Inferno: Canto 1 -- The Dark Wood

2004-09-24T20:58:00.000-07:00

Dante finds himself in the dark wood of error and is prevented from achieving divine illumination by the beasts of worldliness that characterize the three divisions of the Inferno -- the She-Wolf of Incontinence, under whose spirit the carnal, the gluttonous, the hoarders and wasters, the wrathful, and the heretics are oppressed, the Lion of Violence, under whose spirit the violent against neighbor, self, and nature are oppressed, and the Leopard of Malice and Fraud, under whose spirit the fraudulent and treacherous are oppressed. Unable to cope with the oppression these beasts represent, Dante turns back in confusion and finds a glimmer of hope in the form of Virgil, who represents human reason. While it is possible for human reason to guide us to truth, it can only carry us so far, through the recognition of sin and its renunciation. Beyond that, Virgil explains, what is needed is divine love, which will appear in the form of Beatrice Portinari, the first and lasting love of Dante's life.

The introduction to the Inferno is unique in the Comedy, the other two books each being introduced by the one preceding it. Its purpose is not only to introduce the Inferno, moreover, but also to provide a blueprint for the cosmological scheme that Dante is creating -- hell is passable, human reason insists, and once beyond it, there is hope of achieving heaven after the vestments of sin have been burned off in the purifying fires of purgatory. The promise of the Comedy is that the pilgrim traveler will enter into communion with God, and that promise extends to each of us beginning our journey through hell.

Before responding on this discussion board, you'll want to first work your way through the activities link on the near left -- as you read the canto, you'll be able to hear it in the original Italian, so make sure your volume is on. If you've already read it in the Ciardi translation, you might take a moment to compare Ciardi with some of the other translations, and, even if you cannot read the Italian, with Dante's original script. You'll also find there a map of Dante's cosmos and some multimedia files with which you can interact. Responses on this board should deal with the material within the canto alone as each canto has its own discussion board on which you'll be able to post questions and comments. You can post responses general to the entire Inferno or Comedy through the "Pilgrim Prayer" link on the far left. To respond on this board, you have to click the "comments" link beneath this posting and register a username and password with blogger.com.

Finally, brace yourselves -- even though we've been promised salvation, we're about to enter a realm where there really is no hope.