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Inferno (The Divine Comedy #1)

by Dante Alighieri, Anthony Esolen (Translator )

3.95 of 5 stars 3.95 · rating details · 49,752 ratings · 1,888 reviews

Translated by Anthony Esolen, Illustrations by Gustave Doré

In this superb translation of the Inferno, Anthony Esolen brings to life for contemporary readers the first and most famous part of Dante's Divine Comedy: the poet's classic journey through the underworld. Here is Dante at his ribald, shocking, and demonic best as he describes in unforgettably vivid detail his harr...more

Paperback, 528 pages

Published December 9th 2003 by Modern Library (first published 1314)

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Sep 17, 2010 Paquita Maria Sanchez rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: invisible-pink-unicorn, literature, poetry-and-whatnot

I just want to start off by saying that "Through me you enter into the City of Woes" would make an EXCELLENT tramp stamp. Jump on it!

Being that I am an atheist living in the "Bible Belt," I was certain that reading this would lead to some sort of goodreads tirade, which can at times feel about as good as vomiting up a sour stomach or...you know...doing other stuff ~~like shit~~ that ladies don't do. However, I was from the outset hypnotized by Dante's très Baudelaire-esque-grotesque imagery and over...more

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Nov 21, 2011 Richard marked it as to-read · review of another edition

Shelves: catholicism, christianity, italian-literature, poetry, middle-ages, reviewed

For the Celebrity Death Match Review Tournament, The Complete Tales and Poems of Winnie-the-Pooh versus The Divine Comedy

(All citations from the Inferno are from the Longfellow translation.)

To You

Paw in paw we come
Pooh and the Bouncer
To lay this review in your lap.
Give us one of those sultry little smiles
and say you're surprised!
Say you can't get over it!
Say it's just what you've always wanted
and it's even more fun than a day at the spa
(because, let's face it, ~~hunny~~ honey, on my salary
I couldn'...more

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Dec 21, 2010 Osho rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2010

The Inferno for Dummies: A Verse Summary

Some Italians I hate are dead. Yay.
Also, in hell. God rocks without a doubt.
Dead Virgil saved me when I lost my way,

Protected me from liars, sodomites,
And held bass-ackward simonists at bay,
As well as minotaurs and heads that bite.

The damned expound, are cleaved; they stink and shout.
At length, we scaled corrupted Satan's bits.
My foes are damned, while I have clambered out.

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May 07, 2008 Jeff rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

the only place i know in literature where saying "nice shoes" or "that's a lovely tattoo of a water buffalo on your forehead" or "you look especially wonderful in red rayon" but not meaning it is worse than murdering the entire population of stevens point, wi, (25,056 as of the last census) in an attempt to become emperor of the dairy state--a bitter guy sticks voodoo pins in everyone against whom he had an imagined or real gripe--if the bitter guy's vision is reality, all we can do is grab our...more

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Jan 26, 2013 Mary Ronan Drew rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

4 Reasons to Read Dante's Inferno

1. To finally figure out the difference between the Guelphs and the Ghibellines. Dante was a Guelph.

2. To discover why Constantine made his famous donation.

3. To learn some new and ingenious ways to torture your enemies. Dante is very imaginative in this regard.

4. To find out what happened to Potiphar's wife, Mohammed, Ulysses, Atilla the Hun, Cleopatra, and Helen of Troy. We meet them all in The Inferno.

I recommend Dorothy Sayers' translation because of the exce...more

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Mar 23, 2008 Andrew Spear rated it 5 of 5 stars

As though I could really give Dante anything but five stars? Seriously, The Inferno in general and this edition in particular is a great read. Anthony Esolen does a great job of not only placing the book in its historical context (almost anyone who can write numbers can do that), but also of helping the reader to appreciate and to almost step inside of the world-view held by Dante himself. This is accomplished both through the use of copious informative endnotes and through the inclusion at the...more As though I could really give Dante anything but five stars? Seriously, The Inferno in general and this edition in particular is a great read. Anthony Esolen does a great job of not only placing the book in its historical context (almost anyone who can write numbers can do that), but also of helping the reader to appreciate and to almost step inside of the world-view held by Dante himself. This is accomplished both through the use of copious informative endnotes and through the inclusion at the end of the volume of a great number of selections from Dante's sources, including Virgil and Thomas Aquinas. Add to this a selection of illustrations by Gustave Doré, Esolen's poetic English rendering, and the fact that the text is bilingual on facing pages and (having genuinely looked a bit) I can honestly say I haven't found a better overall volume for reading and understanding "The Inferno".

