I read this without any footnotes explaining the text and whilst I'm 100% this would have improved the text for me (allowing me to understand more of the subtext), I like it without it. I don't buy into the whole levels of hell stuff but couldn't help but feel that the narrator, as someone visiting hell who is able to leave afterwards, isn't the best example of religious piety? He basically wanders round hell being judgey as can be, calling out all of the authors contemporaries (friends or otherwise) as horrible people. Maybe that's part of the subtext, I'd don't know.

It's a classic for sure; it's easy to see why it's still being taught in schools. It's gorey and silly but also rather beautiful with it's value as a work of poetic literature is clear

You can understand why people can be intimidated by Dante's Divine Comedy with it's translated ancient 'current events' narrative and it being a three book text. This said, despite its references often being dated, it was an easy read and definitely not something to avoid.

Reading it as a solid work of fiction it's ⭐⭐⭐⭐ from me. Maybe it'd be higher if I read more of the background/context, maybe not.