La lingua di fuoco. Dante e la filosofia del linguaggio

A Number Of Factors Contribute To The Richness Of Dante's Conception Of Language. They Refer Not Only To The Field Of Philosophy, But Also To The Disciplines Of Aesthetics, Ethics And Theology. This Is Not A Surprising Feature Taking Into Consideration That Medieval Culture Looks At Reality Through The Lens Of The Different Artes. In Dante's Work There Are Mainly Two Levels Of Locution: The Expressive (or Spiritual) Level And The Moral One. In The Poet's View The Very Moment The Word Enters The Communication Circuit It Is A Bearer Of The Emotional Depth Of The Linguistic Agent. If This Profundity Is In Contrast With The Supreme Good, The Word Itself May Become 'destructive Operating Seed.' In The Divina Commedia, Where Reflection Is Interwoven With The Mechanisms Of Poetry, The Use Of Metaphors, Allegories And A Variety Of Figures Of Speech, This Conception Is Expressed By A Precise Polysemic Image With A High Religious Connotation: The Tongue Of Fire. In The Same Manner As Fire, The Tongue (which Reminds The Different Facets Of The Human Language), Burns, Destroys Or Lights And Heats; It Becomes The Means Of The Revelation Of The Spirit And May Be The Cause Of A Morally Positive Or Negative Action--page 317.