Fra «studia», scuole e corti. Forme e modelli di filosofia nella Firenze di Dante

Scholars have largely discussed on the kind of relation Dante had with philosophy, noting that his literary production shows in many cases a direct reading of the works of Aristotle, Albert the Great or Aquinas. To explain such a philosophical knowledge, it has been stressed the importance of the years Dante spent in Bologna or the richness of the libraries in cities like Verona, where he would have access to such writings. In a famous passage in his Convivio, Dante remembers his passionate study of philosophy in the months which followed Beatrice’s death. This suggest that the first acquaintance of the poet with this discipline dates between the last decade of the 13th century and the early years of the 14th century and took place in Florence. Following this autobiographical note, the contribution aims at offering a first overview of the presence of philosophy at Florence in Dante’s years. Going through manuscripts and texts, the study considers the role of the studia of the mendicant orders (i.e. Santa Croce and Santa Maria Novella), but also enlarge the research dealing with the major intellectuals who contributed to the circulation of philosophical books as well as to the production of philosophical writings both in Latin and vernacular language. Dante’s Florence emerges as a space where multiple cultural approaches coexisted and philosophy assumed different forms, languages and contents.