The Inferno is beautiful poetry and a landmark of Western Culture. It represents an artistic synthesis of the most sophisticated Christian Theology just at the dawn of the Renaissance, presenting an overarching picture of the divine order, plan for, and justice of the universe, while simultaneously capturing with remarkable poignancy the nuances and full spectrum of actual human life and emotion; not just wickedness and suffering (of which there is plenty in Hell), but also love and the ties (and betrayals) that can occur in families, friendships, cities, states and religions.

As a modern reader the most difficult part of reading The Inferno is trying to empathize with a world-view according to which eternal punishment, sometimes of the most horrible and degrading sort, is indeed somehow not only permissible but actually required by justice itself. If anyone were going to convince me that this is actually the case, it seems that it would indeed be Dante, especially Dante aided by all of the scholarly and interpretive devices offered by Esolen. Nevertheless, by the end of Dante's journey through Hell I still found myself feeling that, while the journey of personal growth and redemption that he is going through is edifying and inspiring, the overall justice of the place through which he has traveled is not.

For me, highlights of the book include the inscription above the gates of Hell, the Classical Philosophers in the first circle of Hell, Paolo and Francesca in the second, the story of Ulysses' second voyage in Canto Twenty-six (made famous in the Alfred Lord Tennyson Poem 'Ulysses', which was itself made famous in the movie Dead Poets Society), Count Ugolino, and the concluding lines: "we climbed so high that through a small round opening I saw some of the turning beauties of the sky. And we came out to see, once more, the stars." (Canto Thirty-Four, 136-39)

This is not the first time that I've read the Inferno, but I definitely appreciated more the intellectual and cultural components of the book. While I like to attribute this to my having matured intellectually since the first time I read the book, the fact that I have been to Florence and have been learning to speak (a very small amount of) Italian probably played just as much of a role in enhancing my overall appreciation for the work. (less)

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Aug 06, 2008 Elizabeth rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: adult, fiction

I could kiss the professor of my Concepts of Punishment course at CAL for making me read this book. I had no idea at the time how much I would think about it during my lifetime. I was just thinking about the lovers in the second circle today, almost ten years after I first read it.

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Apr 28, 2011 Joshua Nomen-Mutatio rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: fiction

THIS BOOK IS ABOUT HOW HELL IS GONNA SUUUUUUUUUUUUUCK

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May 16, 2012 Stefan rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

As a literature minor, I know that I'm supposed to take great joy in dissecting and analyzing a great work of literature such as The Inferno, but I didn't really enjoy this book all that much.

I found way too much of the storyline to be repetitive and drawn out for two long. The first half or so of the story is basically traveling from one circle of Hell to another, finding out what the sin and the punishment for the sin in that area is, meeting and talking with one or two of the sinners and rel...more

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Jan 26, 2009 Debbie rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I'm not sure where the copy of the book came from. The copyright is one year before I was born, but I don't remember picking it up in a used book store. But I guess that's neither here nor there.

I wish I could honestly check off 5 stars and say that my eyes were opened. That I really felt transformed by having read this classic of literature and that I will make it point to re-read it every year on the anniversary of my having discovered the error of my ways in not reading it at age 5.

But I can'...more

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Jul 13, 2011 Manny rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: strongly-recommended, science-fiction, history-and-biography, transcendent-experiences, why-not-call-it-poetry, life-is-dante

The other day, in the comment thread to her review of The Aeneid, Meredith called The Divine Comedy "lame": specifically, she objected to the fact that Dante put all the people he didn't like in Hell. Well, Meredith, you're perfectly welcome to your opinions - but I'm half Italian, and I've been politely informed that if I don't respond in some way I'm likely to wake up some morning and find a horse's head lying next to me. So here goes.

I actually have two separate defenses. First, let's conside...more The other day, in the comment thread to her review of The Aeneid, Meredith called The Divine Comedy "lame": specifically, she objected to the fact that Dante put all the people he didn't like in Hell. Well, Meredith, you're perfectly welcome to your opinions - but I'm half Italian, and I've been politely informed that if I don't respond in some way I'm likely to wake up some morning and find a horse's head lying next to me. So here goes.

I actually have two separate defenses. First, let's consider Dante's artistic choices, given that he's planned to write a huge epic poem where he's going to visit Hell, Purgatory and Heaven, each of which is divided up into a large number of smaller areas corresponding to differents sins and virtues. Now, who is he going to meet there? One option would be to have allegorical figures directly representing Pride, Wrath, Charity etc. That's what Bunyan did in The Pilgrim's Progress, but most people agree that it's not a very good solution: The Divine Comedy is much more fun than The Pilgrim's Progress. Or he could just make people up, but then he wouldn't have any space for character development, and you'd never be able to keep track of all the invented figures. Lindsay tried that route in A Voyage to Arcturus , and, even though the book's worth reading, he showed how hard it is to make it work. Every time someone interesting turns up, they always seem to get killed fifteen pages later.

