About Tarot

Chapter 6: Lovers

The symbolism of the lovers is important to Dante who provides a place for them in all three sections of the Commedia. In the Inferno (Canto 5) they appear in the second circle – lightly punished as compared to the atrocities at lower levels and far from Lucifer's realm in the 9^th circle. Dante tells the tragic story of Paolo and Francesca who were murdered by her husband before they could repent of their impulsive infidelity. The story is illustrated in Figures 13 (~1440) and 14 (~1445) which clearly show the lovers but are not particularly good matches to the early Tarot images. In Figure 13, Dante is shown falling to the ground in grief over the tragedy. Dante's sympathetic treatment of lovers is also evident in the Purgatorio where they are assigned to the uppermost terrace, just short of Eden (Purgatorio 25-27). In the Paradisio (8-10) lovers are assigned to the third heaven, Venus.

In addition to mentioning lovers in all three sections of the work, the symbol was also important to Dante because of his own spiritual love for Beatrice. The concept of 'courtly love' was something that he was acquainted with through the troubadors whom he admired.