“Song that in those sweet pipes the loveliest lay of earthly muse or siren doth excel as much as primary light the reflex ray”
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St Thomas Aquinas (1225-74) who made Aristotle’s metaphysical and ethical system ‘acceptable’ was celebrated by Dante in Canto 10 when the poet holds theological discussions with several church authorities including Aquinas. Virgil answers Dante's question about the perfectibility of sinners with a paraphrase of Aristotle: “Consult your knowledge, that decides/ That as each thing to more perfection grows/ It feels more sensibly both good and pain.” For Aristotle and his Christian adaptors (including Dante), philosophy is the human capacity for questioning, reasoning, and seeking the Truth.