Dante’s divine autofiction
How the Italian poet’s search for self-knowledge changed the course of literature.
By
Rowan Williams
Rowan Williams is former Archbishop of Canterbury from 2002 to 2012, and a contributing writer to the New Statesman.
Latest articles
All Articles
Shakespeare’s guide to living
A Freudian reading of the comedies and tragedies reveals how we can embrace life’s failures and reversals.
By
What the Greeks teach us about suicide
The great tragedians’ writings on suffering, stigma and survival can help guide our own struggles with assisted dying.
By
Byron’s war on tranquillity
A new biography reveals how the poet’s life of extremes was echoed by the hyperactive irony of his work.
By
Lexicon of loss
The history of the elegy reveals how the poetry of grief has the power to trouble, console and unite.
By
Anne Boleyn’s blunders
A new history shows how the clever, ambitious queen was no match for the post-truth politics of Henry VIII’s…
By
Homer’s history of violence
Emily Wilson’s translation of the Iliad reveals a bleak vision of the self-interest and savagery of humankind.
By
The plans for a national Holocaust memorial need a rethink
The building’s design has been criticised and tangled in controversy – issues that such a project can well do…
By
Shakespeare’s race problem
The playwright reflected the prejudices of his age, but he also questioned and undermined them.
By