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Dantes Göttliche Komödie
Ein großer Künstler der Illustration setzt sich in seiner ersten Graphic Novel mit einem der großen Genies des Schriftstellertums auseinander: Seymour Chwast adaptiert Dante Alighieris Göttliche Komödie! In seiner originellen, in moderne Sprache übertragenen Kurzfassung des Klassikers jagt uns Seymour Chwast erst durch die Hölle, dann ins Fegefeuer und schließlich ins Paradies.
Die Reise, die zu Luzifer und Gott führt, beginnt an der Hand von Dante, dargestellt als Pfeife rauchender Detektiv aus einem Film noir, und Vergil, einem Briten mit Bowler, der später von der Hollywood-Blondine Beatrice abgelöst wird. Mit viel Humor und eigenwilligen Schwarz-Weiß-Zeichnungen lässt Chwast die wunderbare Verserzählung zu neuem Leben erwachen
Die Reise, die zu Luzifer und Gott führt, beginnt an der Hand von Dante, dargestellt als Pfeife rauchender Detektiv aus einem Film noir, und Vergil, einem Briten mit Bowler, der später von der Hollywood-Blondine Beatrice abgelöst wird. Mit viel Humor und eigenwilligen Schwarz-Weiß-Zeichnungen lässt Chwast die wunderbare Verserzählung zu neuem Leben erwachen
128 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2010
23 people are currently reading
1544 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 248 reviews
December 7, 2017
FIND YOUR IDEAL VERSION OF DANTE IN TEN EASY STEPS ABSOLUTELY FREE!
1. Can you read 14th century Italian?
YES → Original text
NO → 2
2. Are you T.S. Eliot?
YES → Original text
NO → 3
3. Can you read a Scandinavian language?
YES → 4
NO → 6
4. Are you looking for something that's beautiful, mystical and philosophically engaging, but is also 1500 pages long, contains a lot of weird sex, and needs to be read three times before you actually understand what it's about?
YES → Jan Kjærstad's "Jonas Wergeland" trilogy
NO → 5
5. Do you prefer Swedish or Norwegian?
Swedish → Carina Burman's Den tionde sånggudinnan
Norwegian → Karl Ove Knausgård's Min kamp 5
6. Are you a Lord Peter Wimsey fan?
YES → Dorothy Sayers translation
NO → 7
7. Can you only read science-fiction?
YES → Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle's Inferno
NO → 8
8. Can you read at all?
YES → 10
NO → 9
9. Do you prefer classical engravings, posters or neither?
Engravings → Gustave Doré version
Posters → Seymour Chwast version
Neither → 10
10. Boy, are you picky. But carry on looking, you're bound to find it in the end.
1. Can you read 14th century Italian?
YES → Original text
NO → 2
2. Are you T.S. Eliot?
YES → Original text
NO → 3
3. Can you read a Scandinavian language?
YES → 4
NO → 6
4. Are you looking for something that's beautiful, mystical and philosophically engaging, but is also 1500 pages long, contains a lot of weird sex, and needs to be read three times before you actually understand what it's about?
YES → Jan Kjærstad's "Jonas Wergeland" trilogy
NO → 5
5. Do you prefer Swedish or Norwegian?
Swedish → Carina Burman's Den tionde sånggudinnan
Norwegian → Karl Ove Knausgård's Min kamp 5
6. Are you a Lord Peter Wimsey fan?
YES → Dorothy Sayers translation
NO → 7
7. Can you only read science-fiction?
YES → Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle's Inferno
NO → 8
8. Can you read at all?
YES → 10
NO → 9
9. Do you prefer classical engravings, posters or neither?
Engravings → Gustave Doré version
Posters → Seymour Chwast version
Neither → 10
10. Boy, are you picky. But carry on looking, you're bound to find it in the end.
December 20, 2025
Great adaptation of Dante's Divine Comedy! If you are trying to get through your first reading this book will really help you visualize the cartography! There is a complete page where all the rings are plotted out for you: this (in and of itself) makes this book valuable to both the casual reader and the student of literature.
February 25, 2012
Researching Dante’s Divine Comedy for a new novel idea. Good place to start, this: packs in all the tortures, Greek references and relevant historical detail. (Having not read TDC, of course, I only have Mr. Chwast’s word for that). Can’t help feeling the punishments weren’t always equal here, on a stratum-by-stratum level. Gluttons were made to lie in a mire of excrement, while carnal sinners were simply tossed about the air, like on a fun wind simulator. Whee! Let’s be carnal! Whee! Also, in the fifth circle the wrathful simply had to mud wrestle each other, which at some point might become more pleasurable than painful, while the glum were drowned in the River Styx. Later, those who sell church pardons are tipped upside down in fiery tubes, their feet ablaze, while astrologers, diviners and magicians simply have their heads turned round. Hardly a punishment, no? Might make for more daring sexual adventures. Chwast’s artwork is playful, amusing and vivid. A charming introduction to Dante.
