Heavenly bodies: The presence of the divine female in Boccaccio

The image of Boccaccio as devotee of the Virgin Mary is an enduring feature of the 'conversion' model of his literary biography, in which the amorous inclinations of the young writer give way, in later life, to a new focus on religious and moral concerns. This article argues that there are many elements of Boccaccio's writing which remain constant throughout his career, including his continuous deployment of Dantean reference. Through a study of the dantismi found in his descriptions of the Virgin (in the Rime, Corbaccio, and Buccolicum carmen), and pagan goddesses (Caccia di Diana, Comedia delle ninfe fiorentine), it is shown that Dante's Paradiso provides the linguistic and situational template for Boccaccio's depiction of the divine female. The remarkable consistency between Boccaccio's presentation of the Virgin Mary and his presentation of pagan goddesses thus suggests that the biographical myth of his spiritual 'conversion' in later life should be reappraised. © The Society for Italian Studies 2005.