Commentary Par XXV 19-24

See Shoaf (Shoa.1975.1), who argues for the presence of a 'dove program' in the poem, moving from the damned sinners Francesca and Paolo in [Inf V 82], through the muddled saved souls on the shore, unable to distinguish between wheat and tares in [Purg II 125], to these brotherly apostles, redeeming earthly affection by turning it toward heavenly nourishment (see [Par XXIV 1-2], 'the elect invited to / the glorious supper of the blessèd Lamb'), thus tacitly rebuking the careless eating habits of the freshly saved souls on the shore of Purgatory.  There are only these three presences of doves in the poem, each in a carefully turned simile, one to a canticle; it is difficult to believe Dante was not paying close attention to their distribution and significance.