Reviews - The Divine Comedy

2.67k reviews for:

The Divine Comedy

Dante Alighieri, Clive James

3.85 AVERAGE

will_cherico's review against another edition

5.0

adventurous challenging dark emotional reflective slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: Plot

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: No

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

I don't really consider myself a Catholic at all anymore but I think this poem is the closest I've come since being in the church to "getting it." Such a powerful depiction of a Satan and his subjects who are trapped in Hell by their own guilt or refusal to repent that weaves in real political and religious figures in a way that I would need a lot more understanding of the history of Rome, Catholicism, and medieval Italy to fully understand. "Then we came forth to rebehold the stars" could be the most beautiful ending I've ever read in poetry.