Reviews

The Divine Comedy by Henry Johnson, Dante Alighieri

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unrealpunk's review against another edition

I started out reading an old public domain translation, and was so underwhelmed that I nearly gave up, but fortunately I found the Mandelbaum translation, available for free at Columbia University's Digital Dante website, which I HIGHLY recommend. In Mandelbaum's translation I was able to appreciate the poem as a work of art truly worthy of its eminence. The only comparison that seems appropriate is to the frescoes of Michelangelo. Dante seems to have had a high opinion of the poem himself; he may condemn the figures of Classical mythology and history to the Inferno for their paganism, but they would have undoubtedly condemned him for his hubris. And Dante's pro-Crusade politics are pretty abhorrent, but you may as well deny Homer's Odyssey or Shakespeare's Hamlet as deny the Divine Comedy.

The Digital Dante resource also includes commentary by Teodolinda Barolini, which was especially helpful for understanding Dante's more obscure references. Readers interested in Dante's craft as a poet will also find it instructive, although it does get a bit repetitive in some places.

casualthejekyll's review against another edition

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slow-paced

3.5

ed_moore's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark hopeful informative reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

The second instalment of Dante’s Divine Comedy ‘Purgatorio’ follows Dante and Virgil’s pilgrimage to the summit of Mount Purgatory and through the Garden of Eden after surfacing from Hell. In comparison to ‘Inferno’, Purgatorio has many more poets as figures doing penance, as oppose to political figures and mythological figures in Inferno, though each of these categories of sinners are still present just in a lesser volume. It also has much more emphasis on sharing moral religious lessons and an attention to detail on hymns being sung, so naturally the more religious focus was more present in ‘Purgatorio’ and less to my enjoyment than depictions of sin in ‘Inferno’ (what did I expect in a religious allegorical poem though.) There are also many intentional similarities and callbacks to Inferno which were exciting, and less intentional similarities such as the continued obsession with Virgil, and the presence of even more classical poets creating a somehow greater impression of Dante writing a self-insert fan fiction where he is praised by all his favourite poets. ‘Purgatorio’ also addresses the reader much more which was an unusual change in tone I noted, perhaps this being related to the greater emphasis on teaching conversations and moral lessons being discussed as Mount Purgatory is climbed. I also cannot fail to mention that Canto 32 is perhaps one of the most batshit things ever written and I had to really process how and why all the random occurrences during such just - happened. I suppose it perfectly summarises the nature of the Divine Comedy though. Overall ‘Purgatorio’ wasn’t as good as ‘Inferno’, yet despite this still holds a lot of merit.

labunnywtf's review against another edition

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4.0

This is a very difficult read. Not because it's not enjoyable, I'm actually really loving it. But it's just a very intense read, and not one I can run through quickly, which is what I've gotten used to lately.

I've gotten through the Inferno, now in Purgatory. Still in the beginning, and I'm starting to wonder if I'm ever going to finish it. I feel like I'm going so slowly. And I've got a lot of books to read. I'm trying not to think that way, but it's difficult.

Really enjoying myself, though.

11/6 - Okay, I'm not going to lie and pretend I read the whole thing. I think it says a lot about me that heaven dragged on a little too long for me and I couldn't finish it.

It's a lot of pages, man! With quite a bit of artsy fartsy language that my poor 21st century brain can't deal with.

For the most part, I enjoyed this book a great deal. My eyes did some skimming, but not near as much as I thought they would when I first started reading.

I'd recommend this to someone who likes reading about religion. But it's a really hard read.