/lit/ - Literature

it's one of those works where you need to find a good annotated version.

plenty of the stuff going on in the comedy was current news when it was written.

unless you are an expert in the very intricated italian history of the time, an annotated version is unavoidable. no shame in it.

i cannot suggest you any edition since i'm not a native english speaker.

>>8329

It's definitely a "thee and thous" issue, though I appreciate the break down of the story.

>>8331

I might just have to do that then. It's like there's a language barrier there and I just get bits and pieces of what is actually going on, but only when I don't try to dwell on what's happening. I'll see of I can track down a different edition. Thanks for the help.

>>8327

don't feel dumb

it really truly only begins to flower in your mind if you have some kind of faith, and are committed to re-reading it later in life.

the first time some stuff will connect with you (notably the sins you yourself are most ashamed of/guilty of) and some stuff will blow over your head. just keep going.

the notes and annotations are helpful in a sideways way, but read it on its own terms and just try to follow dante as dante followed virgil.

commit to a re-read six months or a year later

Hey, I just started reading the Divine Comedy last week. Here are my thoughts.

One, don't just read Inferno. You're cutting out two thirds of the work.

Two, after every canto, I read summaries/commentaries from wikipedia, and sparknotes.

I've been using the text/translation from the Princeton Dante project, which includes some more commentary.

Having read at least the Aeneid helps a lot. Virgil is a big part, so being familiar with his work is important.

After every few cantos, I've been listening to this guy's lectures: http://oyc.yale.edu/italian-language-and-literature/ital-310 . This might be overkill depending on your level of interest, but I find it fascinating.

I'm no expert, just a STEMfag trying to culture myself. Additional background info and commentary has been invaluable, even for just figuring out what is going on. For example, everyone likes to talk about Paolo and Francesca in Canto V, but the name Paolo is never even mentioned. If not for commentary actually explaining the story that they were adulterous lovers who got murdered, I wouldn't have understood what was happening at all.

>thee and thous

I don't really get the point of translating ancient terms from a foreign language with ancient terms in another language. When Dante wrote his book he wasn't writing for the people of the 21st century, his words weren't meant to sound obsolete. But I'm probably missing something…

The best translation was the Binyon. I don't mean the most easily read, I mean the truest to what was written, what gets across what Dante was trying to get across as much as you can in English. It is nearly impossible to get your hands on it today. If you do and don't like it you don't like Dante and should either attempt to refine your perceptions or move on to other things more to your tastes.

I would never suggest you read something just because it is cannon. I would make the qualification that much that is cannon ought to be read if you are the type for it, but there is no shame in going elsewhere if you are not that. There is a lot in that cannon that should be thrown out, that was put there just because it satisfied a particular feeling of the time, or that appeals to nostalgists – not eternal literature. Dante is eternal literature. Not bunk. But it requires it certain sensitivity that most translators or people don't have have. If you can't read Italian, read Binyon. If you find Binyon bad read another book.

>>8327

What translation, anon? I suggest mandelbaum.

Here are some sites that are very helpful.

http://danteworlds.laits.utexas.edu/

http://www.worldofdante.org/

Really though, it does get easier to understand. The first couple cantos read quite a bit differently from the rest of the Commedia, so it DOES get easier to understand.

Don't give up anon. If you're ever having trouble with a Canto, I can break it down for you. I have a ton of notes on the Divine Comedy, separated by chapter, so feel free to cling onto me like Dante clings onto Virgil if you want an explanation.

>>8966

wow I repeated the same phrase after I put down those links

I just woke up, so forgive me

>>8378

This

Read the rest of the Divine Comedy. Don't just stop at the inferno.

>>8329

>beatrice is just a memory

Wait until you get to the end of purgatorio, scrub

But yeah OP, a TON of stuff in the Commedia is allegorical.

Also, it REALLY helps to look up the names of everyone Dante encounters. Knowing their history makes you appreciate the text more and gives it a lot more context.

It's NOT a work of literature you can read passively, but do not let that discourage you.