A single listening will reveal dantes visual imagination and uncanny power to make the spiritual visible. Apr 22, 20 the best translation that i came across is by john ciardi. No words can describe the greatness of this work, a greatness both of theme and of artistry. If youre the studious type and feel inspired by my previous post or for your own reasons to do a celebratory 750th anniversary reading of dantes divine comedy, you might quickly find yourself awash in translations and guides and biographies and not know quite where to start i am a scholar of literature, but i also value the pleasures of reading. You can find the best italian books for intermediate learners, classic italian books, novel books in. An overwhelming number of the works printed during this period were in latin, the transcontinental language of philosophy, theology, and early science. This translation of the inferno, the first canticle of dante alighieris divine comedy, by robert and jean hollander, is one of the best that ive read. Commedia, later christened divina by giovanni boccaccio, written by dante alighieri between 8 and his death in 21, is widely considered the central epic poem of italian literature, the last great work of literature of the middle ages and the first great work of the renaissance. You can reach the same passages also from the popups in the digital map. About this work the divine comedy is dantes record of his visionary journey through the triple realms of hell, purgatory and paradise. It consists of 100 cantos, and after an introductory canto they are divided into three sections. Il fu mattia pascal audio libro italiano luigi pirandello audio book italian duration. Blackstone audio presents a new recording of this classic masterpiece, originally published in 20, read by awardwinning narrator ralph cosham. Which english translation of dantes divine comedy is the.
The first of the three canticles in the divine comedy, this 14thcentury allegorical poem begins dantes imaginary journey from hell to purgatory to paradise with his sojourn among the damned. Dec 01, 2015 dante simply called the whole poem his comedy. Not only do you get the story, but you get the rimes, the rhythm, the music of each verse, and all the playfulness of the language dante uses. Search results for divine comedy sorted by relevance page. It is widely considered the preeminent work of italian literature, and is seen as one of the greatest works of world literature. They both occupy singularly definitive places in their respective languages and literatures as well as in world. Commedia, later christened divina by giovanni boccaccio, written by dante alighieri between 8 and his death in 21, is widely considered the central epic poem of. Youll see people more or less freely alternating between these titles depending on how scholarly they want to sound, sometimes even preferring the italian commedia.
The divine comedy hell, chant from 1 to 6 duration. It is widely considered to be the preeminent work in italian literature 1 and one of the greatest works of world literature. You can find the best italian books for intermediate learners, classic italian books, novel books in italian, books translated into italian, and italian books for beginners. Teachers and students can use these comprehensive italian language guides to improve reading, writing, and comprehension skills for. A free copy of the text can be downloaded from various sites on the internet. Books by dante alighieri sorted by popularity project. Yet one of the most revered works of the time, dantes divine comedywritten in italianfully attained its status as a literary classic in the latter half of the 15th century. This, the first epic of which its author is the protagonist and his individual imaginings the content, weaves together the three threads of classical and christian history. Purgatory, by kathryn lindskoogdantes divine comedy. Key points, like the devils three heads, people met throughout the books, and the like are missing. Digital dante offers original research and ideas on dante. The divine comedy the divine comedy audiobook, by dante alighieri. On the 750th birthday of dante alighiericomposer of the dizzyingly epic medieval poem the divine comedyenglish professor john kleiner pointed to one way of helping undergraduate students understand the italian poets importance.
Despite its length, its approachable to the beginner because the lines are simply structured. This audio recording does a fine job of summarizing the trilogy, but sadly lacks a lot of detail i enjoyed in the original works. Buy the divine comedy everymans library classics new ed by alighieri, dante isbn. As far as translating italian terza rima into english is concerned, his work does complete justice to the original. The divine comedy changed my life, and it may do the same to you. At the beginning of each canto you can find a list of places mentioned. Divided into three major sections inferno, purgatorio, and paradiso the narrative traces the journey of dante from darkness and. Many scholars consider the divine comedy as one of the foremost work of italian literature, and is thus a mustread for italian language learners. Search results for divine comedy sorted by relevance.
The original divine comedy was written in terza rima, a closely rhymed form of italian poetry. Their english version of the comedy is fast and straightforward, sticking close to the original text but adding vigor to what can sometimes be very bland in english. Italian poetry to 1400 translations into english category. This a great cd, with all of dantes divine comedy, read very expressively by the actor claudio carini. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders. The divine comedy audiobook by dante alighieri, stephen. The divine comedy by dante alighieri free at loyal books. They both occupy singularly definitive places in their. This is definitely a readerfriendly retelling of the second part of dantes christian classic.
