“quello splendido faber”. sui destini moderni di una citazione dantesca

This article will analyze the poeta-fabbro (poet-blacksmith) metaphor in various texts throughout time, starting with the analysis of Dante’s expression “miglior fabbro” (used to refer to Arnaut Daniel in Purgatory, canto XXVI), up to Giorgio Caproni. Indeed, Mario Luzi – Giorgio Caproni’s colleague – already called him a “splendido faber”. This image puts forward the idea that writing poems not only is an artistic process, but also implies artisanal work. In fact, like an artisan, the poet hammers and polishes lines in his workshop. This is also proved by T. S. Eliot’s allusions to Dante in The Waste Land.