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whippycleric 's review for:
The Divine Comedy
by Dante Alighieri
challenging
dark
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Reading this was a labour of love. I read one to five cantos at a time and the read some analysis of the corresponding cantos, which was a big help. My edition was a very literal translation and in the future I'd like to try to find a rhyming translation to try. The following review is broken down into each book.
Inferno
Dante's journey through hell by far the most well known of the 3 parts of the comedy and it's inspiring to read. With the analysis as a guide I can't say I fully understood everything but I appreciated it alot more than otherwise. The contrepasso throughout was a great idea. Dante's personal journey from sorry to anger, with Virgils development alongside was masterful. 4 stars
Purgatory
The dynamic between Virgil and Dante shifts in purgatory as Virgil is now higher than he has ever been before. The contrepasso occurs again throughout purgatory as the sinners perform penitence for their sins. There's confusion as to the logic which results in some souls being in hell vs purgatory, some of this is answered in purgatory and others will have to wait till paradisso. I found this the hardest of the 3 to read, lacking the beauty of paradisso and the schadenfreude of inferno. 3 stars
Parradisio
Despite what I anticipated from reviews I enjoyed parradisio. A lot of the theological questions raised before are answered and the imagery is well written, and well translated, in my edition. The wonder Dante feels towards god and his faith shines through. Even more contrepasso here, and there are strong links to the corresponding cantos in previous realms. 3.5 stars (but not as good as inferno)
Inferno
Dante's journey through hell by far the most well known of the 3 parts of the comedy and it's inspiring to read. With the analysis as a guide I can't say I fully understood everything but I appreciated it alot more than otherwise. The contrepasso throughout was a great idea. Dante's personal journey from sorry to anger, with Virgils development alongside was masterful. 4 stars
Purgatory
The dynamic between Virgil and Dante shifts in purgatory as Virgil is now higher than he has ever been before. The contrepasso occurs again throughout purgatory as the sinners perform penitence for their sins. There's confusion as to the logic which results in some souls being in hell vs purgatory, some of this is answered in purgatory and others will have to wait till paradisso. I found this the hardest of the 3 to read, lacking the beauty of paradisso and the schadenfreude of inferno. 3 stars
Parradisio
Despite what I anticipated from reviews I enjoyed parradisio. A lot of the theological questions raised before are answered and the imagery is well written, and well translated, in my edition. The wonder Dante feels towards god and his faith shines through. Even more contrepasso here, and there are strong links to the corresponding cantos in previous realms. 3.5 stars (but not as good as inferno)