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3.89 AVERAGE
3.89 AVERAGE
adventurous
challenging
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
This is one of the books that make me wish I could read any language in existence. I moderately enjoyed reading it, but I know I would have understood it better in its native tongue, especially during the time in which Dante wrote it. I read it mostly to understand the cultural references seen in literature and art throughout the years.
It is very dense and it took me a very long time to read. I had to read a few Cantos at a time in order to not be bogged down. I would highly suggest taking time to read it and breaking it up over a period of time, rather than trying to read it all the way through in a short period of time.
If you don't read all of it, stick to Inferno. It is definitely the most interesting section and is the most referenced section as well.
It is very dense and it took me a very long time to read. I had to read a few Cantos at a time in order to not be bogged down. I would highly suggest taking time to read it and breaking it up over a period of time, rather than trying to read it all the way through in a short period of time.
If you don't read all of it, stick to Inferno. It is definitely the most interesting section and is the most referenced section as well.
adventurous
challenging
emotional
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
some thoughts:
-started reading this because i was bored and hozier wrote a concept album based on this book. this means that for certain cantos, i essentially just used hozier’s explanations of unreal unearth songs instead of reading any kind of footnotes or doing any real research. way more fun.
-i would LOVE to read this for a class, because i feel like i just don’t know enough to fully understand the context or significance of many of the cantos and historical figures involved. i need someone to be my virgil and guide me through
-i think the terza rima rhyme scheme is so interesting, but it does not translate into english well. i read the henry wadsworth longfellow translation, which is very loyal to the original text, but the ciardi translation apparently takes some artistic liberties to preserve the rhyme scheme and reads as more “poetic”. if i ever reread, i’ll probably switch to the ciardi translation.
-as a piece of poetry, the divine comedy is great. as a piece of political fiction, the divine comedy is HILARIOUS. like imagine writing an epic poem about how like richard nixon and also the guy who took your parking spot are burning in hell. bc that’s essentially the 21st century equivalent of this book.
in summary: was this worth 700 pages and lots of googling 14th century popes? i suppose, but i would recommend looking into the merits of different translations before taking this behemoth of a poem on. maybe just listen to unreal unearth and call it a day.
-started reading this because i was bored and hozier wrote a concept album based on this book. this means that for certain cantos, i essentially just used hozier’s explanations of unreal unearth songs instead of reading any kind of footnotes or doing any real research. way more fun.
-i would LOVE to read this for a class, because i feel like i just don’t know enough to fully understand the context or significance of many of the cantos and historical figures involved. i need someone to be my virgil and guide me through
-i think the terza rima rhyme scheme is so interesting, but it does not translate into english well. i read the henry wadsworth longfellow translation, which is very loyal to the original text, but the ciardi translation apparently takes some artistic liberties to preserve the rhyme scheme and reads as more “poetic”. if i ever reread, i’ll probably switch to the ciardi translation.
-as a piece of poetry, the divine comedy is great. as a piece of political fiction, the divine comedy is HILARIOUS. like imagine writing an epic poem about how like richard nixon and also the guy who took your parking spot are burning in hell. bc that’s essentially the 21st century equivalent of this book.
in summary: was this worth 700 pages and lots of googling 14th century popes? i suppose, but i would recommend looking into the merits of different translations before taking this behemoth of a poem on. maybe just listen to unreal unearth and call it a day.
"Inaltul vis se rupse-aici deodata;
ci-mi si porni si-al meu si dor si velle,
asemeni rotii ce-i egal miscata,
iubirea care misca sori si stele."
ci-mi si porni si-al meu si dor si velle,
asemeni rotii ce-i egal miscata,
iubirea care misca sori si stele."
challenging
informative
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
is interesting how people used to write. But classics are not my thing...not all of them.
this is just interesting.
this is just interesting.
I read this one my junior year of high school and absolutely adored it! I thought the writing style and verse were really interesting and I loved all of the characters. My favorite part was the Inferno.