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3.89 AVERAGE
3.89 AVERAGE
challenging
dark
informative
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I read this for purgatorio and paradiso and was disappointed by them both. If Dante had written these today he'd have been that author that writes one hit novel and then gets picked up for a movie series and so writes more to fill in the movies.
challenging
dark
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
adventurous
dark
hopeful
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
*Note: I read the Clive James translation*
Evangelicals go goo-ga over "The Pilgrim's Progress" and pay a little attention to "Paradise Lost" but rarely ever talk about "Inferno". I have wondered why. Perhaps it evangelicals' collective discomfort with Catholic writers. Possibly its also related to evangelicals' obsession with literature being 'clean' (by which they mean PG-rated). Well, I can assure you "Inferno" is very Catholic and very much not 'clean'. However, those seeking deep spiritual insight (as I was), whatever their denomination, will find much substance in Dante's epic poem.
This is an incredible and dense work of Christian literature. I plan to read works of commentary to expand my understanding. On an initial read through, I have a few key takeaways, although I suspect they do not begin to plumb the rich depths of Dante's work:
1. Dante's preoccupation with justice. People sometimes complain that the Christian view of hell brooks injustice, where mere liars suffer the same fate as murderers and rapists. Dante sets the record straight - every punishment in his Hell is proportional to the crime. Non-Christians who are 'great people' (I think?) like Aristotle and Caesar (not sure why he's on this list) end up in Limbo, not even in Hell proper. And there are 9 (or 24, if you divide them further) levels down to the centre where Satan, Judas, Cassius and Brutus (again, Caesar?) are locked in ice (yes, Hell has frozen over). That's not even counting Purgatory. So, there's a whole spectrum of afterlives to reward or punish a whole spectrum of lives.
2. There is much external suffering depicted in the poem, but we are told that this is only a shade of the internal suffering that these souls are experiencing. In fact, in many sections there is the implication that the punishment being suffered may even be self-inflicted. It was Lewis who said that 'The Gates of Hell are locked from the inside,' but we can detect a hint of that even in Dante's work. Evil does violence to the person who commits it as much as to their victim, and this is put on terrible display in Dante's vision.
3. One of the most surprising things about the "Comedy" is that it really is funny. Some of the demons' names made me crack up and, more than that, there's a pathetic humour to the self-justification of every soul Dante and Virgil encounter. Everybody has some elaborate excuse for their awful behaviour, and other names quick at hand to blame for worse crimes.
This is a classic for a reason. Highly recommended.
Evangelicals go goo-ga over "The Pilgrim's Progress" and pay a little attention to "Paradise Lost" but rarely ever talk about "Inferno". I have wondered why. Perhaps it evangelicals' collective discomfort with Catholic writers. Possibly its also related to evangelicals' obsession with literature being 'clean' (by which they mean PG-rated). Well, I can assure you "Inferno" is very Catholic and very much not 'clean'. However, those seeking deep spiritual insight (as I was), whatever their denomination, will find much substance in Dante's epic poem.
This is an incredible and dense work of Christian literature. I plan to read works of commentary to expand my understanding. On an initial read through, I have a few key takeaways, although I suspect they do not begin to plumb the rich depths of Dante's work:
1. Dante's preoccupation with justice. People sometimes complain that the Christian view of hell brooks injustice, where mere liars suffer the same fate as murderers and rapists. Dante sets the record straight - every punishment in his Hell is proportional to the crime. Non-Christians who are 'great people' (I think?) like Aristotle and Caesar (not sure why he's on this list) end up in Limbo, not even in Hell proper. And there are 9 (or 24, if you divide them further) levels down to the centre where Satan, Judas, Cassius and Brutus (again, Caesar?) are locked in ice (yes, Hell has frozen over). That's not even counting Purgatory. So, there's a whole spectrum of afterlives to reward or punish a whole spectrum of lives.
2. There is much external suffering depicted in the poem, but we are told that this is only a shade of the internal suffering that these souls are experiencing. In fact, in many sections there is the implication that the punishment being suffered may even be self-inflicted. It was Lewis who said that 'The Gates of Hell are locked from the inside,' but we can detect a hint of that even in Dante's work. Evil does violence to the person who commits it as much as to their victim, and this is put on terrible display in Dante's vision.
3. One of the most surprising things about the "Comedy" is that it really is funny. Some of the demons' names made me crack up and, more than that, there's a pathetic humour to the self-justification of every soul Dante and Virgil encounter. Everybody has some elaborate excuse for their awful behaviour, and other names quick at hand to blame for worse crimes.
This is a classic for a reason. Highly recommended.
adventurous
dark
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I deserve to be strung up by the big toes for this horror of a little pun but I’ve been racking my brain for a way to get around it and there’s simply no better descriptor: the prospect of reading Dante is, well, daunting.