I think the choice Dante made was the best one: to use real people. Of course, it is a bit presumptuous to decide that the ones going to Hell are mostly guys he doesn't like, but nothing else makes sense. If you want damned souls to populate the Hell of the Hypocrites, isn't Caiaphas, the high priest who falsely condemned Jesus, a sensible choice? If you're looking for Traitors to Lords and Benefactors, then don't Brutus and Cassius fit pretty well? And every now and then he meets his friends down there too. His beloved teacher Brunetto Latini is damned for sodomy, which shocks Dante just as much as it does me, but in his world-view it makes perfect sense; homosexuality is plain wrong, that's all there is to it.

Okay, that was my first defense. My second is that it's far too simplistic to say that Dante is self-righteously damning all his enemies and extolling his own virtues. The theme that continually comes back through the first two books is that Pride is the root of all sin, and Dante is very conscious of his own sinful nature. For example, he's way too happy to gloat over the fact that his enemy Filippo Argenti has been condemned to the Hell of the Wrathful, and Virgil gently points out the irony. Then, later, he has to spend the whole of Book 2 climbing up Mount Purgatory, which is hard work. He's got plenty of sins to purge.

To me, the real problem with Dante is that his world is so very different from mine, and I keep having to scramble to the footnotes to get the necessary background; so it's hard to keep the flow of the book, since you're constantly being interrupted. But even so, it's still a remarkable piece of work. We just don't think seriously any more about the nature of Good and Evil, Sin and Redemption. Dante's world thought they were crucially important, and he's one of the few people who's still able to give us a window into that view of life. It's nowhere near as irrelevant as we like to make out.

Don Corleone, will this do? Or do I have to add footnotes as well?
(less)

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Jan 27, 2013 Rana Essa rated it 3 of 5 stars

دلوقتى انا عارفة انى قدام قطعه من روائع الادب الايطالى ويمكن لو قارنت بأدبيات العصر اللى هو تابع ليها هيكون فعلا ملحمة...لكن انا هاحكم هنا حكم منطقى من وجهه نظرى وبس:
اهم حاجة هاتلفت النظر هى عدم تناسق الاّثام مع العقوبات.فمثلا

1- دانتى وضع السلبيين الذين لم يفعلوا خير ولا شر فى مقدمة الجحيم بينما اللى اتولدوا قبل المسيحية او ماتوا اطفال ولم يتم تعميدهم دول موجودين فى اللمبو الحلقة الاولى...واعتقد ان المنطق يقول العكس..خصوصا انه وضح ان لا امل لهم فى المطهر او الخلاص يعنى تواجد بشكل ابدى بلا راحة ف...more

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Jan 13, 2010 Ahmad rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: religious, poem, classic, literature, epic, italian, philosophy

در نیمه راه زندگانی، خویشتن را در جنگلی تاریک یافتم، زیرا راه راست را گم کرده بودم
و چه دشوار است وصف این جنگل وحشی و سخت انبوه، که یادش ترس را در دل بیدار می کند
چنان تلخ است که مرگ جز اندکی از آن تلخ تر نیست، اما من، برای وصف صفایی که در این جنگل یافتم، از دگر چیزهایی که در آن جستم سخن خواهم گفت
درست نمیتوانم گفت که چگونه پای بدان نهادم، زیرا هنگامی که شاهراه را ترک گفتم سخت خواب آلوده بودم
قسمتی از سرود اول دوزخ

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Sep 12, 2011 Iris rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: philosophy

In the damp fog of summer, Dante guides me take a bite out of life. Che magnifico docente! This translation is especially fine, according to Ralph Williams, professor emeritus at University of Michigan and my idol for his boundless love of life. I endorse this translation for a few reasons:

- modernized Italian on the facing page. Play with the Italian: try reading it aloud, or just seek out specific passages and words.

- endnotes following each canto. Much better than footnotes at the bottom of e...more

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Apr 11, 2013 Philip Same rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: religion-lack-thereof

Political slander & religious dogma at its highest and most poetic.

The Trinity; The Poet, The Pilgrim, & The Eternal, Paternal Guide ascend & descend through the failing state that is Hell. La Commedia is begun by Inferno, which is succeeded by Purgatorio & brought to a proper close with the forever looming Paradiso. I must admit, despite the seemingly abhorrent morality displayed in the 1st installment Inferno is, more so, however, was, intensely epic in its ambit.

