Unclassified
donna Berta
Proverbial character cited by Dante in Paradiso, alongside ser Martino, to indicate any two random people, often in a disparaging sense, who presume to be able to judge.
Profile
In Canto XIII of Paradiso Dante places the name donna Berta in a warning passage, addressed to anyone who presumes to judge without discernment. The verse «Non creda donna Berta e ser Martino» places her alongside ser Martino as an example of a common person, drawn from the tradition of generic names used to indicate anyone, following the ancient example of Titus and Gaius. The notes to the canto specify that the two names, Berta and Martino, stand in the old usage for «two random people» and that in this context, while they may have a disparaging value, they are meant above all to express the smallness of man before God. The introduction to the canto also notes the expressive, popular-style use of the expression, which recurs in Canto XXIX with other proverbial names, and connects it to Dante's warning language concerning moral judgment, known only to God.
In the text
Linked verses
1 verses| Cantica | Canto | Verso | Testo | Open verse |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paradise | Canto XIII | 139 | Non creda donna Berta e ser Martino, | Open verse |