From Dutiful Name-Dropping to Warm Esteem: Dante’s Statius between De Vulgari Eloquentia, Convivio III and Convivio IV.XXV

Abstract

ABSTRACT Dante’s inclusion of Statius among De Vulgari Eloquentia’s catalogue of Latin poets and his use of Statius’s Thebaid in Convivio III–IV are well-known. Yet critical literature overlooks the significant development in Dante’s treatment of Statius over the course of the two opere minori. This article argues that Dante’s qualitatively different approach to Statius between De Vulgari Eloquentia, Convivio III, and Convivio IV. xxv both sheds light on Dante’s reading programme in exile and acts as a prelude to Dante’s engagement with Statius in Inferno and creation of Stazio-character in Purgatorio. Close analysis of Dante’s changing engagement with Statius between De Vulgari Eloquentia, Convivio III and IV. xxv suggests Dante first encountered Statian epic in extracted form, stimulating Dante’s interest such that he read the Thebaid in entirety. Dante’s use of Statius in Convivio thus signals the beginning of Dante’s intense engagement with Statian epic that culminates in the Commedia.