The hexameter of Greek and Latin epic and the Italian hendecasyllable are usually described in terms of syllables, feet and accents. This paper tests a different hypothesis: that both verses were shaped, without the poets being aware of it, by the number of words a line can hold, a number close to the central value of Miller's $7 \pm 2$ law. On this view the two metres are an imprint of short-term memory, the stage through which information must pass before it is stored in long-term memory and later recalled, as was required in societies where poetry was learned and recited by heart. The hypothesis is examined on Virgil's Aeneid and Lucretius' De Rerum Natura, both written in Latin hexameter... More >

Dante Alighieri’s Divina Commedia is the preeminent work of the Italian literature and one of the greatest of the world literature. The poem allegorically represents the soul’s journey toward God passing through Inferno, Purgatorio and Paradiso. At each stage of the journey, Dante adapts his language to the different contexts he describes, bringing together, in a single great work, the various types of language that had previously been specific to comedy or tragedy. This is why scholars speak of pluristylism. Compared to Inferno and Purgatorio, the language of Paradiso increases in complexity and in linguistic perfection to express profound theological concepts, making the reading more d... More >

Presents the introductory editorial for the inaugural issue of this title. More >