The Inferno of Dante: A New Verse Translation, Bilingual Edition (Italian Edition) ebook

by Dante,Robert Pinsky,John Freccero

Dante Robert Pinsky John Freccero Poetry Italian

There have been countless translations of the Inferno, but this one by poet Robert .

There have been countless translations of the Inferno, but this one by poet Robert Pinsky is both eloquent and tailored to our times. A new translation of Dante's classic poem uses slant rhyme and near rhyme to preserve the original terza rima form without distorting the English meaning, providing a lively and faithful rendition of the poem. This particular version of the book, by John Ciardi, provides excellent descriptive notes after each section, clarifying things mentioned in the story so the reader stays on track.

There have been countless translations of the Inferno, but this one by poet Robert Pinsky is both eloquent and . I highly recommend this translation of Dante's Inferno. Yes, this is an epic poem, but don't let that put you off. An excellent introduction provides context for the work, while detailed notes on each canto are a virtual who's who of 13th-century Italian politics, culture, and literature. For many years, Ciardi's translation has been the standard and it has much to recommend it. But Ciardi's rhymed stanzas are looser, wordier, and less faithful to the original than Thornton's blank verse. Thornton brings us closer to what Dante wrote.

Dante Alighieri, or simply Dante (1265 – 1321), was an Italian poet from Florence. A former Poet Laureate of the United States, Robert Pinsky teaches in the graduate writing program at Boston University and has also taught at the University of California at Berkeley.

Pinsky's verse translation is fast-paced, idiomatic, and accurate. It moves with the concentrated gait of a lyric poem. It maintains the original's episodic and narrative velocity while mirroring its formal shape and character. Pinsky succeeds in creating a supple American equivalent for Dante's vernacular music where many others have failed. Edward Hirsch, The New Yorker.

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Items related to The Inferno of Dante: A New Verse Translation, Bilingual. ISBN 13: 9780374176747. Dante's journey through Satan's kingdom must rate as one of the great fictional travel tales of all time, and Pinsky does it great justice. About the Author: A former Poet Laureate of the United States, Robert Pinsky was born and raised in Long Branch, New Jersey. He teaches in the graduate writing program at Boston University and has also taught at the University of California at Berkeley. He lives in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

Robert Pinsky's acclaimed verse translation of the "Inferno" shows the contemporary reader why Dante is considered .

Robert Pinsky's acclaimed verse translation of the "Inferno" shows the contemporary reader why Dante is considered a poet of great power, intensity, and vision. This widely praised version of Dante's masterpiece, which won the Los Angeles Times Book Prize and the Harold Morton Landon Translation Award of the Academy of American Poets, is more idiomatic and approachable than its many predecessors.

The Inferno of Dante book . Shelves: literature, italy, plays-n-poems. I read both the John Ciardi translation in verse (rhyming for the first and third lines in each stanza trying to keep to Dante's 11-syllable structure) and John One of the great classics that everyone should attempt reading once. For Walking Dead fans, had there been no Dante, there could never have been a Kirkman.

This widely praised version of Dante's masterpiece, which won the Los Angeles Times Book Prize and the Harold Morton Landon Translation Award of the Academy of American Poets, is more idiomatic and approachable than its many predecessors. Former U.S. Poet Laureate Pinsky employs slant rhyme and near rhyme to preserve Dante's terza rima form without distorting the flow of English idiom. The result is a clear and vigorous translation that is also unique, student-friendly, and faithful to the original: "A brilliant success," as Bernard Knox wrote in The New York Review of Books.

