Esposizione 2. La poesia e l'uomo

This article provides a systematic and thorough analysis of Boccaccio’s esposizioni on the second canto of Dante’s Inferno. In the two lecturae devoted to this canto, Boccaccio tests a wide range of exegetical methods, ranging from linguistic and stylistic glosses to erudite or moralizing digressions. These diverse approaches combine classical and biblical sources, as well as extensive self-translations or re-writings of his previous works. Particular emphasis is given to issues related to po-etry, which are to be reframed within the wider context of Boccaccio’s erudite pro-ject. This section of the Esposizioni thus privileges the classical world over the Christian one and the human microcosm over the macrocosm.