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A review by aaronjz
The Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri
challenging
slow-paced
4.0
I feel proud to have completed this book. It was a lot to take in over a long period of time. I enjoyed aspects of it: Virgil as holding a torch behind him, lighting the way for others, but not able to see the light himself; Beatrice (beauty) being the guide after Virgil (height of human arts) could only take him so far, up to the top of Mt. Purgatory; Seeing the redeemed as a Rose in eternity, blossoming ever upward and outward toward the Trinity; Thomas Aquinas speaking of the concave mind that can only see itself; the Still Point at the center of the universe, where God is moving everything around him, yet is himself unmoved; the River of Light and its reflection of the Empyrean; and, of course, the ultimate "pure in heart" moment when Dante see's God, and his will (capacity to choose) and desire (capacity to love) are united together to the music and tune of God's loving and pulsing heart. Love flows proportionally to the clarity of the vision of Him who is Love. I also loved hearing about how Ulysses ended up in Dante's imagination.
Things I didn't love: meeting Cacciaguida in Paradise and having long extended boring conversations with him; sometimes overly violent and dark imagery in Inferno or in conversations about people in Hell; endless political jabs at the country's leaders and church's leaders that Dante had beef with; the repetition of Dante being like, "I was afraid to ask what these things meant, so I didn't until my guide said, 'Just ask'" all the way from Inferno to Paradise... Just ask, bro. Also, the way he kept saying, "It was too much to describe" and then he goes on describing, or just never does. As a Protestant, I also did not enjoy the prayers to Mary.
Overall, however, I'm grateful to have read this story, to have had an opportunity to completed such a work of art that has stood the test of time. I am grateful now to have more insight into allusions to this story in many other works of literature, art, music, and the rest.
I really appreciate Allen Mandelbaum's translation. I found it the most accessible for me, as well as not watered down. It felt right for me. Will invest in a copy of his translation published by Everyman's Library.
Things I didn't love: meeting Cacciaguida in Paradise and having long extended boring conversations with him; sometimes overly violent and dark imagery in Inferno or in conversations about people in Hell; endless political jabs at the country's leaders and church's leaders that Dante had beef with; the repetition of Dante being like, "I was afraid to ask what these things meant, so I didn't until my guide said, 'Just ask'" all the way from Inferno to Paradise... Just ask, bro. Also, the way he kept saying, "It was too much to describe" and then he goes on describing, or just never does. As a Protestant, I also did not enjoy the prayers to Mary.
Overall, however, I'm grateful to have read this story, to have had an opportunity to completed such a work of art that has stood the test of time. I am grateful now to have more insight into allusions to this story in many other works of literature, art, music, and the rest.
I really appreciate Allen Mandelbaum's translation. I found it the most accessible for me, as well as not watered down. It felt right for me. Will invest in a copy of his translation published by Everyman's Library.