Rating: 
Summary: Inventing Hell
Review: Dante's great epic poem comprises three parts: The Inferno, The Purgatorio, and The Paradisio. It is a moral allegory of spiritual growth, following Dante's journey through Hell, Purgatory, and Heaven. In each of these places he witnesses (successively) the tortures and ecstasies of actual people, both historical figures and people still living in Dante's own time. The Inferno is the most entertaining of the three. It is said that Dante "invented Hell," being the first man to describe it in detail as a place of fire and brimstone where devils torture their victims in accordance with their sins. The fact that he described the tortures of several former Popes did not leave him in the good graces of the Catholic church. I recommend a translation by Dante Gabriel Rossetti, John Ciardi, or Lawrence Grant White. I strongly recommend against the rhymed couplet translation by Dorothy Sayers, in which the rhyme most often overcomes the reason.
Rating:
Summary: A True Classic
Review: Dante, with the Divine Comedy, has produced a work that has endured for centuries and influenced many of the greatest Renaissance thinkers. This is quite a testament to his abilities. The Divine Comedy is divided into three basic sections: Hell, Purgatory, and Paradise. Dante begins his travels in hell. Guided by the Latin poet Virgil, he sees kings, monks, popes, and an assortment of other people, all of whom are tormented in ways fitting the level and type of their sins. After leaving hell, he continues to the mountain of Purgatory. Here he encounters those souls who must be purged of their sinfulness in order to reach heaven. Finally, he enters into Paradise, where the lovely Beatrice now guides him. He travels through the seven planetary heavens (an interesting note on the science of Dante's time) where he dialogues with the Saints, beholds the radiance and glory of the Triune God and is told the mysteries of Heaven. Dante presents his poem with vividness and great detail allowing the reader to comprehend the horrors of Hell and the otherworldly beauty of Paradise. I particularly enjoyed reading about the many colorful people he encounters on his journey. It is interesting to see the people he puts in hell, purgatory, and paradise and to hear their stories. Many are famous historical figures. His comedy has many examples of allegory, prophecy and even theology. He tackles issues such as the Atonement, divine justice, and free will. The story includes many references to both classical pagan stories (e.g. Greek mythology) and Christian writings (e.g. Thomas Aquinas). The only downside (in my opinion anyway) is that Dante devotes too much time to philosophical discussions relating to Aristotle, who was popular with nearly every prominent medieval thinker. These discussions slow the pace of the poem at times. This particular edition contains all three parts of the comedy and is unabridged. The low price is a plus too. It is in prose, although the language is pretty stilted. It uses "thees" an "thous," for example. This is not necessarily bad because it makes the story quite dignified, but some of the sentences can be very difficult to understand. Here is an example: "Thy kindliness not only succoreth whoso requesteth, but doth oftentimes freely forerun request." Fortunately, there are long introductions that summarize each chapter (canto) and numerous endnotes, which explain in detail the people, places, things, and ideas of Dante's work. Overall, I highly recommend the Divine Comedy to every reader, especially for those interested in medieval literature. Still, you may want to find another edition.
Rating:
Summary: 5,000 Stars! Dante is the BEST!
Review: Divina Commedia is the most AWESOME story ever written. Dante ranks among the most brilliant men of all time. Maybe I feel this way because I'm a kid who likes fantasy novels, but I must say that I have read no wilder, more beautiful adventure quest than Dante's journey through the Catholic hereafter. The imagery alone is incredible. These books are stunning. Really. They make me wish I could understand Italian so I could catch the magic of Dante's rhyme... And if you've already read the Commedia, you haven't caught the whole story until you've finished La Vita Nuova as well! La Vita Nuova is a collection of sonnets about Dante's reactions to the life and death of Beatrice. Don't miss it. One more thing... If you're a Dante groupie like me, listen to the song "Dante's Prayer" by Loreena McKennit.
Rating:
Summary: A Masterpiece
Review: From Inferno, to Purgatorio, and then Pardisio, Alighieri's DivineComedy is definitely a classic to last the ages. Through the layers of hell, to his ascent to Beatrice, this is definitely a hard series to put down.
Rating:
Summary: ABSOLUTE GENIUS!!!
Review: Genius! That is all that I can say, GENIUS! This is, without a doubt, one of the best and most important works of literature in human history. Dante is second only to Shakespeare in human literature. I enjoyed every minute that I spent reading "The Divine Comedy" and could hardly put it down. If you enjoy reading at all then PLEASE READ THIS BOOK!!!
Rating:
Summary: Dante is simply a stupendous writer!
