Poets of Divine Love: Franciscan Mystical Poetry of the Thirteenth CenturyFordham Univ Press, 2004 - 226 pages St. Francis of Assisi (c. 1181-1226) and Jacopone da Todi (c.1236-1306) were but two exemplars of a rich school of mystical poets writing in Umbria in the Franciscan religious tradition. Their powerful creations form a significant corpus of medieval Italian vernacular poetry only now being fully explored.Drawing on a wide range of literary, historical, linguistic, and anthropological approaches, Vettori crafts an innovative portrait of the artists as legends and as poets. He investigates the essential features of emerging Franciscan tradition, in motifs of the body, metaphors of matrimony, and musical harmony. Vettori also explores the relationship of Francis's poetic mission to Genesis, the relationship between erotic love and ecstatic union in both poets' work, and the poetics of the sermon. |
Contents
xiii | |
1 | |
3 | |
Mysticism of Sexual Union | 40 |
Harmony of the Cosmos | 59 |
Part Two | 78 |
Origins of the Canon | 79 |
Theology of Ravishment | 112 |
Ecstasy of Agapic Love | 145 |
Symphony of the Ineffable | 172 |
CONCLUSION | 193 |
Common terms and phrases
according action addressed Ages amore Anima appears becomes beginning biblical Bless body Book brother Canticle canzoniere Christ Christian clothes collection concept connection created creation creatures cross crucial Dante death divine Early Earthly edited elements expression Francis Francis of Assisi Francis's Franciscan frate garments gender Genesis give God's harmony heart heaven human Iacopone Iacopone's importance indicating Italian language Lauda laude light literal Lord marks matrimonial means medieval metaphorical Middle mystical naked nakedness nature nudity occurs opposition original Passion poem poet poetic poetry positive poverty praise prayer present Press refers relation religious remains represents rhetoric Saint Francis sense signifier silence sister sole song soul sound sources speak spiritual structure symbolic theme theological things tion tradition transformation translation union University verses virtue York