November 5, 2010
I'm not even going to waste much time on this review. I didn't really like the book. At all. The only reason I'm giving it 2 stars is that it may open up the possibility to someone to read Dante's actual The Divine Comedy because of the simplistic telling here. It may help someone who feels the story too daunting to understand a little better what's happening. Maybe.
It's the simplicity that detracts me from enjoying this volume. Chwast takes the epic poem and breaks it down into one line synopses and the crudest illustrations possible to retell the story. I see lots of praise for Chwast and his graphic sense, but honestly, I saw nothing in this book that impressed me at all. I thought the illustrations childish and not very easily understood in some cases.
Not recommended, especially if you have ever read the original and enjoyed it. In that case, avoid this at all cost.
It's the simplicity that detracts me from enjoying this volume. Chwast takes the epic poem and breaks it down into one line synopses and the crudest illustrations possible to retell the story. I see lots of praise for Chwast and his graphic sense, but honestly, I saw nothing in this book that impressed me at all. I thought the illustrations childish and not very easily understood in some cases.
Not recommended, especially if you have ever read the original and enjoyed it. In that case, avoid this at all cost.
January 3, 2025
I needed that visual
October 21, 2018
This isn't going to be an easy book to review because I'm not sure how to adequately word my feelings. I know what I'm feeling, I know I didn't enjoy the book but that it was okay..but how to explain that "okay" is the tough bit.
If anyone reads this before reading or without enough knowledge about Dante's work and thoughts in The Divine Comedy, this may not seem all that interesting. I guess that's because it just doesn't seem passionate, if you know what I mean. It honestly feels like Chwast was just too bored, had an idea but felt pretty lazy in executing it with enough value attached to it. It does summarise the not-so-easy-to-get-through version that Dante originally wrote but it fails to do justice to it.
But if you have enough idea about what The Divine Comedy originally is, it just gives you another version or point of view to look at it but again, it doesn't add any value. I was intrigued when I came across this because, as someone who loves illustrations and illustrated editions, I wanted to view Dante's work through visuals and I didn't mind the simple comical line art one too. But all of it just lacked depth.
I think most of us can agree with how a reader doesn't have to always relate or understand or have the same belief as the author (or the characters) but you can appreciate a perspective that's different from you. You can appreciate how a human mind is so fascinating. That's how I connected to Dante's work. I don't agree with him or relate, but I find his way of thinking and how he viewed the world extremely fascinating.
Chawst's work here takes away that fascination, sadly. At least for me.
Blog - Times of Gee
If anyone reads this before reading or without enough knowledge about Dante's work and thoughts in The Divine Comedy, this may not seem all that interesting. I guess that's because it just doesn't seem passionate, if you know what I mean. It honestly feels like Chwast was just too bored, had an idea but felt pretty lazy in executing it with enough value attached to it. It does summarise the not-so-easy-to-get-through version that Dante originally wrote but it fails to do justice to it.
But if you have enough idea about what The Divine Comedy originally is, it just gives you another version or point of view to look at it but again, it doesn't add any value. I was intrigued when I came across this because, as someone who loves illustrations and illustrated editions, I wanted to view Dante's work through visuals and I didn't mind the simple comical line art one too. But all of it just lacked depth.
I think most of us can agree with how a reader doesn't have to always relate or understand or have the same belief as the author (or the characters) but you can appreciate a perspective that's different from you. You can appreciate how a human mind is so fascinating. That's how I connected to Dante's work. I don't agree with him or relate, but I find his way of thinking and how he viewed the world extremely fascinating.
Chawst's work here takes away that fascination, sadly. At least for me.
Blog - Times of Gee
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January 26, 2012Dante's Divine Comedy has, from its earliest days, attracted illustrators ranging from an anonymous 14th-century illuminator, to Botticelli and Blake and Doré. In our day, it has inspired the likes of Leonard Baskin, Salvador Dali and Barry Moser. So why shouldn't Chwast, of Pushpin Studios, try his hand? No reason.
But here's the thing. He didn't illustrate Dante's Divine Comedy. Instead, he summarized it and illustrated the summary. It's 127 pages, mostly illustrations. My copies of the Divine Comedy range from approximately 600 pages to more than 900, depending on the type size and the length of the notes/commentaries. You just can't do it in the space here allotted, and have it make any semblance of sense to anyone not already familiar with the work. Even then, most modern readers will need notes or commentary.
However, the drawings are fantastic! Picture Dante in a trench coat and fedora, meeting a bowler-hatted Virgil in the dark wood. Charon's ferry is a speedboat, Francesca's husband wears a wife-beater and carries a can of beer. On to Purgatory in a rowboat, where Nino Visconti lies in his coffin holding a machine gun and the wanton women of Florence are flappers sipping martinis. Up to Heaven we go, to find Emperor Justinian is a lounge singer and the crusaders ride in tanks.
I just wish that, rather than compress the text, Chwast had created these illustrations to accompany it.