La Commedia wa...more

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Sep 05, 2012 Marie rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: adventure, arts, catholicism, classics, fantasy, freedom, history-based-fiction, italy, life, philosophy, realism

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Ángel Battistessa's work is absolutely remarkable and worth of all the praise it gets.This edition is particularly good, since it has the original language and a good translation for readers to compare, Something I'll definitely do when I learn italian. And the presence of detailed notes to get deeper into the context. I'm not looking forward to see pictures in a book in most of the cases, but you can't refuse to admire even those details when those are some part of Doré's work.

I recommend getti...more

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Nov 22, 2010 Venus rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: literature

در سراسر این کتاب غالباً شاعر مطلبی مشروح را در یک یا دو جمله خلاصه کرده و این ایجاز در عین آنکه قدرت و تسلط عجیب او را در زبان و نظم می‌رساند، اثر وی را بصورت یکی از پیچیده‌ترین آثار ادبی جهان در آورده است.
بسیاری از اشعار «کمدی الهی » امروز در ایتالیا و اروپا ضرب المثل شده‌اند، و درست به همان صورت که ما به هر مناسبت از حافظ و سعدی نقل قول می‌کنیم در ایتالیا از کمدی الهی شاهد می‌آورند. بعضی از این اشعار از ایتالیا فراتر رفته و صورت بین‌المللی پیدا کرده‌اند و از آن جمله می‌توان شعر بسیار معروفی ر...more در سراسر این کتاب غالباً شاعر مطلبی مشروح را در یک یا دو جمله خلاصه کرده و این ایجاز در عین آنکه قدرت و تسلط عجیب او را در زبان و نظم می‌رساند، اثر وی را بصورت یکی از پیچیده‌ترین آثار ادبی جهان در آورده است.
بسیاری از اشعار «کمدی الهی » امروز در ایتالیا و اروپا ضرب المثل شده‌اند، و درست به همان صورت که ما به هر مناسبت از حافظ و سعدی نقل قول می‌کنیم در ایتالیا از کمدی الهی شاهد می‌آورند. بعضی از این اشعار از ایتالیا فراتر رفته و صورت بین‌المللی پیدا کرده‌اند و از آن جمله می‌توان شعر بسیار معروفی را که بر سر در «دوزخ» نوشته شده است نقل کرد که :«ای آنکه داخل می‌شود، دست از هر امیدی بشوی»
در درجه دوم کمدی الهی یک داستان استادانه بسیار عالی است که از قدرت داستان پروری دانته حکایت می‌کند. طرز گفتار و شیوه نقل حوادث و وقایع و دقتی که در وصف جزئیات و ریزه کاری‌های «سفر» به دوزخ و برزخ و بهشت بکار رفته، بدین داستان طولانی صورتی خاص می‌دهد و آنرا بشکل سفرنامه واقعی یک مسافر در می‌آورد، بطوریکه از همان اول خواننده فراموش می‌کند که آنچه می‌خواند زاده خیال‌پردازی یک شاعر است؛ و بالعکس چنین می‌پندارد که واقعاً یک نفر مسافر، همچنانکه از شهری به شهری و از کشوری به کشوری سفر می‌کند، دراینجا به سفر دنیای دیگر رفته و این حوادث را عیناً بچشم دیده و جزئیات آنرا یادداشت کرده است تا برای دیگران نقل کند. حتی از روی مندرجات این مجموعه، به آسانی می‌توان «نقشه جغرافیائی» دوزخ و طبقات مختلف آن و طول و عرض قسمتها و همواری و ناهمواری جاده‌ها و وضع رودها و برج و باروها و صخره‌ها و غیره را تعیین کرد؛ این قدرت عجیب دانته را در جلب توجه خواننده «و جذب او» از راه بکار بردن کلمات و تشبیهات و استعارات و جملات خاصی که تاثیر آنها بدقت و با تسلط کامل در روانشناسی حساب شده است بالاتفاق یکی از نوادر عالم ادب شمرده‌اند. یک نویسنده و دانته‌شناس معروف معاصر آمریکائی «مک – الیستر» درین‌باره می‌نویسد:«ترکیب صداها، و آثار ترس، ترحم، وحشت، نفرت، اشتیاق، نگاه، گفتار، در سراسر این اثر بخصوص در «دوزخ» طوری است که هر کس بی‌اختیار خودش را در وسط آن صحنه‌ای احساس می‌کند که دانته برای او تجسم می‌دهد، چنانکه می‌توان وی را استاد واقعی «هنر سه بعدی دنیای امروزی دانست»
در درجه سوم، و مهم‌تر از این هر دو ، «کمدی الهی» یک اثر عالی فکری و فلسفی است. این مجموعه درحقیقت عصاره ایست از علوم و اطلاعات و نظریات و عقاید فلسفی چند هزار ساله بشری که در آن با ترکیب خاصی درآمیخته‌اند. در این کتاب چنان‌که گفته‌اند «مجموعه کمالات و ممیزات انسانی بعلاوه طبیعت و گذشته و حال محصول خاصی پدید آورده که برای همه مردم جهان و همه ادوار و قرون قابل درک و استفاده باشد»
بدیهی است در این ترکیب باید دو نکته را از هم کاملاً مجزا کرد، یعنی مفهوم کلی آنرا از صورت خاص مسیحی و کاتولیکی آن جدا نهاد. از نظر اخیر «کمدی الهی» یک اثر مسیحی است، و حتی در آن، تعصب‌ها و غرض ورزیهائی دیده می‌شود که خواننده امروزی را مخصوصاً اگر غیر مسیحی باشد ناراحت می‌کند. ولی از این صورت ظاهری گذشته این مجموعه صورتی بسیار عمیق‌تر دارد که جنبه فلسفی و تمثیلی آن است و این آن صورتی است که به عکس جنبه اول برای «تمام ادوار و تمام سرزمینها» یعنی برای «بشر» ساخته شده است خود دانته در یکجای «کمدی» می‌گوید: شما که دیده بصیرت دارید از ورای الفاظ به راز پنهان این اشعار مرموز پی‌برید»
از این نظر سرتاسر کمدی الهی پر است از تمثیل‌ها و اشارات و استعاراتی که با آنکه شش‌صد سال است محققین و متتبعین درباره آنها تحقیق و امعان نظر کرده‌اند باز برای بسیاری از آنها کاملا روشن نشده است. تقریباً هر یک از حوادث وگفتگو‌ها و اشارت این اثر به نکته‌ای پنهانی اشاره می‌کند که شاعر همه جا از توضیح صریح آن خودداری کرده ولی خوب پیداست که مفهوم ظاهری آنها منظور اصلی او نیست. حتی اشاره اینکه «به راست چرخید» یا «به چپ چرخید» همه جا مفهوم تمثیلی خاصی دارد؛ و فقط وقتی که از این نظر بدین مجموعه نگریسته شود روشن می‌شود که راز عظمت و اشتهار عجیب «کمدی الهی» چیست و چرا متفکرین و ادبای اروپا مقام این اثر را تا بدین درجه بالا شمرده‌اند(less)

