Categories like feminine and masculine can constrain as much as illuminate. But there is no denying that women and female entities play a major, often surprising part in Dante’s journey through the Divine Comedy. Saints including Beatrice, Lucia and Mary, historic figures such as Piccarda, Francesca and Cunizza, and mythological entities like the sirens all figure.
In this talk, I use Erich Neumann’s exploration of feminine archetypes, The Great Mother, to deepen a sense of how the one God, freely manifesting in all beings and forms, is experienced by Dante in these women and creatures.
For more about Mark’s work on Dante, including his book, see – https://www.markvernon.com/dantes-divine-comedy