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steven_nobody's review against another edition
3.0
I was able to complete up the end of the first canto of *Paradiso*, but I found all of it a challenge. There are some very good quotes that show nothing has really changed. For example, "The world is, truly, as your words declare, a sterile place where every virtue fails - pregnant with viciousness that blankets all." Overall, however, the book was just too mentally taxing for me.
tbyronk's review against another edition
5.0
The finest translation of the Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri is by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow. It took a Poet of the magnitude of H.W. Longfellow to bring to vivid life the verses of this amazing work.
nfrance049's review against another edition
5.0
had to find a translation and watch a few video essays to fully understand but wow. more than just a self insert fic ill admit lmaooo. out of the three id probably say purgatorio is my favorite/was the most impactful, but both purgatorio and paradisio deserve more hype!!! inferno is more widely talked about (to the point i didnt even KNOW there were two other parts), but traveling through both purgatory and heaven, watching souls, even after death, working to redeem/save themselves and then reach eternal paradise, is SO crazy and its one of those times where i almost wish i HAD grown up religious or being taught about God because thats like. such a unique relationship and faith and hope i guess you have to have, which i wouldnt experience otherwise. ugh bro
stellarkruize's review against another edition
3.0
I remembered vaguely the different circles and their punishments and classifications from college. I don't think we went over this one too in depth or I just don't remember. I forgot how brutal it was too against other religions, but hey, that's Christianity for you. Especially how they treat Jewish people in the book considering it's a stolen religion from them. I also find it funny how this was treated as gospel as well even though it's technically a fan fic. Also a bit of a humble brag on Dante's part too is sprinkled in. An interesting read, though.
traveltounravel's review against another edition
It took me nearly 3 years to complete (quite fittingly) after taking a long sabbatical from the story near the end of Purgatorio. Its structure is remarkable & unmatched, incomprehensibly creative & complex, yet most of Paradiso can be mindbogglingly boring with Dante often saying, "Everything is so beautiful, all the light, I can't describe any of it!" yet never being short on words for the darkness of hell (I suppose on Earth we are more familiar with the likes of Hell than Heaven). Without literary notes and guides, good luck understanding half the references. Also, Dante finished writing it around 1320, and used closer calculations for the circumference of the Earth than Christopher Columbus did 170 years later so congrats Columbus, you're an idiot and a genocidal murderer. This review took a turn...
adamdi5126's review against another edition
5.0
Dore's illustrations are magnificent. And made the perfect companion while reading the Divina Commedia.
adamdi5126's review against another edition
5.0
E 'difficile, se non impossibile cercare di articolare una risposta ad un tale capolavoro epico. Basti dire che la traduzione di John Cardi è impeccabile come è bello. Questo sarà per sempre il mio lavoro preferito della letteratura.
thing2thing's review against another edition
5.0
Lorenzo Mattoti 的圖像實在精采，像在讀一本紙本現代舞劇。一邊讀，一邊感覺到舞台上的舞者舞出那淌血的樹妖，那在火雨中的異端。這是本書最吸引我的部分。「每個人因其自由意志，於環境中漸漸創造了自己的命運。人在過程若能學到愛人和被愛，將受上帝祝福。」
star_being's review against another edition
challenging
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
This copy was difficult to read for me!
bedcarp's review against another edition
5.0
monolithic, in the purest form of the word. dante's scope and vision of divinity is staggering, both in the seemingly boundless vividness of his imagination and in the depth of his theological and historical commentary. i won't presume to have grasped every facet of the comedy's remarkable composition (dante's attention to mathematical detail is genuinely stunning), but from what i did analyse (and god knows i need a less pretty copy of this book to scribble notes on, i couldn't bring myself to deface my gorgeous leatherbound edition with its gold-embossed pages), dante's comedy lends itself to an unendingly rich and complex discourse of almost every theological issue under the sun -- free will, justice, the composition of love and goodwill, the list could go on indefinitely.
and that's only to mention the intellectual side of the poem, too -- dante's story of redemption has some of the most profoundly moving passages in all of literature, which, to list a few personal highlights, includes:
- dante's meeting with ser brunetto in the inferno
- the climactic vision of the deformed chariot (because honestly how does anyone think of something like that? completely deranged in the best meaning of the word)
- the emergence from the river lethe, and dante's spiritual reunion with beatrice
- a brief section in paradiso where dante offers some of the comedy's most moving odes to florence, and the homecoming desire of the exiled poet
- the entirety of the empyrean section, specifically the descriptions of the white rose and the final mystery of the trinity
also the purgatorio was my favourite canticle, though all three are damn near literary perfection. i can't wait to dive deeper into the comedy's historical and theological roots -- there's so much to explore, a whole lifetime's worth of substance to be found within, and i feel i've barely scratched, will barely scratch the surface. life's just so short and insignificant when you're talking about god and heaven and the past, present and future of human history in 600 pages, you know?
and that's only to mention the intellectual side of the poem, too -- dante's story of redemption has some of the most profoundly moving passages in all of literature, which, to list a few personal highlights, includes:
- dante's meeting with ser brunetto in the inferno
- the climactic vision of the deformed chariot (because honestly how does anyone think of something like that? completely deranged in the best meaning of the word)
- the emergence from the river lethe, and dante's spiritual reunion with beatrice
- a brief section in paradiso where dante offers some of the comedy's most moving odes to florence, and the homecoming desire of the exiled poet
- the entirety of the empyrean section, specifically the descriptions of the white rose and the final mystery of the trinity
also the purgatorio was my favourite canticle, though all three are damn near literary perfection. i can't wait to dive deeper into the comedy's historical and theological roots -- there's so much to explore, a whole lifetime's worth of substance to be found within, and i feel i've barely scratched, will barely scratch the surface. life's just so short and insignificant when you're talking about god and heaven and the past, present and future of human history in 600 pages, you know?