The Political Philosophy Of Dante Alighieri

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can usually download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1921 edition. Excerpt: ... chapter xi The Universal Empire ' In the first book of his De Monarchia Dante sets out to prove that the universal empire is necessary for the world.456 He says457 that this can be shown by the strongest and most manifest arguments (potissimus et patentissimus argumentis ostendi potest). He tells us what sort of a monarchy is necessary for the welfare of the entire human race.453 "Temporal Monarchy, then, or as it is called, the Empire, is the government of one prince above all men in time, or in those things and over those things which are measured by time."459 Dante means therefore, that there should be one government over all men, no matter of what religion, or nationality they may be, and that for all time, not only for a definite period in human history, but always, as long as the human race inhabits this globe of ours. Moreover it is the temporal power which is limited to the temporal affairs of men, and is not concerned with the eternal destiny of man which is the concern of the spiritual power, the religious authority. The first argument which Dante advances in favor of the universal monarchy460 is based on the authority of Aristotle.461 Dante argues that when several things are tending towards one end, one of them should rule and direct the others. This, he declares, is necessary in the family, village, kingdom and finally the whole human race, having one and the same end and purpose, should have one supreme ruler, who is the Emperor. Dante points out here the necessity of unity of government, not only for particular localities, but for the human race, taken as whole. If there is a lack of unity people are impeded from attaining their end which is happiness, by the resulting discord and rivalry which even destroys entire states....

Excerpt from The Political Philosophy of Dante Alighieri The text I have used in the preparation of this work is that of Moore, Oxford, 1904. In quoting the Divina Commedia I have availed myself exclusively of Longfellow '8 beautiful trans lation. The translations of excerpts from the other works of Dante I have credited to the various translators; those not credited to others I acknowledge as my own. Concerning the bibliography I must state that I only give those works which I have studied, read, consulted, to which I have referred, or which I have found in any way helpful to me in the preparation of this work. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

Excerpt from The Political Philosophy of Dante Alighieri: A Dissertation Submitted to the Faculty of Philosophy of the Catholic University of America in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Six hundred years have passed since the death of Dante Alighieri, yet today all the literary world is paying homage to his memory. Dante will ever be remembered as the author of the Divina Commedia, one of the masterpieces of world literature. I regard the present day as singularly opportune for the consideration of Dante's political doctrines. In perusing his works one is struck by the fact that he ardently desired peace, he longed for universal peace and advocated the establishment of a universal empire, which would prevent wars and assure mankind the blessings of continued peace. Dante taught that all men had one nature, that they had one end, and that this end is happiness. Dante was, so to speak, a prophet gazing into the nebulous future, and with hope in the mysterious ways of the Divine Providence, fortelling an institution which would so regulate the affairs of mankind that the universal brotherhood of men might become an accomplished fact. The greatest war of all history has but recently been terminated and after this lamentable experience mankind has decided to enter on some course which would prevent the recurrence of such a catastrophe. The League of Nations is now a historical fact, and irrespective of whether it shall live or not, we cannot but observe that humanity has never more seriously approached the realization of the ideals of the great Florentine than in the present time. And for this reason, I believe that one can pay no greater tribute nor render greater homage to the memory of Dante than by drawing attention to his efforts in behalf of universal peace and the universal brotherhood of mankind. Animated and inspired by this purpose I offer this study of Dante's political philosophy with the hope that it will in a modest measure contribute to the better understanding and a fuller appreciation of the genius of one of the greatest men and one of the most sincere friends of the human race. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

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