The Women in Dante's Divine Comedy

Dante's Divine Comedy ranks among the greatest masterpieces of world literature. Reading the poem for gender reveals a subversive dimension that has not been sufficiently examined. Dante gives eight women prominence, transgressing gender roles and challenging medieval patriarchy. These women have structural, pedagogical and psychological significance in the Divine Comedy. At each stage of his journey from darkness to light, the pilgrim Dante encounters a woman who teaches and guides him to understand the difference between misdirected love and spiritual love. At the conclusion of the journey, the pilgrim's conception of the divine is transformed to incorporate feminine qualities, presenting God as Mother