Customer Reviews

Inferno (Modern Library Series) - English translation

5 star:		(69)
4 star:		(14)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Don't read Dante for his fame, don't judge The Inferno for its subject. Instead, savor Dante's overpowering language that is cleverly winded around one of life's most daunting matter-Hell. Pervaded with vivid and often gruesome imageries, Inferno captures the very essence of suffering through Dante's unqiue understanding of religion with a blend of paganism and christianity. Also it's a thrilling ride down the underworld to be met by history's greatest souls. The notes before every Canto is crucially helpful in helping readers keeping up with ancient historical references. And feeling yourself penetrating the Nine Circles of Hell in the company of Dante and Vergil, you will surely catch a rare taste of the living value as Vergil guides curious eyes down a path where judgment befalls every single flaw of human nature. Perhaps, just perhaps you will attain a better sense of your existence once matched against the standards of Nine Circles designed for different sins. I call that a gripping journey.

First let me say that i am 13 years old; however, my favorite thing to do is to sit down with a good book and read for a good 2 to 5 hours. I have read books like For Whom The Bell Tolls and To Kill A Mockingbird. I heard about the inferno from one of my teachers who said that I should read it when I get to college or to my seinor year in high school. Well I didn't want to wait that long so I came to this site and purchased this book. It changed my life, never before have I read anything like it. When I finished this book I went and read other translations of it. However, this one was by far the best. It captured every aspect of Dante's genious writing and put it into american coming the closest to the real version as possible. Notes also help to decipher and understand Dante's masterpiece. I would recommend this book to anyone who can read.

Ciardi's translation of Dante's Inferno is one of the very best. Its major strength is the intensity and power of its language. Although the translation is now more than fifty years old, it remains fresh, unencumbered by archaisms. Ciardi is a poet and it shows. I found myself more stunned by the horrors of hell in this translation than any other I've seen. Chills ran down my spine as I read about Count Ugolino encased in the ice.

This edition includes a plot summary before each canto, and footnotes telling you which dead Florentine did what after each canto. For the first-time reader, these are truly helpful -- indeed, essential.

Unlike most translators who completely abandon the idea of making Dante rhyme in English, Ciardi preserves a partial rhyme scheme. The first and third lines of each tercet rhyme, while the middle rhyme is dropped. While Ciardi's translation is reasonably faithful to the original, he had to take minor liberties with the text to make it rhyme. The excellent Musa and Hollander translations are more literal and straightforward, and the Hollander version comes in a handy bilingual edition if you want to try your hand at reading Dante's incredible Italian. Still, the best poetic translation of the Inferno in English remains Ciardi's.

600 years and I'm the first to review it?

Okay, maybe just the first to review this paperback edition.

Having read my fair share of classic literature, this is the first time I've read the poetic technique of storytelling (haven't read any Homer yet either).

I gather from the translator's note and the Introduction that Ciardi's departure from the original, strict three line rhyme gave him more freedom to translate Dante's spirit and intent of the journey through Hell and make it an easier read for the typical reader (like me) than other translations. As it is, Ciardi employs the rhyming first and third line rhythm and it worked for me.

I found the "prefaces" at the beginning of each chapter or "Canto" to be very useful in preparing me for what was to appear on the following pages. And not being a student of mythology, the notes at the end of each chapter tended to fill in the blanks in what I had just read.

For me it was still a challenging read but the simplification helped. And while purists may find Ciardi's liberties an abomination (just a suspicion), they certainly helped me understand and enjoy the work more. If Dante's Inferno is required reading for class or personal enlightenment, this edition is likely a good choice.

Absolutely excellent. Ciardi's description of the Canto, and the actual translated text followed by his notes helped me disect and understand Inferno better than anyone's translation to date.

There are suppositions, where Ciardi does his best to determine or even guess what Dante's intentions where with phrases and descriptions. This is not by any means a negative attribute of his efforts. Any speculation is clearly stated, and determined using history, Greek mythology, and Dante's political entanglements at the time of his writings.

This is a copy worth collecting. Too bad Random House has discontinued both Pergatorio and Paradisio in hard cover though...hard to find.

There's no doubt about it...Ciardi's is the best translation of the haunting and powerful poem about the medieval view of God's divine plan. Ciardi dumps archaisms and goes for the throat of Dante's poetry and meaning. You'll never touch another translation after you read this!

Translators, according to the Italian proverb are traitors.
There is no way around it, something is always lost in the
leap from one language to another. You can consult a modern
'adaptation' of Shakespeare to get the feel of what has to
be surrendered. In the end, a preference for one translation
over another is a matter of what you're most willing to lose.

John Ciardi decided to keep the original rhyme scheme: 'aba'
in which the poem is divided into groups of three lines of
which the first and third rhyme. In Italian, this is fairly
easy, in English a great deal more difficult.
So in order to keep the feel of the tercets (as they're called)
Ciardi sometimes had to stray a bit from the literal
meaning. Nothing vital is lost, but the specialist will
surely find some points to dispute.
For the rest of us, this is a first-rate view into a world
we can barely otherwise imagine. Ciardi's notes and glosses
on the cantos are breezy, illuminating and approachable.

There are other, more correct translations- Mandelbaum's
is first among them -that might be better for the specialist
or the student of the Italian Language. I notice, however,
that when I want to spend a pleasant few moments in the
Poet's company-and especially for the Inferno- that this
is the translation I usually reach for.

--Lynn Hoffman, author of THE NEW SHORT COURSE IN WINE and
the novel bang BANG. ISBN 9781601640005

+++++

(Note: this review is for the book "The Inferno" translated by John Ciardi and published by Signet Classics in 2001.)