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Apr 09, 2010 Architeuthis rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: poetry, 1300s

This is, and probably will remain, a work in progress. Recommendations for others who deserve their own place in hell are welcome.

Top 40 radio DJs:

Now bodiless entities that only have their senses of hearing intact, they drift through the airwaves listening to the MOST IRRITATING SONG they ever broadcast. Over and over and over again. For all of eternity.
"Oh, don't tell my heart / my achy breaky heart"
"I'm a barbie girl / in a barbie world"
"My hump my hump my hump, my lovely lady lumps!"

The...more

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Jul 29, 2009 Michael rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

What a joy to read literature that is not only well executed, but beautiful in spirit! Dante's work is one of the pillars of western literature, and justly so. Conceived and executed in a poetical form called "terza rima" and functioning on multiple levels of meaning simultaneously, the three books of the "Commedia" are a microcosm of human spiritual life. Care is lavished on every detail from the geography to the astronomy and everything in between. It is a monumental achievement, encompassing...more What a joy to read literature that is not only well executed, but beautiful in spirit! Dante's work is one of the pillars of western literature, and justly so. Conceived and executed in a poetical form called "terza rima" and functioning on multiple levels of meaning simultaneously, the three books of the "Commedia" are a microcosm of human spiritual life. Care is lavished on every detail from the geography to the astronomy and everything in between. It is a monumental achievement, encompassing theology, politics, aesthetics, literary criticism, science, philosophy, metaphysics...you name it.

The first book, the Inferno, chronicles the beginning of Dante's spiritual odyssey. He wakes one day in the middle of his life to discover that he is lost in a dark forest and surrounded by mortal dangers. Against all hope, rescue comes in the form of the ancient poet Virgil, who has been commissioned by Heaven to lead Dante back to the true path. Virgil, the personification of pagan wisdom, must lead Dante down through the nine circles of Hell where he will begin to learn the wisdom that leads back to life, which will ultimately be found only in Christ. Each circle in Hell is the final resting place of souls who have died in their sins, the punishments at each level being perfectly suited to the sin that defined the earthly life of the soul. The sins at each circle are progressively more vile than the circle before, and the punishments grow more horrible and gruesome.