Featuring the original italian text opposite the translation, this edition also offers an extensive and. Divina commedia is an epic poem written by dante alighieri between 8 and his death in 21. Italian books in english and italian language including childrens books, cookbooks, travel guides, fiction and literature, history, audio books, language software, ebooks, calendars of italy, and much more. The divine comedy by dante alighieri free pdf ebook. It is widely considered to be the preeminent work in italian literature and one of the greatest works of world literature.
The divine comedy is not a comedy at all, the title commedia refers to the fact that the journey starts from hell and ends with dantes visit to heaven and meeting with god and understanding of the mystery of reincarnation. Teachers and students can use these comprehensive italian language guides to improve reading, writing, and comprehension skills for beginner, intermediate, and advanced levels. Commedia, later christened divina by giovanni boccaccio, written by dante alighieri between 8 and his death in 21, is widely considered the central epic poem of italian literature, the last great work of literature of the. Can native italian speakers read the divine comedy.
Book club genres all book club genres sorting by relevance book lists. Commedia, later christened divina by giovanni boccaccio. The work is written in the first person, and tells of dantes journey. A digital archive of the earliest illustrated editions of. Commedia, later christened divina by giovanni boccaccio, written by dante alighieri between 8 and his death in 21, is widely considered the central epic poem of italian literature, the last great work of literature of the middle ages and the first great. It is widely considered the preeminent work of italian literature1 and is seen as one of the greatest works of world literature. Robert hollander, a renowned scholar and master teacher of dante, and jean hollander, an accomplished poet, have written a beautifully accurate and clear verse translation of the first volume of dantes epic poem, the divine comedy. But i have no idea how well italian was preserved between the 14th century and current times. Dantes divine comedy is considered to be not only the most important epic poem in italian literature, but also one of the greatest poems ever written. It is usually held to be one of the worlds great works of literature. This translation includes an overview of the inferno, purgatory, and paradise, and more.
The divine comedy by dante alighieri is an epic poem written between 8 and his death in 21. I have a shelf devoted to dante, but as of today, i give the nod to jean and robert hollander for their rather recent translations. The divine comedy by dante alighieri audiobook download. Sep 01, 2005 an index of the divine comedy by dante language. The divine comedy is the precursor of modern literature, and this translation decades in the making gives us the entire epic as a single, coherent and compulsively listenable lyric poem. It is widely considered the preeminent work in italian literature, and is seen as one of the greatest works of world literature. The divine comedy by dante alighieri digital dante edition with commento baroliniano mmxivmmxx columbia university. This file includes the original inferno, purgatorio, and inferno in italian, plus an english translation by henry wadsworth longfellow. Check it out thanks to jerry lermas dante page for bringing this up. And although a listener will probably enjoy the presentation without them, i like to keep a hard copy of the divine comedy translated by john ciardi with excellent notes that i can refer to as needed in order to better appreciate and understand the audio book. Their english version of the comedy is fast and straightforward, sticking close to the original text but adding vigor to. The divine comedy has always been one of my favorite book series. The italian bookstore carries italian books in english and italian language including childrens books, cookbooks, travel guides, fiction and literature, history, audio books, language software, ebooks, calendars of italy, and much more.
Hear dantes inferno read aloud by influential poet. The digital dante edition of the commedia features the petrocchi edition of the italian text, the longfellow and mandelbaum english translations, historical images, audio recordings, and the commento baroliniano. Librivox recording of the divine comedy, by dante alighieri. Which is the best englishlanguage translation of dante. Dante alighieri, the divine comedy of dante alighieri. The work was composed in the 14th century, so i imagine that there would be some difficulties. Dantes reputation as the outstanding figure of italian letters rests mainly on the divine comedy, a long vernacular poem in 100 cantos more than 14,000 lines composed during his exile. He also made a map of the simpsons if youre interested.
Written in the early 14th century and completed in 21, the year of dantes death, the divine comedy is perhaps the greatest work of epic poetry ever. A version of dantes inferno i the divine comedy is available from this italian website along with a reading in the original italian requires realplayer. Its a great way to become familiar with this work in the original italian. Purgatory, by kathryn lindskoog, is a delight to read. A culmination of the medieval worldview of the afterlife, it establishes the. Sep 02, 2014 the divine comedy hell, chant from 1 to 6 duration. Here you can read the italian text of the 100 cantos of dantes comedy. Epic poetry, italian translations into english subject. The poems imaginative and allegorical vision of the afterlife is a culmination of the medieval worldview as it had developed in the western.
984 893 1376 1443 988 754 36 418 1316 328 1108 984 528 103 1565 1302 481 1425 1056 682 1333 803 833 1304 1498 15 330 1230 1394 800 1173 1299