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La Vita Nuova (Latin- Vita Nova) is an expression of love written in both verse and prose. Unlike the typical works in the courtly love genre that were typical of the time, La Vita Nuova strives to mix romantic love with spiritual writing. It takes love poetry and prose on a whole new level. This ambitious task is what set Dante from other writers of similar work. It was a very important work for its time.

It was in the Renaissance that the romantic sonnet expressing amorous suffering gave rise to the individualism in writing. Petrarch is considered by some to be the father of modern literature. His Il Canzionere (Rime sparse or Scattered Rhymes) is a collection of sonnets devoted to the only woman he ever loved. La Vita Nuova is similar in the sense that it was inspired by the only woman Dante Alighieri loved. Both ladies died young and inspired strong sentiments in their admirers, sentiments that were so strong they pushed the European literature in the new direction. It can be challenging to see these works as deeply intimate from today's point of view (when everyone talk about private matters non stop) but there is no doubt they were revolutionary for its time.

Petrarch may be the father of modern literature and sensibility, but Dante on the other hand is known as the father of Italian language. Both of them had a profound influence on both Italian and European literature as a whole. The literature as we know it wouldn't be the same without these two. That is how important they are! So, yes reading them is fundamental for our understanding of the history of literature. Besides, reading Dante is always a good idea, right?

This literary giant never disappoints. This might not be his strongest or best know work, but it is a classic and a worthy one at that. This emotional autobiography might not be what we would consider intimately autobiographical in today's sense of the world. What can be said about La Vita Nuova? It's a peculiar little book, but in a good way. La Vita Nuova (New Life) is an autobiographical (but not in today's sense of the word) account of love at first sight mixed with wonderful sonnets and poetry.

Renaissance (as you perhaps guessed) is one of my favourite art periods, so it is not surprising that I quite enjoyed this book. I can say that I got from it pretty much what I expected. It is a quick and easy read, relatively short( part prose, part poetry) and it speaks mostly about Dante's love for Beatrice. Not the kind of romantic love most of us is used to. Dante's love is connected with spirituality and this mixing of theology with love is something I found to be quite fascinating. Again, this is something that is connected to the Renaissance period but it is worth noting that Dante was one of the firsts to do it.

I think I've read somewhere that Vita Nouva is essential for understanding the context of Dante's later works. I'm not sure that is entirely true. In some sense, it truly is for it is an important book. However, I think you can get a good understanding of Dante just by reading about it. Don't get me wrong, that doesn't mean you should not read La Vita Nouva. By all means read it. I just don't think that you wouldn't be able to understand Divina Commedia if you don't. However, it will probably make you understand it better.

Beatrice does appear in the Divine Comedy (Divina Commedia) but not until Purgatory is brought into picture. For me, the best part of Divina Commedia is Inferno, so that is perhaps why I didn't focus that much on Beatrice (as a reader). If you ask me, if Dante hadn't written anything but a few the lines of Inferno, he would still achieve something great. I don't regret being forced to read Inferno so many times during my education. In fact, I'm grateful for it. I will probably reread it some day when I get the chance. Back to the subject. There is no Beatrice in Inferno, so that's why I don't see the immediate connection with La Vita Nouva, at any rate she's more interesting in the latter version- even if we see her trough idolized eyes of a man in love. For me this book can stand on its own. Beatrice as the heroine of this book is far more interesting than the angelic vision in the Divine Comedy.

A few more words about this book. It is definitely a work marked by its period, even if it was revolutionary. For example. I have had hard time separating the writing convention from autobiography and I have my doubts- I mean does Dante really has those visions or it is something that writers in the time of Renaissance were supposed to have, a kind of metaphor? What I do believe however is the intensity of his emotions. That part feels genuine.

Dante is a wonderful writer, that's for sure. Frankly, Dante's writing skill always makes me forget that there is (perhaps) an agenda behind things he writes about. Danto is always a hero in his book. Somehow it doesn't bother me that much, even if I can't help noticing how Dante's writing speaks in his favour. I guess that is only human. For example, isn't it convenient that all of his political enemies are in hell? Isn't it convenient how Dante is always the good guy? But then again, do I really care about what kind of person he really was or what precisely happened in the historical time he lived it? It is hard to tell anything for sure and even a flawed person can be a great artist. What remains is art. If I was only after the facts, I wouldn't read literature at all. Art is always the truth, even when it lies. Dante's writing is definitely art and one of the highest kind. To conclude, La Vita Nuova is a beautifully written classic,a Renaissance gem that is worth reading both for its literary quality and its historical significance.