Dante as a Modern Utopian Thinker: Origins and Metamorphosis of an Idea

MARIANO PÉREZ CARRASCO

Rochester

Congreso; Dante Politico: At the Crossroads of Arts and Sciences; 2021

University of Rochester

There is a two times secular tradition that in one way or the other sees in Dante’s philosophy the beginning of modern political thought. This interpretive tradition is usually interwoven with another appraisal of Dante’s political thought, the one that sees in it the expression of a utopian dream. This paper explores the impact that this long-lasting historical and religious change—expressed in the grand narrative of modern times—had on the comprehension of Dante’s political thought. It focuses on just a few examples that I consider to be highly symbolic and representative of a more general trend.