“In this thought-provoking book Belliotti draws Dante’s Commedia into conversation with existentialist philosophy. . . Despite these questions, Belliotti’s book is essential reading for anyone interested in Dante. In it the reader will find a refreshingly different take on the moral vision underscored by Dante’s Commedia.” (The Heythrop Journal, 24 July 2015)
From the Inside Flap
The Commedia, Dante’s powerful vision of the afterlife and human punishment, is one of the great works of world culture. In Dante’s Deadly Sins, Raymond Angelo Belliotti expertly draws new and unique insights from the poem, analyzsing it in moral terms that connect the poem’s themes to our own contemporary condition. In so doing, Belliotti demonstrates remarkable parallels between this classic piece of literature and modern life.
Dante’s Inferno and Purgatorio are permeated with disturbing images of sinners who become their sins: gluttons mangled and themselves consumed, the lustful forever caught in a chaotic wind. Belliotti emphasizes the moral implications of these poems, explaining and evaluating Dante’s understanding of the “‘Seven Deadly Sins”‘ and the ultimate role they play as the basis of human transgression.
By examining the Commedia as a work of moral philosophy rather than a historical account of Dante’s firm belief in Christian theology, Belliotti considers Dante’s master work as it was intended, – namely, as a practical guide to moral betterment. Revealing a broad framework for leading a good life that can be shared by both religious believers and secular existentialists, Dante’s Deadly Sins demonstrates that Dante and existential philosophy have much to teach us about living a meaningful life.
From the Back Cover
The Commedia, Dante’s powerful vision of the afterlife and human punishment, is one of the great works of world culture. In Dante’s Deadly Sins, Raymond Angelo Belliotti expertly draws new and unique insights from the poem, analyzsing it in moral terms that connect the poem’s themes to our own contemporary condition. In so doing, Belliotti demonstrates remarkable parallels between this classic piece of literature and modern life.
Dante’s Inferno and Purgatorio are permeated with disturbing images of sinners who become their sins: gluttons mangled and themselves consumed, the lustful forever caught in a chaotic wind. Belliotti emphasizes the moral implications of these poems, explaining and evaluating Dante’s understanding of the “‘Seven Deadly Sins”‘ and the ultimate role they play as the basis of human transgression.
By examining the Commedia as a work of moral philosophy rather than a historical account of Dante’s firm belief in Christian theology, Belliotti considers Dante’s master work as it was intended, – namely, as a practical guide to moral betterment. Revealing a broad framework for leading a good life that can be shared by both religious believers and secular existentialists, Dante’s Deadly Sins demonstrates that Dante and existential philosophy have much to teach us about living a meaningful life.
About the Author
Raymond Angelo Belliotti is SUNY Distinguished Teaching Professor of Philosophy at the State University of New York at Fredonia. He has published ten other books, including What Is the Meaning of Human Life? (2001), Happiness Is Overrated (2004), Watching Baseball Seeing Philosophy (2008), Niccolò Machiavelli (2008), and Roman Philosophy and the Good Life (2009). Belliotti has received the SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Teaching, the William T. Hagan Young Scholar/Artist Award, the Kasling Lecture Award for Excellence in Research and Scholarship, and the SUNY Foundation Research and Scholarship Recognition Award.
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