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Chapter 3 - Dante’s Theological Purgatory

Earthly Happiness and Eternal Beatitude

from Part II - Reframing Dante’s Christian Ethics

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 February 2020

George Corbett
George Corbett
Affiliation:
University of St Andrews, Scotland
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Summary

This chapter provides a corrective to a dominant ‘political’ reading of Purgatory, according to which Purgatory represents an ethical journey guided by ‘justice and the teachings of philosophy’ towards the beatitudo huius vitae. It presents a way to read the poem as informed by Dante’s dualistic theory (a critical exigency demanded by recent philosophical evidence) without being drawn into a forced reading of Purgatory in overly political terms.

Keywords

DanteethicstheologyPurgatorypenanceseven capital vicesChristianity
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Dante's Christian Ethics
Purgatory and Its Moral Contexts
 , pp. 67 - 85
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2020

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