Though the tortures of Hell are graphically described, Dante is not gratuitous. He is no medieval Quentin Tarantino. Part of his purpose is to reveal the hideous nature of evil and expose the ugliness of the soul that remains unrepentant and self-interested even after death. Dante's theology is solid and Hell is the place where true, lasting judgment is meted out and justice is finally satisfied. These are not popular ideas in our politically correct, selectively tolerant society. But exactly what have these flaccid new ideologies done for us except to shackle our thoughts, and silence dissenting voices? Give me Dante any day.

Sayers' translation is magnificent. She reproduces both the meter and rhyme, giving those of us who do not know Italian a taste of what the original must be like. Her explanatory notes provide much needed details that enrich the reading experience. Even more helpful was her dedication to Charles Williams which, in turn, led me to read "The Figure of Beatrice". It was there that Dante's meaning became more clear to me.
(less)

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Mar 26, 2008 Levi rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: seducers, panderers, flatterers, hypocrites, thieves, murderers, counterfeiters, and the like

Shelves: poetry

So I finally read the Inferno. It gets four stars due to its epic scope and talent. It wasn't boring, but any book like this is a struggle when taken out of the classroom setting and left up to its own presentation. Thankfully I read a good Barnes & Noble Classics version that had introductory segments and, more importantly, a thorough endnotes section that explains details and expounds upon Longfellow's translation.

I can see why the series (of which Inferno is just the first part) is called...more So I finally read the Inferno. It gets four stars due to its epic scope and talent. It wasn't boring, but any book like this is a struggle when taken out of the classroom setting and left up to its own presentation. Thankfully I read a good Barnes & Noble Classics version that had introductory segments and, more importantly, a thorough endnotes section that explains details and expounds upon Longfellow's translation.

I can see why the series (of which Inferno is just the first part) is called The Divine Comedy. Dante's description of hell and the punishments he places on sinners of his choosing are truly humorous. Not only is hell Dante-centric due to his arbitrary geography of it, but he describes the suffering state of people who lived in his lifetime, and some who hadn't even died yet, including a pope. From farting demons to human souls stuck upside down in holes, The Inferno is a crazy and wondrous place. Oh, and at the center of the earth our main man Lucifer is surrounded by ice, not fire.

The Comedy of it all is highlighted by a discussion question at the back of the book: "Where would you place certain recent American public figure whom you consider sinners?" Indeed it is hard to avoid this question when going through the endnotes that describe all the Italian characters Dante had sentenced to eternal damnation. But an even more revealing statement in the introduction by Peter Bondanella shows the true perverse pleasure of reading the poem: "It would not be difficult to compile a list of our acquaintances and colleagues and to place them in the appropriate places in Hell. More difficult, perhaps, would be a similar assignment of those we know to appropriate places in Purgatory or Paradise."

That is the true fun of this classic work. Although Dante might have believed it really existed at earth's core, we know hell is only a construction of our minds in which we arbitrarily place others because they committed sins that never existed in the first place.(less)

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Sep 04, 2008 Shaindel rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: anyone

I just finished reading this book yesterday and will be interviewing Pinsky today. The interview will be available at:

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/onword/2...

This is seriously the best translation of The Inferno that I can imagine. Of course, I don't know Italian, so I can't be 100% sure, but it is much better than the other translations of which I have read excerpts. Pinsky stays in the terza rima form, which Dante invented, but relies on slant or near rhyme throughout so that the poem sounds...more

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Feb 07, 2008 Josh rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: backtoschool

When a student does not like a book they will often say they cannot "relate" to it. This is a poem I cannot relate to at all. I can roll with Dante when he is lost in the dark word. As soon as he enters the Inferno, however, the work baffles me. I cannot understand the justice of eternal damnation. I cannot understand why the greatest minds of antiquity exist without hope. I cannot understand how how the pilgrim forgets all about Virgil as soon as he meets Beatrice on the top of Mount Purgatory....more

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Sep 10, 2009 Miriam rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Recommended to Miriam by: the author

Shelves: poetry

This is a less accurate but wonderfully written vernacular translation of Dante's Inferno. Carson focused on recreating the feel of the poem rather than reproducing Dante's exact words. This is a great version for casual readers who find most translations too stuffy or formal. Do NOT choose it if you need to do anything serious with the work, as many allusions, details, and shades of meaning have been lost.

I had the pleasure of hearing Carson read some excerpts when this volume was first release...more

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Sep 04, 2011 Kent rated it 1 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: classics, poetry

Another failed attempt at poetry appreciation comes to a close. I did not finish the whole book - I guess I am stuck somewhere in the middle of Hell and can't get out!