This is book one containing part one (or "canticle" one) of poet Dante Alighieri's (1265 to 1321) three part "The Divine Comedy." This book describes Hell and the eternal suffering of the damned. This poem is comprised of 34 episodes (or "cantos").

Dante at the beginning of the poem explains why he has begun this journey:

"Midway in our life's journey, I went astray
from the straight road and woke to find myself
alone in a dark wood."

Thus because Dante's life journey has led him "astray from the straight road" (that is, from the straight and narrow), he now finds himself "in a dark wood" (that is, in Hell). Thus the journey through the nooks and crannies of Hell begins. Dante takes this incredible journey with his master and guide, Virgel. Along the way the reader along with the travelers encounters such things as mythical creatures and people, legends, people of Dante's time, biblical people and references, and human victims.

Hell, according to Dante, has 4 complex parts:

(1) The Gate of Hell
(2) The first 7 stone ledges or "circles"
(3) The eighth circle which consists of ditches
(4) The nineth circle with Satan at its center

At the end of this long trek through Hell, Dante says, "My Guide and I crossed over and began / to mount that little known and lightless road / to ascend into the shining world again."

From here, they acsend "The Mount of Purgatory" (which is the subject of Book 2 containing Part 2 called "The Purgatorio").

There is a historical introduction by Archibald MacAllister of Princeton. It's imperative to have a good understanding of Dante in order to understand his poetic masterpiece and MacAllister does a good job of detailing Dante and his times.

The late John Ciardi, former poet and professor at Harvard and Rutgers, translated this poem from its original 1300's Italian into English. He retains Dante's three line stanzas and there is still much rhyming. He not only relied on his own knowledge but leaned heavily on the knowledge of other scholars for his translation. Some purists may not appreciate this translation but I enjoyed it.

This is a narrative poem whose greatest strength lies in the fact that it does not so much narrate as dramatize its episodes. It is a visual work that sparks your imagination. This poem combines the five senses with fear, pity, horror, and other emotions to involve the reader. The result: the reader actually experiences Dante's situation and just does not read about them.

Ciardi's mini-summaries in italics before each episode gives a brief summary of what to expect. His (foot)notes at the end of each episode highlight our understanding of key passages within each. For me, Ciardi's mini-summaries and notes that accompany each episode are the cornerstone to understanding what Dante was attempting to convey. As well, Dante can be challenging and tedious to read at times. These mini-summaries and notes help the reader meet the challenge and overcome the tedium.

There are five detailed illustrations in this book. These illustrations as a whole detail the complexity of Hell. They further increased my understanding, and, as well, added another visual dimension to this poem.

I should mention the impressive cover art on this book. It has a reproduction of the 1825 painting by artist William Blake of Dante and Virgil about to enter Hell's gate. Above this gate is an inscription that reads: "ABANDON ALL HOPE YE WHO ENTER HERE."

Finally, as I said this is a very imaginative poem. Thus I recommend "The Dore Illustrations for Dante's Divine Comedy" (1976) by Gustave Dore. This book adds another visual dimension to this poem.

In conclusion, if you want to experience Hell as seen through the eyes of a gifted poet, then read this book. Further, by reading this book, you will discover why this poem has endured popularity for seven centuries!!

(published 2001; translator's notes; introduction; 34 cantos; 260 pages)

+++++

I just finished reading Dante's Inferno a couple minutes ago. This is the first time I've read it, and I must say that I was very impressed with it. It exceeded my expectations. I'm aware that there are other translations out there, but I picked up this one because it rhymes and reads--for the most part--easily. Some of the Italian names are hard to pronounce, but that's a minor thing in the long run. I've read some long poems where not much seems to happen since the poet just rambles on and on about the scenery. But in The Inferno, every tercet is important. I'm most surprised at how good this work is even though it is 700 years old. There is A LOT of Italian characters and history in here, but you don't HAVE to know anything about Italy in order to enjoy this book--although it sure would help. I will agree with one other reviewer that going from circle to circle can get a bit redundant: go to the next circle, talk to the people, describe things, go to the next circle, etc. But the people and descriptions always change as you go on. And in Dante's Hell, the further you go, the worse it gets. Here's how I think The Inferno should be read: Very slowly. Not in one gulp. Enjoy each Canto--maybe one a day. That is--haha--if you can "enjoy" a trip to Hell. Finally, I love the part about Minos and his tail, the fiery walls that surround Hell, the disgustingness and violence that is found in Hell. If you're still deciding whether or not to read this book, don't hesitate. They don't call it a Masterpiece for nothing . . . .

Dante's Inferno, the best of the three books of the Divine Comedy, is a revelation. The imagery is powerful, the language wonderful, it description of damnation almost terrifying. It is one of the most vivid religious books ever written, on par with Paradise Lost. Dante does not just recite catholic cannon, however. He has many contemporary references to Italian politics (a subject I knew little about before reading the Divine comedy), to church politics, to classical works such as Homer and Herodotus. To read it is to see the world in the middle ages, long before the reformation. Do not be intimidated by the prospect of reading a 14th century epic poem. After the first page, the style will become familiar and you will revel in the intricate detail of Dante's underworld.

As for this particular edition, it is excellent. Ciardi gives a very good translation and, unlike other translators, preserves Dante's occasional scatalogical references and profanity. In addition, there are several useful maps of the Inferno as well as copious, informative (and necessary) endnotes at the finish of each Canto. The only way the edition could be better is if the notes were at the bottom of the page, but the Cantos are short enough that flipping to the end to read the endnotes is not the finger-breaking maneuver you might find in other editions.