Dante's Epistle to Cangrande:
                       The Current Debate
              **Description and Copyright Notice**


     On 17-18 March 1993, the distinguished American Dante scholar,
Professor Robert Hollander of Princeton University, delivered the
Barlow Lectures at University College London, reviewing and
reviving the controversy over the authenticity of the "Epistle to
Cangrande" that offers grounds for divining Dante's own intentions
for the interpretation of parts of the Divina Commedia.  Against a
recent trend to deny the authenticity of the letter, Hollander
makes a strong and spirited case arguing in favor of authenticity.
      These lectures will form the basis for a book-length study to
appear this summer under the aegis of the University of Michigan
Press and its new monograph series, "*Recentiores*:  Late Latin
Texts and Contexts," edited by Professor James J. O'Donnell of the
University of Pennsylvania.  In order to stimulate discussion and
provide timely reportage of the lectures, sure to be of wide
interest to medievalists, the Press has arranged for a preview of
the book to be made available now on the Internet.  There are four
files, of which the first duplicates this note in a BARLOW.README
file, and the three substantial files (between 35 and 50K apiece)
are BARLOW.1 BARLOW.2 and BARLOW.3.
      The lecture texts distributed now are only a part of the
detailed presentation of argument and evidence that will make up
the printed book.  Scholarly users in particular should be aware
that only the printed book will incorporate final revisions and
corrections and the printed book should in all cases be used as the
authoritative citation of the author's work.  Anyone who wishes to
be notified when the printed book is available should send e-mail
to michael_kehoe@um.cc.umich.edu or regular mail to Michael Kehoe,
The University of Michigan Press, 839 Greene Street, P.O. Box 1104,
Ann Arbor, Michigan  48106.

                       -- **IMPORTANT** --
                        COPYRIGHT NOTICE 
                       -- **IMPORTANT** --

     The contents of the three lectures (BARLOW.1, BARLOW.2, and
BARLOW.3) are copyright 1993 by the University of Michigan Press,
which has permitted them to reside on equipment of the Center for
Computer Analysis of Texts at the University of Pennsylvania for
access by anonymous ftp and gopher clients.  Any other electronic
reformatting is by permission from the University of Michigan
Press.  Any copying is restricted by the fair use provisions of the
U.S. Copyright Act.  IN PARTICULAR, NO CHARGE MAY BE MADE FOR ANY
COPY, ELECTRONIC OR PAPER, MADE OR DISTRIBUTED OF THIS MATERIAL
WITHOUT PRIOR CONSENT OF THE UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN PRESS.  NO COPY
OF THIS MATERIAL MAY BE REPRODUCED WITHOUT THIS NOTICE.
      For further information, contact the University of Michigan
Press, 839 Greene Street, P.O. Box 1104, Ann Arbor, Michigan 
48106.

THE BARLOW LECTURES


     Henry Clark Barlow (1806-76), who devoted the last quarter of
his life to the study of Dante, endowed this lectureship at
University College London by instrument of his will.  Before the
eve of the Second World War the Barlow Lectureship required some
dozen lectures by the holder each year.  Some Lecturers held the
post for many years, the most notable of whom are perhaps Edward
Moore and E. G. Gardner.  Since the War the Lectures have been
given on a more sporadic basis.  Lecturers since 1947 include Colin
Hardie, J. H. Whitfield, Carlo Dionisotti, Cecil Grayson, Kenelm
Foster, Patrick Boyde, Maria Corti, and Giorgio Padoan.

ROBERT HOLLANDER


     Robert Hollander, Professor in European Literature at
Princeton University, has published several books and some four
dozen articles concerning the work of Dante Alighieri.  The former
include *Allegory in Dante's "Commedia"* (Princeton 1969), *Studies
in Dante* (Longo, 1980), *Il Virgilio dantesco* (Olschki, 1983), an
edition (in collaboration with Jeffrey Schnapp and others) of
Bernardino Daniello's commentary on the *Commedia* (UPNE, 1988),
and *Dante's Epistle to Cangrande* (Ann Arbor, forthcoming).  From
1979 to 1985 he served as the twelfth President of the Dante
Society of America.  He has also served as Vice Chairman of the
National Council on the Humanities (1976-78) and as Chairman of the
Board of the National Humanities Center (1988-91).  He is the
founder and director of the Dartmouth Dante Project, an on-line
database of Dante commentaries.  He is acting chairman of the board
of the Center for Electronic Texts in the Humanities.  In 1988 he
was awarded the gold medal of the City of Florence in recognition
of his work on behalf of Dante.  He is a founding member (1991) and
currently president of the International Dante Seminar.