Beatrice, assumed to be Misses Bice di Folco Portinari, was inspiration to Dante's work in literature and perhaps even his life. Wife to Mr. Simone dei Bardi, related to a family of rich bankers, Beatrice was married off in her early twenties by her father Folco Portinari. Her father was also a rich banker. Dante met Beatrice when they were both children. Beatrice continues to fascinate people. This woman even has a rock in the sky (asteroid 83 Beatrix) named after her. Historians only know of two of their encounters, and I believe there might of been a third.
Dante expresses his love and respect for his fare, green eyed lady in two works, that we know of. The Divine Comedy, and a book of his poetry. He wrote the latter first, and the Comedy was a commissioned satire of the religious ideas of his era.
I read something curious on Wikipedia which mirrors my thoughts:
Dante expresses his love and respect for his fare, green eyed lady in two works, that we know of. The Divine Comedy, and a book of his poetry. He wrote the latter first, and the Comedy was a commissioned satire of the religious ideas of his era.
I read something curious on Wikipedia which mirrors my thoughts:
It is more likely that the encounters with Beatrice that Dante writes of are the two that fulfill his poetic vision, and Beatrice, like Petrarch's Laura, seem to blur the line between an actual love interest and a means employed by the poet in his creations.I find it an odd coincidence that both Laura and Beatrice died in their early 20's. Studying the Tutors, I find it common in medieval culture for men to dispose of their women at the suggestion of infidelity. I believe, their third encounter may have been the cause of her death, and women in the medieval ages had few reasons to live out their lives longer than biological prime.
