There are sporadic places where one can spot Dante Alighieri ’s political theory and historical life intersecting and then crossing from the text of Inferno to Purgatorio, even extending beyond – both to and from contemporary theoretical and corporeal places. This is especially true in the case of Ugolino della Gherardesca whose spirit forces its way from Hell to Purgatory, and causes an uncommon transference and rare ruptured narrative in both places but especially in Purgatorio. So ruptured, it is as if he has broken through the walls of reality and time itself. As Ugolino’s physical body has recently been forensically analyzed, in certain respects, one may even consider him notoriously extant, thereby raising additional complex issues of atemporality and border diffusion both within and beyond the text of the Commedia. Between the forensic analysis by Italian paleoanthropologist Francesco Mallegni and the theoretical lens of philosopher Gorgio Agamben, Dante’s text traverses and reverberates as a highly functional and relevant conversation within contemporary political, historical and cultural theory. This particular moment — addresses the atemporal, diffuse, and extant crossings found within and beyond Purgatorio and considers Ugolino as its most notorious transtextual.
About the presenterDena Hughes Arguelles
Dena Arguelles, MA is a full-time lecturer at Kean University. For the past decade, she has taught Composition, Literature, Great Books, and Interdisciplinary Courses such as Creating AnOther: The Construction of Monsters.