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John F. Kennedy was a voracious reader and he put his reading to work in his speeches. His favorite quote was from Dante: “The hottest places in Hell are reserved for those who in times of moral crisis preserve their neutrality.” This lecture traces Kennedy’s deployment of this quote in different political contexts, explores the afterlife of the quote, and examines his reading habits more broadly. Kennedy employed famous authors like Dante in a campaign of persuasion. His use of Dante shows just what a felicitous conjunction this can be when wielded by a politician thoroughly aware of the tradition of American oratory and unafraid of eloquence.

A wine reception will follow the lecture.

Learn more about the speaker: Deborah Parker, University of Virginia