Amiddle school teacher in the northern city of Treviso has exempted two Muslim students from studying Dante on the grounds that it is a religious work that clashes with their Islamic faith, local dailies reported Friday. The Divine Comedy, with its visions of Hell, Purgatory and Heaven, is stepped in medieval Christianity and the Prophet Mohamed is one of the historical figures placed in the Inferno. The teacher asked the families of all the students who are exempted from religious studies on religious grounds if they also wanted to be exempted from studying the greatest Christian poet, and two families said yes. The case spurred criticism Friday with centre-left Democratic Party (PD) Senator Simona Malpezzi saying it was "profoundly wrong" to deprive any student of the "deep knowledge of Italian culture that studying Dante brings". She added: "Knowing Dante does not take anything away from the children's religious confession".
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A shameless plug for European heritage, but one of the most influential illustrators of the 19th century, Gustave Doré, produced an illustrated version of The Divine Comedy. If anyone feels inclined to read the poem, or has an interest in illustration, I'd strongly recommend checking it out.
Thanks! My parents had the book (along with other classics) on the shelf for years and I never bothered to read it.
My pleasure.
Quite understandable, if it weren't for the classics included in our literature curriculum I probably wouldn't have got started myself. They certainly have their own appeal though.
The illustrations add a lot, and have proven pretty influential in terms of subsequent creative works. Interestingly, the Dore illustrated bible was so sought after (and expensive) that it was regarded as a sign of social status. Righteous 19th century drip.