Review: Having read all three parts of the divine comedy, I therefore had an inclination to hear it on tape. To my utter suprise, it , i.e., The Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri was very well read and the entire masterpiece comes on 10 cassetes. I have to say that this work in question is probably one the literary works that have influenced my views of spirituality and live in general the most. Highly Recommended.
Rating:
Summary: The Greatest Literature I've Ever Read
Review: I am not a literary expert, nor am I well read in all of the great literature of the past, but I have read enough to say this is the best piece of literature I've read. First, the Divine Comedy Itself. I first read the Inferno as an Undergrad in general ed. I just loved this story as challenging as it was to read. Curiosity got to me, and I bought this edition (the same as I had read for the Inferno). The book got much more challenging to read as it progresses, perhaps because the imagery is much more abstract, but it also gets more fantastic all the way through. The Paradiso definitely fits its purpose as a climax. The whole of The Divine Comedy is a good story of the spiritual journey of one man through "the afterlife" so to speak. I love the interaction the book takes of Dante's interaction with history and religion, biblical and mythical. It is an interesting perspective that shows the genious of Dante the author. As for this particular edition. I could not tell you it is the best as I have never read others. I've heard this is one of the few that has tried to make the translation stay true to the original Latin poetic form Dante used. I also think it is wonderful, and from my point essential, that this edition comes with extensive notes that help explain in layman's terms what is going on in the story Canto by Canto as well as line by line explanations of the different references made to historical people, places, and events as well as literary references. In sum, all I can say is that "The Divine Comedy" is worth a read especially if you are up to the challenge. I am not a literary expert; I work in engineering, but I find this the most fascinating literature I've ever read. Most of all, it is inpirational, the quest of one man to find his true love, facing Hell and more...
Rating:
Summary: The Greatest Literature I've Ever Read
Review: I am not a literary expert, nor am I well read in all of the great literature of the past, but I have read enough to say this is the best piece of literature I've read. First, the Divine Comedy Itself. I first read the Inferno as an Undergrad in general ed. I just loved this story as challenging as it was to read. Curiosity got to me, and I bought this edition (the same as I had read for the Inferno). The book got much more challenging to read as it progresses, perhaps because the imagery is much more abstract, but it also gets more fantastic all the way through. The Paradiso definitely fits its purpose as a climax. The whole of The Divine Comedy is a good story of the spiritual journey of one man through "the afterlife" so to speak. I love the interaction the book takes of Dante's interaction with history and religion, biblical and mythical. It is an interesting perspective that shows the genious of Dante the author. As for this particular edition. I could not tell you it is the best as I have never read others. I've heard this is one of the few that has tried to make the translation stay true to the original Latin poetic form Dante used. I also think it is wonderful, and from my point essential, that this edition comes with extensive notes that help explain in layman's terms what is going on in the story Canto by Canto as well as line by line explanations of the different references made to historical people, places, and events as well as literary references. In sum, all I can say is that "The Divine Comedy" is worth a read especially if you are up to the challenge. I am not a literary expert; I work in engineering, but I find this the most fascinating literature I've ever read. Most of all, it is inpirational, the quest of one man to find his true love, facing Hell and more...
Rating:
Summary: The line starts here
Review: I don't have this particular volume, but I wish I did. I have Ciardi's trans. of Inferno and Paradiso, and they impress me: fairly direct, perfectly comprehensible, and (what it most important by far) still poetic. I have not yet been able to find his version of Purgatorio, but to acquaint myself with the work I bought the Viking Portable version of the Divine Comedy. In comparing that version with Ciardi's, I have at every point rued greatly ever buying Viking's; not that Viking's is bad, because its footnotes are more convenient than Ciardi's, and it is a more straightforward rendition of Dante, but Ciardi's annotations are worth the extra effort and his translation is wonderfully energetic. In the notations, which are the decisive factor in my view, Viking's Comedy lists primarily historical and mythical points of interest, with an occasional narrative reference. Ciardi, on the other hand, points out for his readers tidbits of information of all kinds, which we who don't read Italian must appreciate greatly, as his method brings us as close to Dante as we in all actuality can get. I can't say enough in praise of Ciardi's effort, but if you are looking to read Dante in translation and are new to his work, Ciardi's is the translation you want.
Rating:
Summary: exceptional master piece
Review: i find that this book rivals even the work of the great shakespeare (is that how you spell it i forgot) i find this much more interesting then romeo and juliet (yes i am aware that romeo and juliet is not his best work) everyone should read this book not only is it great it has profoundly affected the world even now all that you think of in terms of hell is what dante put into the world
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