Abstract
The articles argues for a problematic and evolving notion of the Latin language both in Dante's theoretical treatises and in his creative works. Different and contrasting meanings are associated to the idea and the practice of Latin in Dante's works. On the one hand, Latin partakes in the multilingualism of the Comedy, on the other, it is presented as a language of a higher status (the heavens communicate in Latin). Therefore, the linguistic categories of polysemy, multilingualism and diglossy are the best critical instruments to understand the complexity of Dante's linguistic choices.
Translated title of the contribution | "To clarify [=to say, to see it in Latin]...": birds sing in Latin and Virgil speaks in dialect: The Latin language in Dante: polysemy, multilingualism and diglossy |
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Original language | Italian |
Article number | 4 |
Pages (from-to) | 55-87 |
Number of pages | 33 |
Journal | LATINITAS |
Volume | III |
Issue number | 2 |
Publication status | Published - 15 Dec 2015 |
Bibliographical note
The abstract of the article is given both in Italian and in Latin.Keywords
- Latin in Dante
- Diglossy Latin/Vernacular
- Multilingualism in Dante
- Birds in Occitan poetry