Historical
the Persians
A generic people of infidels mentioned as a rhetorical example in the political discourse of the Heaven of the Sun, contrasted with the Christian kings of Europe.
Profile
In the Paradiso, the mention "li Perse" opens the section of Cacciaguida's discourse dedicated to wicked Christian princes and to divine judgment. The previous tercet has closed the theoretical reasoning and opens the way to a concrete example: the Ethiopian may condemn the Christians, and so the Persians, another generic indication of an infidel people, will be able to condemn the kings of Christian Europe baptized and crowned in church. Immediately following is the image of the "open volume," the book of men's deeds that will be opened on the day of judgment according to the text of the Apocalypse, and the announcement of the punishments reserved for such sovereigns. The term "poran" is an archaic form, equivalent to the modern potranno (will be able to).
In the text
Linked verses
1 verses| Cantica | Canto | Verso | Testo | Open verse |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Paradise | Canto XIX | 112 | Che poran dir li Perse a’ vostri regi, | Open verse |