Angana

I highly recommend this translation of Dante's Inferno. For many years, Ciardi's translation has been the standard and it has much to recommend it. But Ciardi's rhymed stanzas are looser, wordier, and less faithful to the original than Thornton's blank verse. Thornton brings us closer to what Dante wrote. And the excellent notes at the end of each canto help bring this masterpiece to life for a modern reader.

artman

With decades of study and meticulous craftsmanship, Dr. Peter Thornton has offered his translation of “The Inferno.” I do not know Italian, but I have read a couple of other translations of “The Inferno,” and I found this one the best for several reasons. First, the poetry is vivid. I felt like orange flames and the stench of Sulphur were my companions as much as were Dante and Virgil.
The verse itself is a second reason I liked this translation. The meter – iambic pentameter, the ordinary meter of the English language – does not intrude into the poetry itself. That is, I wasn’t conscious of stretching of words or awkward diction for the sake of the meter.
You can enjoy the translation without bothering to read the footnotes, but once you start, you are off on another journey, equally absorbing – this one through contemporary (to Dante) Florentine history, Christian metaphors and allusions, Roman legend and mythology, and Catholic scholars from Augustine on.
Read the translation; savor the footnotes. There’s always room for a fresh version of hell.

Malakelv

Divine Comedy, especially in its earlier versions is one of the most remarkable books written by man. This translation of it is perhaps the best in English. I first read this work three decades ago, and reading it now is as refreshing as ever.

Influenced by his exile in a rift between the papacy and the Holy Roman Emperor at the time, which saw him favoring the pope, Dante's "The Divine Comedy" not only provides an insight into the church and the state that has haunted humanity for two millennia, it takes us through our spiritual voyage through life and even our anticipated embrace of the afterlife as reflected in the three canticas---Inferno, Purgatorio, and Paradiso. Not only is the allegory rich, reflective and mind-stirring, it explains our human perceptions in so many ways.

The deep political and social implications of the work is not lost. This all-encompassing nature of the work is not common around. Would be looking for more of it. So far, I found it in "The Union Moujik", "Paradise Lost" and "Animal Farm". "Divine Comedy is a book that requires reading more than once.

AGAD

THANK YOU !! I've been trying to expose my kids to more of the classics. But every translation of the Divine Comedy I've come across has been so difficult that I couldn't even get through Hell (felt like hell trying to read it). UNTIL NOW !!! Thank you Mr. Douglas Neff for this translation. It keeps all the flavor, tension, and character; and stays true to the original story. Reading this translation, I find myself more absorbed and engaged in trying to understand what Dante was trying to get across, and why he picked certain persons for certain levels, and doing research into some of the people, places, vices, etc. that he talks about, instead of spending hours trying to decipher the actual language of the translation. My 7 year old is totally engaged, while at the same time, my 15 year old and I are getting into some very interesting discussions (Dante put Pope Celestine V with those souls who neither heaven nor hell want, because he resigned as Pope . . . I wonder what that means for old former pope Benedict XVI / cardinal Ratzinger who just did the same thing). And none of us are getting ground down by having to stop and try and translate the language.

I cannot encourage you strongly enough to get this book. You will not be disappointed. I'm now trying to find a comparable translation of Purgatory and Paradise so we can complete the story.

Olwado

Dante's THE INFERNO is a classic. Written around 1321, the book predates most of the classics, except Homer's works of course. But even before Shakespeare, this book heralded in an uncommonly twisted and almost perverse story of Dante's descent into Hell and his description of everything he sees and those he meets. It's eloquently written. Not necessarily an easy read but it does tribute to the language and reminds the reader that our vernacular has so much more color than the reductio ad absurdum we see being used today. Dante's descriptions of the nightmare that sinners endure at each level is pretty graphic, sometimes bordering on horrifying, and who knows, he might even be credited with the first narrative on the subject of flesh-eating zombies which are so popular today. The narrative also gives the reader a feel for certain historical relevancies of that and earlier times and how Dante saw the world. This particular version of the book, by John Ciardi, provides excellent descriptive notes after each section, clarifying things mentioned in the story so the reader stays on track. Lastly, I could not help but wonder if the Vatican of that time didn't encourage the book to be written simply because of its thematic message of what happens to sinners, particularly those who sin against God and the Church or become apostates. It certainly provides compelling imagery to anyone who believes in Heaven and Hell. Add it to your reading arsenal - it's worth the read.