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Medieval Arts: Mortal Body, Immortal SoulThe theme of salvation dominates the arts,

architecture, and literaturePrototype of medieval themes: Dante’s The Divine

Comedy, a symbolic epic poem on the three levels of the afterlife.

Architecture symbolizes the grandeur of the Christian God

Plays emphasize biblical theology and the morality derived from it

The arts depict the saints and the divinity itself

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Medieval Verse and PoetryPoems tended to be long, and were divided into main

divisions called cantosSeveral themes includeAccounts of fighting nobility (Song of Roland)Code of courtly love: de Troyes’s LancelotTheological epics, such as Dante’s Divine Comedy

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Medieval Arts: The Divine ComedyDante Aligheri’s The Divine

Comedy is a prototypic classic of the medieval era

It describes the pilgrimage of a Christian soul through Hell (Inferno) and Purgatory (Purgatorio)

Then to salvation (Paradiso) (Ed. Note: If this epic poem

doesn’t scare the living bejasus out of you, nothing will. )

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Symbolism of Divine ComedyEvery aspect of Divine Comedy has symbolic meaningNumerology of three: Trinity, three levels of the

afterlife, Aristotelian division of human psyche into reason, will, and love—and three guides

Nines: nine levels of Hell, spheres of heaven, and circles of penitents in Purgatory

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Medieval Arts: The Divine ComedyDante Aligheri’s The Divine

Comedy is a prototypic classic of the medieval era

It describes the pilgrimage of a Christian soul through Hell (Inferno) and Purgatory (Purgatorio)

Then to salvation (Paraidiso) The poem is rich in symbolism,

especially the numerology of threes (Trinity, three levels of the afterlife) and their multiples

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Virgil the PoetVirgil, the Roman poet,

accompanies Dante in Hell and Purgatory

Virgil represents Reason, but as a pagan he can never enter paradise

Here, Dante and Virgil are seen in the background in the Inferno

As tormented souls writhe in the foreground.

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Paradise with Beatrice as GuideHis beloved Beatrice

accompanies him through Paradise

This is a study of unrequited love; in real life, Beatrice was uninterested in him

At a more abstract level, she was the personification of wisdom

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Divine Comedy: InfernoThere are nine levels of Hell,

punishment varying with the sinLowest (ninth) reserved for those

accused of treachery (Judas, Brutus)

Sins of passion (sex) receive the lightest

Punishment is carried out by the sin itself:

Gluttons are punished with their own excrement

The violent are immersed in boiling blood

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Divine Comedy: PurgatorioSins are also hierarchically

arrangedLeast serious sin is

lasciviousnessThe most serious: the

lethargic, considered worse than the wrathful or the proud

Purged of their sins, the souls may enter paradise

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Divine Comedy: Il ParadisoIs there a hierarchy in heaven?To Dante, yes: there are nine circles of heavenThe lowest circle: souls who abandoned their

vows and so were deficient in fortitudeIntermediate circles: souls with less defects

then with various degrees of gloryThe highest (ninth) circle: the abode of angels

and the primum mobile of all creationAbove: Dante and Beatrice at the gate of the

Empyrean ParadiseBelow: Artist’s conception of Paradise

according to Dante.

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The Empyrean ParadiseFinally, Beatrice leaves him to

his final guide, St. Bernard, because theology has reached its limits

The Empyrean Paradise is the abode of God Himself, represented by three circles

The circles represent the TrinityThe story ends with Dante

experiencing God’s love while trying (and failing) to understand his ways.

The Empyrean Paradise exists beyond space and time

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Divine Comedy: ConclusionThe Divine Comedy encapsulates the Augustinian

conception of Christianity and the Church.All the world of the afterlife is hierarchical, from

Hell through Purgatory to Paradise itselfThe entire epic is a engaging story, yet it is full of

symbolism that requires several readings to adequately understand it.

Theme of all aspects of medieval life appears in the Divine Comedy: theology, hierarchy of the Church, fear of damnation, Church doctrine

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Medieval Arts: Morality PlaysDefinition: A type of play dramatizing moral

themesConflict between good and evil is a recurring

motif The qualities are personified and engaged in

dialogue—Everyman, Death, KnowledgeIn Everyman, the protagonist realizes that Death

has come to take him to the Last JudgmentNo one—Wit, Knowledge, even Kindred—can

save him but Good Deeds (with the aid of the priesthood, of course)

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Mystery and Miracle PlaysMystery Plays (left): Plays

originating in Church liturgy

Dramatized biblical history

Among the themes: fall of Satan, Last Judgment

Miracle Plays: Plays depicting the miracles of Christ, the Virgin, and the Saints.

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Medieval Music: PolyphonyWithin the church, choirs sang in a pattern of

polyphony, in which two or more lines of melody of equal importance are sung

Organum refers to a generic variety of polyphoneIn parallel organum, the two voices move exactly

parallel with each otherIn free organum, the second voice moves in

contrary motionMelismatic organum involves the use of multiple

notes for the individual syllables of the text

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Medieval Architecture: Romanesque ChurchSize of nave enlarge to accommodate

pilgrimsEastern part of the church enlarged for

chapels where small parties could worship undisturbed

Salient features: rounded arches, thick walls, large towers, and decorative arcading

Most of them were abbey churchesThey generally dominated the

countryside

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Medieval Architecture: Gothic CathedralsThey were abstract, symbolic, and expressive

linearityColorful and highly decorativeThe rounded arch was replaced by the pointed

arch (upper left, Riems Cathedral, France)The ribbed vault appears at the ceiling of the

church (lower left; San Zanipolo, Venice)The flying buttress transfers the weight of the

vault to a buttress outside the buildingThey involved the extensive use of stained glass

windows

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ConclusionGenerally, the arts reflected the principles of

hierarchy, Christian salvation, and Church doctrine that dominated medieval society

Dante’s Divine Comedy reflected the Augustinian influence of the medieval world view

The architecture, art, and music were dedicated to the glory of a God as seen through medieval eyes.

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