Dante in Translation

Finish the journey

“Why should anyone read past Dante’s Inferno?” someone recently messaged me.

“For the same reason that you can’t have Good Friday without Easter Sunday. There’s nothing good about that Friday unless it precedes Resurrection. Dante’s journey only makes sense in light of heaven.”

If you’ve never read The Divine Comedy, you should push it to the top of your TBR pile. Dante’s epic poem is not merely a great book, but I would argue it is among the top great books of the Western world. When readers do not venture beyond the first volume, Inferno, they think the comedy refers to the wit of Virgil or the devil who plays a trumpet from his bum. However, the comedy of the poem refers to the happy ending, the beatific vision awaiting Dante the pilgrim and every reader who dares to follow him on his journey.

I first read the poem as an undergraduate and had no idea what was going on by the time I floated through Paradise. The theology and poetry were above my head, which is exactly where they should be. But Dante begins the journey with relatable verses, funny and horrifying images, and the descent is, as it is in Aeneid as well, easy. Sinners can sing one canto at a time, reading slowly and attending to each line and stanza and characters like taking small steps forward.