tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5687975489922145220.post3678187355205767967..comments2023-08-10T04:03:44.387-04:00Comments on This Book and I Could Be Friends: Inferno, Cantos 1-8Eileenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/11058705381647529328noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5687975489922145220.post-52739320671752157222010-07-06T09:25:44.365-04:002010-07-06T09:25:44.365-04:00Iris: Yes, I think it was very important in pre-mo...Iris: Yes, I think it was very important in pre-modern Europe that the cosmos are orderly and make sense. You see that all the way up through the Enlightenment. That's what a lot of the Modernists of the early 20th century lamented - the new irrationality of the universe, which made it meaningless.<br /><br />Bellezza: Enjoy it while it lasts - I'll be on my own, just as you were, less than halfway through <i>Purgatorio</i>.<br /><br />Richard: Yes, Dante certainly has an odd way of underhandedly "complimenting" the ancients. On the one hand, they're in Hell (nice Hell but Hell nevertheless), yet on the other, he's more respectful to them than to many of his fellow Christians, whom he places even <i>lower</i> in Hell. And he actually knew some of these people!Eileenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11058705381647529328noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5687975489922145220.post-50203111482333688712010-07-05T14:28:15.353-04:002010-07-05T14:28:15.353-04:00E.L. Fay, great point about the equation of logos ...E.L. Fay, great point about the equation of <em>logos</em> with light! I think that's very important to keep in mind in <em>Inferno</em>...even though I'd forgotten it myself while I was reading it, ha ha. Also, while Dante did this more provocatively than most of his peers, I'm always struck by how far medieval Christians went out of their way to salvage a sort of intellectual kinship with their pagan predecessors; you'll notice that despite the poetic "giants" being stuck in limbo, antiquity's writers received more props from Dante than fellow Christian writers in <em>Inferno</em>. The reception awarded Virgil and others, despite their spiritual "flaws" or lack of awareness by Dante's standards, is terribly interesting, don't you think?Richardhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01746599416342846897noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5687975489922145220.post-51203756467228299352010-07-05T08:13:58.776-04:002010-07-05T08:13:58.776-04:00Your review is so informative! I've never had ...Your review is so informative! I've never had the benefit of any coursework in Dante, or literature beyond Russian, in college, so I loved reading your breakdown (And from me? You get to hear my connections to Styx and Harry Potter's three headed dog.;) Anyway, of course Logos-the Word-which is Christ is missing in the beginning. Dante is in utter darkness, literally, and without Jesus.<br /><br />Also, I loved how you said that the circle is also indicative of the Alpha and the Omega, no beginning or End to Him. <br /><br />Those are the two most powerful connections for me, but like I said, what a great review you wrote! Very informative! And wise, I think, to take it piece by piece. You've inspired me to continue with Purgatory...I wonder what bands will jump at me from there? ;)Bellezza https://www.blogger.com/profile/18073864187188953633noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5687975489922145220.post-62459562010448339902010-07-05T04:21:44.772-04:002010-07-05T04:21:44.772-04:00Re: rhapsodyinbooks It always puzzles me as well, ...Re: rhapsodyinbooks It always puzzles me as well, but it does fit Dante's worldview and I really enjoyed the admiration that shone through in that part of The Inferno.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5687975489922145220.post-34123019555716344712010-07-04T19:24:00.316-04:002010-07-04T19:24:00.316-04:00The Catholic Church doesn't believe in it anym...The Catholic Church doesn't believe in it anymore. But you're right: it's really not fair even though it does fit in nicely with Dante's worldview.Eileenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11058705381647529328noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5687975489922145220.post-30794283363950728712010-07-04T18:31:01.200-04:002010-07-04T18:31:01.200-04:00Re Canto 4: Limbo: This is so infuriating to me! ...Re Canto 4: Limbo: This is so infuriating to me! I don't understand why Christianity would come up with the rather uncharitable notion that "the unbaptized and the virtuous pagans who died without knowledge of Christ" deserve to be in the First Circle of Hell, even though it may not be as hot as, say, Tucson.rhapsodyinbookshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07041412748239010264noreply@blogger.com