The Comedy has been an increasingly glaring black hole in my literary and philosophical map for a long time, but it wasn’t until I read it for myself that I realized just how pivotal it is to understanding literary, church, and philosophic history. I knew that Dante was basically the first in Europe to write poetry in the vernacular, a generation ahead of Boccaccio and Petrarch in Italy who also helped to influence Cervantes and Chaucer and spread both the style and the use of common language throughout the known western world. I knew that the theological implications of his art were reflected throughout Christian and European cultures for nearly a millenium. Even so, to actually experience the journey through the descending levels of hell, the climb further up and further in through purgatory, and the explorations of the celestial realms of the heavens is something hard to summarize or describe.
Dante really is difficult. It’s being translated from old Italian; written in verse form; founded on tons of preexisting Greek and Roman literature; employing outdated astronomic and scientific theories; and full of history church, biblical references, and local Florentine politics and history that is roughly 800 years out of date now. How does one begin to cope? I highly suggest this prose translation by Carlyle Okey Wicksteed as an easy entry point. Every single Canto (each one is bite-size, thankfully) includes a thorough explanation of what is going to be covered, which sounds redundant and is, but it makes extremely dense material much more manageable on the first go and provides huge amounts of context to explain who the local politicians and historical figures are in Dante’s world. Often Dante refers to historical and literary figures using descriptors without names and these introductions help to illuminate any who are not obvious.
So what actually happens? Basically, Dante is taken through Hell and Purgatory by Virgil, the great pagan poet and author of The Aeneid whom he admires so greatly. He is allowed to come here among the dead in his living body because the woman he loves, Beatrice, is such a sainted spirit that her desire for him to see all of eternity while living is honored. The work is surreal and dreamlike, evocative of Pilgrim’s Progress and Kafka, a trek through worlds unfathomable among all sorts of figures of prominence. In discovering the realms of Hell, Purgatory, and Paradise, Dante is given all the room one could ask for to imagine the eternal results of various life decisions and the positions various figures and characteristics might end up in in relationship to the divine. Dante tends to be an especially harsh critic of the failed governing of the church and the corruption rampant among the leading families and politicians of Florence. He provides a surprising amount of grace toward those who were outside the faith and artistic heroes, while condemning wholesale those who abused humanity for personal gain. He openly admires Greek and Roman poets, Muslim philosophers, and Mohammed himself and has them all dealt with in eternity as lightly as he can allow himself. He tends to embrace what would now be distinguished as Catholic doctrines, praying for the dead, venerating all sorts of saints, obsessing over the virgin Mary, and rejecting the Jewish nation and lamenting the shortcomings of the chosen Roman Empire. He also seems eager that more crusades would happen, as the loss of the Holy Land seems a travesty to him.
Personally, I found the Inferno and the Purgatory far more inspiring than the Paradise. The imaginative and philosophically explorations in both are full of interesting and compelling concepts. In the Paradise, the concepts are far more elusive and ethereal. Dante is trying to find the answers to all sorts of eternal questions and they are often beyond perfected human contemplation or beyond description when reflected upon afterward. The ideas of the Inferno and Purgatory are explanations and final judgements on human experiences and actions, whereas the Paradise is all concerning the eternal nature of the universe and the state of things outside of time and space.
I had never realized just how greatly thinkers like CS Lewis were influenced by Dante. While digesting this work, I was constantly reminded of all the various Lewis works that reflect The Comedy. The Great Divorce feels like a parody snippet of this work. The Space Trilogy and Narnia benefit from it immensely. The entire concept of “Further Up and Further In” could be the subtitle for The Purgatory. Hind’s Feet In High Places also feels like it derives a lot from this poem.
It is hard to fathom creating such a complex weaving of poetry, mathematics, astronomy, theology, and philosophy. Dante designed his universe around a mathematic system that incorporates a flawed astronomic understanding but which is internally impressive. He created his own poetic meter to write in. He marries a systematic mind with a poetic sense of transcending beauty. Somehow, he manages to define his own creative universe while describing a version of the eternal values he sees in our own universe. He is trying to make sense and order of every aspect of our existence. Inevitably, his prejudices and local misapprehensions show through, but his attempt is gracious and inspired, a good investment for anyone with the tenacity to overcome it.
I don’t think I’ll stop thinking about it anytime soon.
The Comedy has been an increasingly glaring black hole in my literary and philosophical map for a long time, but it wasn’t until I read it for myself that I realized just how pivotal it is to understanding literary, church, and philosophic history. I knew that Dante was basically the first in Europe to write poetry in the vernacular, a generation ahead of Boccaccio and Petrarch in Italy who also helped to influence Cervantes and Chaucer and spread both the style and the use of common language throughout the known western world. I knew that the theological implications of his art were reflected throughout Christian and European cultures for nearly a millenium. Even so, to actually experience the journey through the descending levels of hell, the climb further up and further in through purgatory, and the explorations of the celestial realms of the heavens is something hard to summarize or describe.
