Abstract: Examines the cultural context for the many anti-Dante statements published by Futurist writers. Futurism glorified modernity, rejected the cult of the past and strove for originality in art. In general, these anti-traditionalist and anti-historicist beliefs motivated the attacks on Dante. Nor were these polemics limited to the Futurists themselves, since other authors, such as Prezzolini and De Robertis, similarly targeted Dante for much the same reasons. At the same time, however, Ciccarelli poses the question: could a movement promoting artistic creativity, ideological independence, novelty and autonomy completely oppose Dante's example? Examines the language of Marinetti and Papini to see to what extent their anti-traditional drive relies on Dante's poetics. Argues that although the Futurists' Dantism proves to be little more than sporadic and superficial, it reveals a basic truth provided by Dante: without audacity or hope, poetry remains confined to the limits of a self-contained exploration.
Abstract from the American Dante Bibliography 1996
Reproduced by courtesy of the Dante Society of America