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Summary: I thought this book was the best of the best
Review: This book wups but.I'm not much of a book reader,but Ciardi did a beautiful job!I was so caught up visually.It blew me away.
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Summary: I had three goals in mind when I began my translation.
Review: My purpose in creating this new, blank-verse translation of Dante's Inferno was threefold: first, to create a version that was relatively easy to read; second, to make Dante more comprehensible and palatable to the modern reader; third, to give readers a sense of the magnificent poetry of the original. While it is up to others to judge whether or not I have succeeded in reaching my goals, I believe that, by and large, I have done so, and I am gratified to note that colleagues, as well as early reviewers, seem to have confirmed that belief.
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Summary: Beautiful prose version of Dante's extraordinary poem
Review: I feel so enthusiastic about this book that I want to tell everybody about it. This translation is unrhymed; it is in prose; and it follow's Dante's syntax and meaning closely. If you know a little Italian, you can use the text (it is a bilingual edition) as a crib to read Dante in the original, which is a tremendously moving experience. Dante's Hell is full of striking characters who still feel the passions they experienced during their life in history; only now their identity is even more sharply defined because they are living in eternity. The narrator travelling through Hell, guided by Virgil, is filled with fear, pity and anguish. Dante's writing is extraordinarily beautiful and supple.
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Summary: A wonderful translation of Dante's classic epic
Review: Although Dante has been translated into English by many scholars, John Ciardi's translation is uniquely sensual, evocative, and most importantly, poetic. Having read Ciardi's entire translation of Dante's Comedia, I can say that when compared with other works that try to incorporate literal word for word translation from the Italian, something is lost, particularly when the rhyme is sacrificed. Dante writes in Italian terzerima (3 verse rhyme), however, when translated directly into English the terzerima is lost. Ciardi has managed to maintain Dante's lyric beauty in English. Although many translations exist which are more true to the Italian original, please compare this wonderful translation for yourself with others. I promise you that the epic scope and feel of this masterpeice has been retained by Ciardi
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Summary: A Very Powerful Work!!!
Review: Dante's Inferno is a POWERHOUSE! ! !
After reading his poetry, I had such a visual concept of what he interpreted as Hell. I have yet to meet his equal. Simply enough, purchase his works in hardcover and make them a permanent part of your library.
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Summary: Review of Dante's "Inferno", John Ciardi translation
Review: Dante's Divine Comedy is a must-read for any medievalist,
and John Ciardi's translation is the most masterful I have
seen. The meter and intricate rhyme scheme is well-preserved,
while the text flows and builds much like the original.
Anyone wanting to discover Dante or to read a better version
of him in English should try this one--a flawless
accomplishment. Well done!
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Summary: Abandon Hope All Ye Who Enter Here...
Review: "Abandon Hope All Ye Who Enter Here" reads an inscription above Hell's Gate. May be true for xians, but horror-loving Satanists will find this literature most stimulating, with the graphic descriptions of mutilated souls, perverse debaucheries, morbid environments, & imaginative demonic monsters. Many great great suggestions for the torture chambre as well! Throughout the Gothic & Renaissance perionds, daemons of the Imagination creeped forth from the shadows of The Darkside of the mind like never before, thus producing some of the most compelling & attractive monsterpieces the world had ever had the misfortune or fortune to see, hear, & read. It was this written work that really ingrained the standards for the popular depictions of Hades, as well as paintings by artists like Jon Von Eyck, Heironymous Bosch, Peter Breughel, & Albrecht Durer. In the musickal genre, Bach, Wagner, Beethoven, Mozart, Tchaikovsky, & Chopin, to name but a few, were realeasing tempestuous, monolithic, & eerie symphonies into the ether, which are now universally employed to set an eerie embiance. In THE INFERNO, Dante Alighieri, an Italian poet, meets with a mysterious & etheric host named Virgil, who takes him down to witness the terrors of The Great Abyss, so it may be recorded, & that mankind may wish not to go there. Heavy-duty guilt-trip. Throughout the sick, gnarled, blood-soaked, & freezing crevasses of Dante's brain, there are brief, but memorable encounters with the damned souls. There are seven {sic} circles in the first section of Hell, each populated by a different class of "sinners". On the way, we take a ride upon the back of a winged beast named Geryon, around a waterfall {nice to know there's water in Hell!