ABSTRACT
Dante’s Divine Comedy is a cornerstone of Italian school curricula at all levels, making its presence felt in primary and secondary schools as well as in university teaching. As such, it is crucial to reflect on what it means to teach his text in the socially and culturally changing world of Italian schools. What is the impact that this teaching may have on the life of the students within and beyond the walls of our classrooms? Can the Comedy become a paradigm for how we conceptualize the teaching of literature in general? This contribution focuses on the varied landscape of pedagogical innovations connected to the study of Dante in Italian schools and addresses the most recent and exciting practical experimentations in this field. In particular, it surveys the wide range of coordinated pedagogical and practical projects currently aimed at pre-university students in Italy. By combining advanced-study critical and hermeneutic techniques with an equally crucial encouragement to engage creatively with the Divine Comedy, students have been stimulated to produce critical essays, creative rewritings, ebooks, PowerPoint presentations, drawings, paintings, original songs, musicals, and theater shows, proving not only their desire to interact with Dante’s text but also their ability to work across disciplines.