Under duress, the threat of severe punishment or a poor grade in an English class, I am sure I could have finished and responded well to inquiries. But, alas, this pursuit was for "pleasure" and Dante's Inferno brought none.

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Sep 04, 2009 Season Cluff rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I had a hard time rating this book. While the writing style itself was frankly pompous and arrogant, the concept itself was fantastical. A pupil beng allowed a tour of hell?It took me quite a while to plod through it and while I'm glad I read it, I couldn't help but breathe a huge sigh of relief when I was finally able to close and reshelf this book.

All in all it was pretty depressing, if Dante actually knew the criteria to land one in hell, I don't know many people who are not going there. So I...more

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Nov 29, 2008 Sarah rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: fiction

Grotesque, intense, confusing...

Hell is a very exciting place. While I'm sure a huge portion of it was over my head and I should reread it, I still managed to understand basically what was going on.

I liked how you could sense a sort of mockery in parts of it. The popes and religious figures who were cast down in Hell.

The punishments matching the sin was fantastic! The suicides losing their bodies, the fortune tellers seeing only behind them forever, those who killed in anger boiling in a river o...more

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Aug 19, 2010 Maryam .H rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

It's the story of a spiritual journey taken by man that at the end leads to heaven. I just read inferno which is the first part of THE DIVINE COMEDY. It was not easy to read it because it's not pleasant to imagine inferno and how it look likes. it's disgusting I say. however the translation was quite amazing and there were also footnotes that were a great help in understanding the text.
In life, I have always tried to imagine and believe in God as a merciful protector . some scenes in the text we...more

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Jan 08, 2013 Dave marked it as to-read · review of another edition

Shelves: calibre

SUMMARY: Long narrative poem originally titled Commedia (about 1555 printed as La divina commedia) written about 1310-14 by Dante. The work is divided into three major sections--Inferno, Purgatorio, and Paradiso--which trace the journey of a man from darkness and error to the revelation of the divine light, culminating in the beatific vision of God. It is usually held to be one of the world's greatest works of literature. The plot of The Divine Comedy is simple: a man is miraculously enabled to...more SUMMARY: Long narrative poem originally titled Commedia (about 1555 printed as La divina commedia) written about 1310-14 by Dante. The work is divided into three major sections--Inferno, Purgatorio, and Paradiso--which trace the journey of a man from darkness and error to the revelation of the divine light, culminating in the beatific vision of God. It is usually held to be one of the world's greatest works of literature. The plot of The Divine Comedy is simple: a man is miraculously enabled to visit the souls in Hell, Purgatory, and Paradise. He has two guides: Virgil, who leads him through the Inferno and Purgatorio, and Beatrice, who introduces him to Paradiso. Through these fictional encounters taking place from Good Friday evening in 1300 through Easter Sunday and slightly beyond, Dante the character learns of the exile that is awaiting him (an actual exile that had already occurred at the time of writing). This device allowed Dante not only to create a story out of his exile but also to explain how he came to cope with personal calamity and to offer suggestions for the resolution of Italy's troubles as well. Thus, Dante's story is historically specific as well as paradigmatic; his exile serves as a microcosm of the problems of a country, and it also becomes representative of the Fall of Man. The basic structural component of The Divine Comedy is the canto. The poem consists of 100 cantos, which are grouped into the three major sections, or canticles. Technically there are 33 cantos in each canticle and one additional canto, contained in the Inferno, that serves as an introduction to the entire poem. For the most part the cantos range from 136 to 151 lines. The poem's rhyme scheme is the terza rima (aba, bcb, cdc, etc.) Thus, the divine number three is present in every part of the work. Dante adopts the classical convention of a visit to the land of the dead, but he adapts it to a Christian worldview by beginning his journey there. The Inferno represents a false start during which Dante, the character, must be disabused of harmful values that somehow prevent him from rising above his fallen world. Despite the regressive nature of the Inferno, Dante's meetings with the damned are among the most memorable moments of the poem: the Neutrals, the virtuous pagans, Francesca da Rimini, Filipo Argenti, Farinata degli Uberti, Piero delle Vigne, Brunetto Latini, the simoniacal popes, Ulysses, and Ugolino impose themselves upon the reader's imagination with tremendous force. Nonetheless, the journey through the Inferno primarily signifies a process of separation and thus is only the initial step in a fuller development. In the Purgatorio the protagonist's spiritual rehabilitation commences. There Dante subdues his own personality so that he will be able to ascend. He comes to accept the essential Christian image of life as a pilgrimage, and he joins the other penitents on the road of life. At the summit of Purgatory, where repentant sinners are purged of their sins, Virgil departs, having led Dante as far as human knowledge is able--to the threshold of Paradise. Beatrice, who embodies the knowledge of divine mysteries bestowed by Grace, continues Dante's tour. In the Paradiso true heroic fulfillment is achieved. Dante's poem gives expression to those figures from the past who seem to defy death and who inspire in their followers a feeling of exaltation and a desire for identification. The Paradiso is consequently a poem of fulfillment and of completion.(less)

