DANTE’S FIGURATIVE REALISM

Abstract

This article studies realism of Dante’s “The Divine Comedy”. The author analyzes the writings of German philologist Erich Auerbach to trace the evolution of his views on the mimetic nature of “The Divine Comedy”. This study demonstrates that the realism of the poem is based on a particular mimesis, in which the object of imitation is not the surrounding reality, but an individual. Particular attention is paid to the semantic studying of the concept of figura, carried out by Auerbach and later applied to “The Divine Comedy”. Figurative realism as a result of Auerbach’s reflection reveals a new, anthropological perspective on his legacy.