CUNY Academic Commons

The role of women in our society has long been a topic of discussion. Though it is much more common to see examples of liberated women in today’s literature and in all respective forms of media, this wasn’t alw […]

A painting of Hannibal and his army on the wall of the Capitoline Museum, Rome. In The Prince, Machiavelli praises Hannibal and the cruel tactics that he used to keep his enormous army together.

In hopes […]

Angela da Foligno

In this painting, Angela da Foligno is shown holding onto a cross tenderly and revealing the mystic scars on each of her palms. On her face, is a rather guilty expression, which is further […]

Throughout the Decameron, Bocaccio shares several tales that are designed to teach the audience moral lessons. The parables are told by the characters in the book for the duration of ten days, and each one is […]

Throughout Il Canzoniere, Petrarca professes his love for Laura in several ways. When he talks about the weight of her death in this sonnet, for example, it gives us, as the readers, an understanding of the […]

As Dante and Virgil scavenge their way through Inferno, they come across several entities who seem to have no relation to one another. While that is a logical assumption, given that they are being punished for […]

In canto 1, Dante can be easily characterized as a fearful individual. He first describes the feel of the woods as “savage” and “harsh,” and mentioned how even the slightest thought of that place was enough […]

Depicts Virgil guiding Dante away from the three beasts. Source: Museum of Fine Arts, Boston