of “the divine Comedy” by Mikhail Lozinsky. He reconciles in itself mutually exclusive requirements: highly artistic and exceptionally accurate. Literally the string in the line and sometimes word for word.
When you read only translations Lozinski, it seems completely natural. And only by comparing with line-by-line prose translation of Boris Zaytsev (not to mention the original), you know what a amazing work – comparable with the very original.
the Work of Lozinski striking especially because the translator was finished in November 1942. When already was the battle of Stalingrad, which Mikhail Svetlov wrote: “the Young native of Naples! What is left in Russia you on the field? Why couldn’t you be happy over the native famous Bay?”
Yes: fascist Italy was an ally of Nazi Germany. A Russian interpreter was beating ond in order to introduce the Russian reader the real Italy, the Italy of Dante and his idolized humanists to revive ancient beauty and scholarship.
So Dante’s more modern and therefore. Could think about the poet-exile, a contemporary of Ivan Kalita? He – could not. And so he is with us.