Dante really is difficult. It’s being translated from old Italian; written in verse form; founded on tons of preexisting Greek and Roman literature; employing outdated astronomic and scientific theories; and full of history church, biblical references, and local Florentine politics and history that is roughly 800 years out of date now. How does one begin to cope? I highly suggest this prose translation by Carlyle Okey Wicksteed as an easy entry point. Every single Canto (each one is bite-size, thankfully) includes a thorough explanation of what is going to be covered, which sounds redundant and is, but it makes extremely dense material much more manageable on the first go and provides huge amounts of context to explain who the local politicians and historical figures are in Dante’s world. Often Dante refers to historical and literary figures using descriptors without names and these introductions help to illuminate any who are not obvious.
So what actually happens? Basically, Dante is taken through Hell and Purgatory by Virgil, the great pagan poet and author of The Aeneid whom he admires so greatly. He is allowed to come here among the dead in his living body because the woman he loves, Beatrice, is such a sainted spirit that her desire for him to see all of eternity while living is honored. The work is surreal and dreamlike, evocative of Pilgrim’s Progress and Kafka, a trek through worlds unfathomable among all sorts of figures of prominence. In discovering the realms of Hell, Purgatory, and Paradise, Dante is given all the room one could ask for to imagine the eternal results of various life decisions and the positions various figures and characteristics might end up in in relationship to the divine. Dante tends to be an especially harsh critic of the failed governing of the church and the corruption rampant among the leading families and politicians of Florence. He provides a surprising amount of grace toward those who were outside the faith and artistic heroes, while condemning wholesale those who abused humanity for personal gain. He openly admires Greek and Roman poets, Muslim philosophers, and Mohammed himself and has them all dealt with in eternity as lightly as he can allow himself. He tends to embrace what would now be distinguished as Catholic doctrines, praying for the dead, venerating all sorts of saints, obsessing over the virgin Mary, and rejecting the Jewish nation and lamenting the shortcomings of the chosen Roman Empire. He also seems eager that more crusades would happen, as the loss of the Holy Land seems a travesty to him.
Personally, I found the Inferno and the Purgatory far more inspiring than the Paradise. The imaginative and philosophically explorations in both are full of interesting and compelling concepts. In the Paradise, the concepts are far more elusive and ethereal. Dante is trying to find the answers to all sorts of eternal questions and they are often beyond perfected human contemplation or beyond description when reflected upon afterward. The ideas of the Inferno and Purgatory are explanations and final judgements on human experiences and actions, whereas the Paradise is all concerning the eternal nature of the universe and the state of things outside of time and space.
I had never realized just how greatly thinkers like CS Lewis were influenced by Dante. While digesting this work, I was constantly reminded of all the various Lewis works that reflect The Comedy. The Great Divorce feels like a parody snippet of this work. The Space Trilogy and Narnia benefit from it immensely. The entire concept of “Further Up and Further In” could be the subtitle for The Purgatory. Hind’s Feet In High Places also feels like it derives a lot from this poem.
It is hard to fathom creating such a complex weaving of poetry, mathematics, astronomy, theology, and philosophy. Dante designed his universe around a mathematic system that incorporates a flawed astronomic understanding but which is internally impressive. He created his own poetic meter to write in. He marries a systematic mind with a poetic sense of transcending beauty. Somehow, he manages to define his own creative universe while describing a version of the eternal values he sees in our own universe. He is trying to make sense and order of every aspect of our existence. Inevitably, his prejudices and local misapprehensions show through, but his attempt is gracious and inspired, a good investment for anyone with the tenacity to overcome it.
I don’t think I’ll stop thinking about it anytime soon.
This book is one of the cornerstones of Western Civilization. It is a snapshot of some western core values that still guide us today for good or ill. "Inferno," at least, should be required reading.
so rich in mythology and religious imagery i love it, but the order of the circles of hell and their sin counterparts are a little...troublesome to say the least but you win some u lose some
5/5, parce que je n'ai clairement pas les compétences pour juger un classique majeur de la langue italienne !
Mais je vais quand même donner mon ressenti pour les différentes parties :
L'Enfer : la partie que j'ai préférée. Dante y critique beaucoup ses contemporains. (On pourra peut-être y noter son acharnement sur le pape Boniface)
Le Purgatoire : j'ai bien aimé aussi. On en apprend beaucoup sur la société de l'époque.
Le Paradis : la partie que j'ai le moins aimée, probablement parce qu'elle ressemblait trop à un cours de catéchisme. Ce qui m'intéressait très peu.
Mais je vais quand même donner mon ressenti pour les différentes parties :
L'Enfer : la partie que j'ai préférée. Dante y critique beaucoup ses contemporains. (On pourra peut-être y noter son acharnement sur le pape Boniface)
Le Purgatoire : j'ai bien aimé aussi. On en apprend beaucoup sur la société de l'époque.
Le Paradis : la partie que j'ai le moins aimée, probablement parce qu'elle ressemblait trop à un cours de catéchisme. Ce qui m'intéressait très peu.