Dante, Dante, and more Dante

Dante Alighieri was born in Florence in 1265, well before the Medici and Michaelangelo and all the rest of the Renaissance made that city famous to the modern era. He was caught up in the Ghibelline-Guelph papal disputes and, while his Guelphs initially won in Florence, they later split into two factions, he was a member of the "wrong" one, and eventually he was banished from Florence. He spent the rest of his life wandering around central Italy, and several of the cities we have visited have plaques commemorating some house where he stayed; if they can't claim that then they invariably have a Via Dante or a Piazza Dante or something.

Of course he is famous as the author of the epic poem, The Divine Comedy, in which the protagonist takes a circuitous route through the various circles of hell, into purgatory, and eventually to paradise. Written during his years in exile, he explicitly references the ancient epic poets in the opening pages--Virgil is the protagonist's "guide" on his voyage to the Inferno. Along the way Dante describes the afterlife of historical figures from Rome and Greece, famous Italians and popes, and settles a few scores with Florentines who opposed his side in the various disputes.

It was an instant sensation and was an incredibly influential text on medieval thought in Europe. It predated Luther and Michaelangelo by 200 years, but Dante wrote in the Tuscan dialect--and thereby helped make Tuscan the "Italian" that we think of today; he criticized popes--some of whom are placed in various circles of hell; he criticized indulgences and the clergy; and he treated individuals as realistic and thoughtful rather than as stylized and stereotypical.

During his exile Dante lived in Lucca, in Siena, in Venice, and elsewhere, and eventually died in Ravenna shortly after completing his work. His adventures didn't end there, though. About a century after his death, Ravenna erected a monument to house his remains. By then he was a celebrity, and a battle of sorts began between Florence, who wanted him back, and Ravenna, who wanted to keep him. At one point, his bones were removed from the tomb and "hidden"--for almost 200 years--to ensure that the by-then-powerful Florence wouldn't send an army to retrieve them. Supposedly he is back in place in Ravenna today though. In June 2008, Florence finally revoked the death-on-return sentence that had been passed in 1302.

Kids in front of Dante's tomb, in Ravenna.

We are reading a prose translation of the book, which seems fitting as we have been travelling in his footsteps, albeit 700 years later. Translators have had a challenge for centuries with this work--the poetry in the original Italian is of high quality--translators who create a poem in English lose some of the descriptions and story-telling, while translations in prose lose the elegance and symbolism of the verses. But given that two of our readers are only 9, we opted for a newer prose version by Gerald Davis for readability purposes. It is very good--the kids are amazed and intrigued ("Alexander the Great is in hell!?!?") and, at least in the Inferno, they can find parallels with some of the Percy Jackson stories that they have read and which are well within their ability levels.

Version comparison

Here is a taste of the Davis version, from Canto IV, where the protagonist is still outside of Hell, in a circle Dante terms "Limbo" and where he places pre-Christians and unbelievers (and even manages to save a few, rather provocatively). He is discussing with Virgil whether anyone might be saved from this Limbo:

"Tell me, my Master, tell me, my Lord," I said, wishing to be assured of that perfect Christian Faith which vanquishes every error, "did any soul ever depart this place, either by his own merit or by another's, who was thereafter blessed?" 

 

And he, who grasped the hidden meaning of my question, replied, "I was but a newcomer to this state of lamentation when I saw come hither the Mighty One crowned with His sign of victory. Whereupon He, Who had been crucified upon the Cross, freed from this place the souls of Adam our first father, and of Abel his son, of Noah, of obedient Moses the lawgiver, of patriarch Abraham, of King David, and also the souls of Jacob, with his father and children, and of Rachel, for whom Jacob did so much, together with many others. And He elevated them to a blissful state. Before these, I would have you know, never did a human soul attain salvation."

Compare this to the Longfellow translation in poetry:

"Tell me my Master, tell me thou my Lord" 

Began I, with desire of being certain 

Of that Faith which o'ercometh every error,

"Came anyone by his own merit hence, 

Or by another's, who was blessed thereafter?" 

And he, who understood my covert speech,

Replied: "I was a novice in this state,

When I saw here come a Mighty One,

With sign of victory crowned.

Hence he drew forth the shade of the First Parent,

And that of his son Abel, and of

Noah, Of Moses the lawgiver, and the obedient

Abraham, patriarch, and David, king,

Israel with his father and his children,

And Rachel, for whose sake he did so much,

And others many, and he made them blessed;

And you must know, that earlier than these

Never were any human spirits saved."

The poetry version is beautiful, but it's too much for the kids. Trying to equate "shade" with "souls" or "o'ercometh every error" with "perfect" can wait for later. As it is, the prose version is accessible to them and we are having lots of interesting discussions about why someone might be placed where by Dante.