Dante asks in Canto II who requested his journey. He mentions the pope ("the successor to great Peter" [24]) and Paul ("the Chosen Vessel" [28]), and says he can understand them being worthy of passage, but not him. Virgil explains that Beatrice asked Virgil to warn Dante of his impending fate, but that Beatrice was sent by Lucy (Saint Lucia) "the foe of every cruelty" and Rachel "of the ancient days" who were sent by the "gentle Lady in Heaven" (Mary). Dante says that in comparison to the pope and Paul, he is not worthy to journey through hell, but the women who requested his journey were, on earth, associated with men on the same scale of "worthiness" as Paul and the pope. Saint Lucia was a martyr who died for the cause of Christ, Rachel was the desired wife of Jacob who was renamed Israel, and of course, Mary the mother of the Messiah himself. Not to forget Beatrice who was the object of Dante's affection. I think it's strange that he didn't feel like he was good enough to be compared to the men, but that he was good enough to be considered worthy of salvation by the women.
I commented on Darby and Dallas' posts.
This is an interesting point that you bring up, and I'm so glad you did because I needed a little help making all of those connections! I wonder if simply the tenderness the women went about recounting their affection and desire for guidance in Dante's life exhibited and helped him see the worthiness in the enlightenment in which he would receive from his guide and teacher, Virgil. Looking at it this way, I think it goes to show the spiritual importance God has create women with when using their gifts as God intended them to be used.
ReplyDeleteThat is certainly strange. It could be for the simple reason that women are often portrayed as motherly figures, being kinder and gentler than the men in many cultures, or perhaps it is because he does not see himself to be worthy of these great men, it would be easier for him to grasp if it were coming from equally or more revered women.
ReplyDelete