Guido Cavalcanti. “Sonnet (to Dante Alighieri). He interprets Dante's Dream, related in the first Sonnet of the Vita Nuova.” Dante Gabriel Rossetti 1 1848?; 1861
abbaabbacdeedc iambic pentameter sonnet
<artist/> <location/> <bibl/> <note/> </citnpictorial> <citnmythic> <name/> <culture/> <bibl/> <note/> </citnmythic> <citnhistorical> <event/> <place/> <date/> <bibl/> <note/> </citnhistorical> <citnautobiographical> <name/> <place/> <date/> <bibl/> <note/> </citnautobiographical> <citnscenic> <place/> <date/> <bibl/> <note/> </citnscenic> </listcitn> </source> <commentaries> <head>Commentary</head> <section type="intro"> <head>Introduction</head> <p>The sonnet, one of Cavalcanti's most celebrated, responds to and interprets the <xref doc="a.44d-1861.raw">opening sonnet</xref> of Dante's <xref doc="a.9d-1861.raw"> <title level="wrk"> <hi rend="i">Vita Nuova</hi> (DGR's source text in Cicciaporci's <hi rend="i">Rime di Guido Cavalcanti</hi> prints Dante's sonnet at p. 124 in a note to his text of this poem.) DGR translated two of the other well-known responses, Cino da Pistoia's “Naturalmente chere ogni amadore” and Dante da Maiano's “Di ciō, che stato sei dimandatore”.

The translation at line 6 is based on a reading in the original (“nella piatosa mente”) that is no longer accepted: the authoritative Italian text is “nel cāssar della mente”, i.e., in the mind's fortress. The sonnet's last tercet is by no means lucid in the original and DGR's translation, while reasonable (if also somewhat free in line 13), would not be favored by Italian scholars, who take “Che” (line 14) as a pronoun and understand “contrario” as the opposite of the “dolce sonno”, i.e., as the coming of wakefulness. DGR's rhyme scheme in the sestet differs from his model, and his note to the last line explains the point of his translation: “This may refer to the belief that, towards morning, dreams go by contraries”.

The “lord” in line 4 is of course Love, as initially referenced in Dante's sonnet.

Textual History: Composition

Probably an early translation, late 1840s.

Textual History: Revision

Production History

Reception

Iconographic

Printing History

The translation was first published in 1861 in <hi rend="i">The Early Italian Poets</hi> ; it was reprinted in 1874 in <hi rend="i">Dante and his Circle</hi> .

Pictorial

Historical

Literary

Translation

Autobiographical

Bibliographic

“Introduction to Part II” (in The Early Italian Poets) 193-206 Contini, <hi rend="i">Poeti de Duecento</hi> , II. 544 Cassata, <hi rend="i">Guido Cavalcanti. Rime</hi> , 177-179

Early Italian Poets text Early Italian Poets text The Early Italian Poets From Ciullo D'Alcamo to Dante Alighieri (1100-1200-1300), the Fitzwilliam Proof Dante Gabriel Rossetti 1861 0 The Early Italian Poets From Ciullo D'Alcamo to Dante Alighieri (1100-1200-1300), the Alderman annotated copy Dante Gabriel Rossetti 1861 0 The Early Italian Poets From Ciullo D'Alcamo to Dante Alighieri (1100-1200-1300), Presentation Copy to Frederick Shields. Dante Gabriel Rossetti 1861 0 The Early Italian Poets From Ciullo D'Alcamo to Dante Alighieri (1100-1200-1300) (the Princeton illustrated copy) Dante Gabriel Rossetti 1861 0 The Early Italian Poets from Ciullo d'Alcamo to Dante Alighieri (1100-1200-1300) (Proof Copy) Dante Gabriel Rossetti 1861 0 The Early Italian Poets From Ciullo D'Alcamo to Dante Alighieri (1100-1200-1300), the Wrenn Proof Dante Gabriel Rossetti 1861 0 The Early Italian Poets From Ciullo D'Alcamo to Dante Alighieri (1100-1200-1300), the Yale University Beinecke Library Proof Dante Gabriel Rossetti 1861 0 Dante and His Circle: With the Italian Poets Preceding Him (1100—1200—1300). Dante Gabriel Rossetti 1874 0 The Collected Works of Dante Gabriel Rossetti, vol. 2 (1886) Dante Gabriel Rossetti William Michael Rossetti 1886 0 The Works of Dante Gabriel Rossetti (1911) Dante Gabriel Rossetti William Michael Rossetti 1911 0