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May 03, 2013 Douglas Kamarade rated it 4 of 5 stars

Dante wakes up in cold dark forest, and realizes that he has strayed away from the right path. He tries to find his way back, but fails. he meets Virgil a Roman poet who in the story is a symbol of human reason. Virgil explains to Dante that he has been sent by divine powers in heaven to show him the way. But it won't be easy the will have to go through hell, purgatory and Heaven. The inferno (hell in Italian) describes his passage through and its many circles.

The Divine comedy is a series of 3...more

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May 02, 2013 Caleb Shoemaker rated it 4 of 5 stars

This is an excellent book, an 'autobiography' of sorts about the Dante's trip through Hell. There is much imagery and detail in the descriptions of the punishments. As well, it clearly gives a feel of the atmosphere of Hell, nothing but pain, sorrow, eternal death, and, most of all, hopelessness. The entire book was clearly well written and thought out. It sends a clear and loud warning to all in error, both in the time it was written and now. Whether this is actually what Hell is like or not, D...more

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About Dante Alighieri

Dante Alighieri, or simply Dante (May 14/June 13 1265 – September 13/14, 1321), is one of the greatest poets in the Italian language; with the comic story-teller Boccaccio and the poet Petrarch, he forms the classic trio of Italian authors. Dante Alighieri was born in the city-state Florence in 1265. He first saw the woman, or rather the child, who was to become the poetic love of his life when he...more Dante Alighieri, or simply Dante (May 14/June 13 1265 – September 13/14, 1321), is one of the greatest poets in the Italian language; with the comic story-teller Boccaccio and the poet Petrarch, he forms the classic trio of Italian authors. Dante Alighieri was born in the city-state Florence in 1265. He first saw the woman, or rather the child, who was to become the poetic love of his life when he was almost nine years old and she was some months younger. In fact, Beatrice married another man, Simone di' Bardi, and died when Dante was 25, so their relationship existed almost entirely in Dante's imagination, but she nonetheless plays an extremely important role in his poetry. Dante attributed all the heavenly virtues to her soul and imagined, in his masterpiece The Divine Comedy, that she was his guardian angel who alternately berated and encouraged him on his search for salvation.

Politics as well as love deeply influenced Dante's literary and emotional life. Renaissance Florence was a thriving, but not a peaceful city: different opposing factions continually struggled for dominance there. The Guelfs and the Ghibellines were the two major factions, and in fact that division was important in all of Italy and other countries as well. The Pope and the Holy Roman Emperor were political rivals for much of this time period, and in general the Guelfs were in favor of the Pope, while the Ghibellines supported Imperial power. By 1289 in the battle of Campaldino the Ghibellines largely disappeared from Florence. Peace, however, did not insue. Instead, the Guelf party divided between the Whites and the Blacks (Dante was a White Guelf). The Whites were more opposed to Papal power than the Blacks, and tended to favor the emperor, so in fact the preoccupations of the White Guelfs were much like those of the defeated Ghibellines. In this divisive atmosphere Dante rose to a position of leadership. in 1302, while he was in Rome on a diplomatic mission to the Pope, the Blacks in Florence seized power with the help of the French (and pro-Pope) Charles of Valois. The Blacks exiled Dante, confiscating his goods and condemning him to be burned if he should return to Florence.

Dante never returned to Florence. He wandered from city to city, depending on noble patrons there. Between 1302 and 1304 some attempts were made by the exiled Whites to retrieve their position in Florence, but none of these succeeded and Dante contented himself with hoping for the appearance of a new powerful Holy Roman Emperor who would unite the country and banish strife. Henry VII was elected Emperor in 1308, and indeed laid seige to Florence in 1312, but was defeated, and he died a year later, destroying Dante's hopes. Dante passed from court to court, writing passionate political and moral epistles and finishing his Divine Comedy, which contains the Inferno, Purgatorio, and Paradiso. He finally died in Ravenna in 1321.(less)

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“Do not be afraid; our fate
Cannot be taken from us; it is a gift.” — 885 people liked it

“The hottest places in hell are reserved for those who, in times of great moral crisis, maintain their neutrality.” — 560 people liked it

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Inferno (The Divine Comedy #1)

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