}. The Ninth {of course} Circle is where Satan Himself is entrenched in the frozen lake Cocytus. The only escape from this abode of lost souls is by climbing down the devil's leg hairs {that's got to hurt}, which then leads to Purgatory. Obviously, this work was written at the height of the catholic church's oppression. There have been rumours, that Dante was secretly commissioned by church papacy to write the book, to better gain control of the peasants, who were taken to revolting quite often. Dante, being a starving poet at the time, could not refuse the offer. Cleverly, Dante was at first reviled by the church, & threatened with ex-communication, but was vindicated when he demonstrated his loyalty to the church by writing 'El Paradiso', which deals with Dante's journeys in the wonderful mystical world of Heavenland. This clever technique has been used over & over again to enslave minds, turning the unwary catholic & xian zombies, who blindly give their rations away to church & state {which at the time, were one in the same}. By first guilt manipulating someone into fear, you render them vulnerable, & they seek salvation wherever they can get it. Conveniently, 'El Purgatorio' & 'El Paradiso' were published not too far apart from The Inferno, attaining an essential balance, that their distribution may keep the populace in line. Needless to say, these three opuses caused the simpletons to flock back to church in record numbers. The pope became very fat, very fast. What I found most interesting about this abysmal field-trip, is that Dante's Hell is icey cold, instead of the typical scorching. That in itself makes it all less threatening. Dante's Inferno is one of the most colorful books I have ever read. It is filled with such wonderfully elaborate words that manifest magnificently morbid spectacles of diabolic delight. Use your own filtration wisdom as far as any foolosophy is concerned.
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Summary: Dantes Inferno
Review: I highly recommend that you read Dante's Inferno. I Think the tale is miraculous tale about Dante' Inferno. In this tale you learn about Dante's journey though Hell. From seeing horrible sights, and traveling long distances you see from anthers point of view what hell might be like. What will happen in the end? Will he make it out of Hell and find hope? So get out there and read the book it will surely leave you with wanting more.
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Summary: A Beautiful Translation and Informative Endnotes
Review: Dante's _Inferno_ is truly one of the most fascinating and riveting epic poems of all time. This edition of the _Inferno_, translated by Durling Martinez, is wonderful, jam-packed with all sorts of extras that lend itself to study and careful examination. The Italian verse and English prose translation mirror each other on each page and Martinez's translation is extremely user-friendly, allowing the reader to get caught up in the emotion of Dante's powerful masterpiece without trying to observe the strict meter requirements of the original.
In addition to the Italian text, Martinez provides copious amounts of end notes to each Canto. The only shame is that they are presented as end notes and not as footnotes, forcing the reader to thumb back and forth frequently while reading. Many of them are so interesting and helpful that it would have been useful to be able to access them with more ease. That being said, however, once you see the size and length of the end notes, you will understand while they have been given their own section.
On top of all of the end notes, providing the historical and literary context for all of Dante's allusions, this edition also include illustrations, including one showing the organization of Hell, and sixteen short essays that focus on various aspects of the _Inferno_. At over 650 pages long, this edition is a serious one and is best used for serious study rather than a book to shove in your pocket for pleasure reading. But if you desire to delve into the _Inferno_, this edition is fantastic for its amount of scholarship and user-friendliness. I highly recommend this edition for any fan of Dante and anyone approaching the _Inferno_ for the first time.
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Summary: One Hell of a Book
Review: The Inferno is a complex piece of literature that should only be attempted by a serious reader. I recommend reading a copy that has descriptive footnotes and an extensive background of Dante. With these helpful items you will enjoy and understand the story better. The story was very engaging. Dante's imagination carries you through a place that most people don't want to think about. His descriptions were very interesting. Throughout the circles of hell you find a since of primitive justice. Dante shows no remorse in finding ways to torture the sinners and his most hated enemies in his twisted world. This story rates highly on my list of books because of literary importance and its detailed world.
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