Medieval Italy
Dante Aligheri - from The Inferno (published 1317)
The Inferno is the first of the three sections of The Divine Comedy. Here, Dante describes the first stage of his journey through the afterlife. He and his guide, the Roman poet Virgil, travel through the different circles, or levels, of Hell. Dante envisions Hell as a pit within the earth where sinners are punished in the afterlife for their evil deeds. This pit is shaped like a cone that funnels downward. It has nine levels: the lower the level, the
worse the sinner—and the more terrible the punishment
worse the sinner—and the more terrible the punishment
Medieval England
Geoffrey Chaucer - from The Canterbury Tales (published 1475)
The Canterbury Tales is one of the most famous examples of the frame story. In
his innovative use of the device, Chaucer interwove the frame with the tales. The
plot of the frame involves pilgrims on a pilgrimage who are challenged to compete in telling the best tale. Chaucer reveals the pilgrims’ personalities not only through their interactions between tales but also by the tales they tell. As a result, the frame itself acts as a long and engaging narrative whole.
his innovative use of the device, Chaucer interwove the frame with the tales. The
plot of the frame involves pilgrims on a pilgrimage who are challenged to compete in telling the best tale. Chaucer reveals the pilgrims’ personalities not only through their interactions between tales but also by the tales they tell. As a result, the frame itself acts as a long and engaging narrative whole.
Renaissance England
Thomas More - from Utopia (published 1516)
Thomas More's Utopia is one of the most influential books in western literature. Within Utopia is described an idealized island community upon which perfect social harmony has been achieved. On this island all property is community owned, violence is nonexistent and everyone has the opportunity to work and live in an environment of religious tolerance. Many social movements throughout history have drawn upon More's work for inspiration. While possibly unreachable, Thomas More's "Utopia" gives a vision of what could be.
Renaissance Spain
Miguel de Cervantes - from Don Quixote (published 1605)
Don Quixote is generally considered the first modern novel. Its hero, Don Quixote, is a poor elderly gentleman who loses his mind from reading too many tales about the daring deeds of heroic knights. Don Quixote decides to win fame as a knight, assisted by a peasant "squire" named Sancho Panza. Cervantes devoted over 100 chapters to their comically ill-fated adventures.
Renaissance England
William Shakespeare
Sonnets (published 1609)
A Midsummer Night's Dream (first performed January 1, 1605)
Though Shakespeare is best known as a playwright, his sonnets alone would have made him an important author. In 1609, a collection of the sonnets appeared in print. He probably wrote most of them in the 1590s, when it was fashionable for English poets to create sonnet sequences—groups of sonnets arranged to form narratives.
Perhaps the most popular of all of Shakespeare's comedies, A Midsummer Night's Dream humorously celebrates the vagaries of love. The approaching wedding festivities of Theseus, Duke of Athens, and his bride-to-be, Hippolyta, Queen of the Amazons, are delightfully crisscrossed with in-again, off-again romances of two young pairs of Athenian lovers; a fateful rivalry between the King and Queen of the Fairies; and the theatrical aspirations of a bumbling troupe of Athenian laborers. It all ends happily in wedding-night revelry complete with a play-within-a-play presented by the laborers to the ecstatic amusement of all.
Perhaps the most popular of all of Shakespeare's comedies, A Midsummer Night's Dream humorously celebrates the vagaries of love. The approaching wedding festivities of Theseus, Duke of Athens, and his bride-to-be, Hippolyta, Queen of the Amazons, are delightfully crisscrossed with in-again, off-again romances of two young pairs of Athenian lovers; a fateful rivalry between the King and Queen of the Fairies; and the theatrical aspirations of a bumbling troupe of Athenian laborers. It all ends happily in wedding-night revelry complete with a play-within-a-play presented by the laborers to the ecstatic amusement of all.