1907.] on Dante in the Worlcs of Carducci. 525 



repent of in his Catholic conscience. His poem, so essentially 

 religious and chivalrous, is subdued by him to a moral allegory ; but, 

 even so, seems to him to be profane. He begins it again on purer 

 lines, but this new poem is still far from satisfying him, and he 

 finishes by writing the poem of the creation. I could conclude my 

 sketch of tlie critical work of Carducci on Dante by this rather 

 fragmentary compendium of his four discourses, but I have still 

 to tell you that valuable ideas and precious teachings on Dante are 

 scattered all over the immense literary work of our critic, as Avlien he 

 compares Goffredo Mameli to Dante in those poems where that hero 

 of our risorgimento imitates too closely some of the Canzoni of the 

 ( 'Onvito in the excess of the doctrinal poetry. Or when he compares 

 Manzoni to Chiabrera, who had been successful in substituting a 

 popular form of songs for the individual, and rather too courtly 

 canzoni of Dante. Or, finally, as when speaking on the unveiling of a 

 memorial of his beloved Giacomo Leopardi, the last great character 

 of slave Italy, he proudly exclaims : " If a foreigner will malignantly 

 come forward to reproach us that we have served too long a tune, we 

 wiU always be able to answer with a single word, ' Dante.' " 



I will not speak at great length of the inspirations from Dante, in 

 the poetical work of our author. First of all, because my official 

 duties call me elsewhere, and secondly, because in such a matter it is 

 much better to allow the poet to speak of himself. Moreover, the 

 direct inspirations are not very numerous, and, generally speaking, 

 the poetical style of Carducci much more shows the influence of 

 Horace or Petrarca than that of Dante. You would say that he 

 was loth to try to imitate what is inimitable. But as early as 1855, 

 being little more than 20 years old, he had already given to the world 

 his hymn to Dante, following in this the example of Giuseppe Giusti, 

 Giacomo Leopardi, and of nearly every great poet of the 19th 

 century. In this hymn, rather too grandihtquous, and replete with 

 youthful superaljundance, we read the following lines : — 



Divin surse il Poeta; e disdegnando, 

 La triste Italia, e per mancar d'obietto, 

 Pargoleggiaute il gran vigor natio 

 Te saluto in desio — Alma Italia novella, 

 Una d'armi di leggi e di favella, 



to which he later on appended the following note : " It was allright to 

 say that in 1859, but now, having studied a little better the times, the 

 men, and the poem, I would not say that, not even in a dithyramb. 

 These are news which we must leave to those who make all efforts to 

 flatter the Veltro.'^ This hymn is still to be read in those Juvenilia, 

 on which the poet himself passed such a severe censure. From the 

 festivities of the fifth centenary of Dante Carducci brought back three 

 very powerful sonnets, in which Dante is again introduced to 

 prophesy the liberation of Rome. I am sorry not to have time to 