But here's the thing. He didn't illustrate Dante's Divine Comedy. Instead, he summarized it and illustrated the summary. It's 127 pages, mostly illustrations. My copies of the Divine Comedy range from approximately 600 pages to more than 900, depending on the type size and the length of the notes/commentaries. You just can't do it in the space here allotted, and have it make any semblance of sense to anyone not already familiar with the work. Even then, most modern readers will need notes or commentary.
However, the drawings are fantastic! Picture Dante in a trench coat and fedora, meeting a bowler-hatted Virgil in the dark wood. Charon's ferry is a speedboat, Francesca's husband wears a wife-beater and carries a can of beer. On to Purgatory in a rowboat, where Nino Visconti lies in his coffin holding a machine gun and the wanton women of Florence are flappers sipping martinis. Up to Heaven we go, to find Emperor Justinian is a lounge singer and the crusaders ride in tanks.
I just wish that, rather than compress the text, Chwast had created these illustrations to accompany it.
April 4, 2013
I am really concerned that people rated this book above one star. Not only is the art in this book at the level of a third grader (I Googled the creator because I wanted to make sure this wasn't the case) but the story is nearly incomprehensible. I picked it up at the library because I love the ideas contained in Dante's Divine Comedy and I thought the idea of a graphic novel of his work was an excellent idea. Then I started reading it and my jaw hit the ground at how bad the art was. what blackmail does Chwast have on the people who wrote blurbs for the back of the book? "Dante + Seymour = Heaven"?? "Seen through Chwast's eyes, Hell doesn't look so bad"??? Are you pulling my leg? Are they seeing the same book? Are they taking pity on an old man? If people are rating this highly because of the ideas in the book - well they are Dante's not Chwast's. And Chwast doesn't even do the original story/concept justice. I just can't get over how primitive the drawings are, with no sense of style, creativity or ability. How can something that looks this bad get published? I don't even mind simplified drawings or cartoons...but this is like a child drew it with no sense of proportion or ability. Why the heck does the main character smoke a pipe the entire time? Sorry, that bugged me. Anyway - this book was a complete Chwaste of time and paper.
September 11, 2010
If you want the barest outline of Dante's Divine Comedy presented in a visual style only slightly more advanced than that of my eight year old, then this is your book. I'm honestly at a loss to see why this artist is so acclaimed and influential.
October 19, 2010
First, thank you very much to Goodreads and Bloomsbury USA for awarding me this book as a First Reads title! This is a great program that spurs discussions on books. Now on to my review...
I started this book having previously read Inferno, but not Purgatorio or Paradiso. Despite that, my reaction was pretty uniform over all three sections. I have to say I was disappointed.
I really wanted this graphic adaptation to be the bridge that makes this great classic more accessible to modern readers. If I were the one re-writing it, that's what my goal would be. I don't know if that was Seymour Chwast's goal or not, but this book was not it. The original story was boiled down to a series of snapshots - a summary without meaning, if you will. Chwast showed you pictures of some people and wrote their names underneath.
Another thing that irked me was that the images were more comical and light-hearted than awe-inspiring and terrifying. When I read Inferno, I was disturbed by it. I was not disturbed at these illustrations. Of course, every artist has the right to artistic interpretation, but again, I wonder what Chwast's goal or purpose was in drawing this adaptation in the first place? To make fun of it, perhaps?
In an effort to find some redeeming quality about it, this book might serve as a good refresher for readers who have already read the originals. Heck, it might even make an interesting comparison in a critical analysis paper. I might like to read something like that. But it's not the accessible bridge for modern readers I wanted.
If you're looking for a quick way to get to know Dante's masterpiece without reading all 100 cantos, stick to Cliff Notes.
**Note: I admit my review may be substantially biased. I was educated in critical literary theory, not graphic novels or pop art theory. I do have respected friends in that field who may have a different opinion of this book.
I started this book having previously read Inferno, but not Purgatorio or Paradiso. Despite that, my reaction was pretty uniform over all three sections. I have to say I was disappointed.
I really wanted this graphic adaptation to be the bridge that makes this great classic more accessible to modern readers. If I were the one re-writing it, that's what my goal would be. I don't know if that was Seymour Chwast's goal or not, but this book was not it. The original story was boiled down to a series of snapshots - a summary without meaning, if you will. Chwast showed you pictures of some people and wrote their names underneath.
Another thing that irked me was that the images were more comical and light-hearted than awe-inspiring and terrifying. When I read Inferno, I was disturbed by it. I was not disturbed at these illustrations. Of course, every artist has the right to artistic interpretation, but again, I wonder what Chwast's goal or purpose was in drawing this adaptation in the first place? To make fun of it, perhaps?
In an effort to find some redeeming quality about it, this book might serve as a good refresher for readers who have already read the originals. Heck, it might even make an interesting comparison in a critical analysis paper. I might like to read something like that. But it's not the accessible bridge for modern readers I wanted.
If you're looking for a quick way to get to know Dante's masterpiece without reading all 100 cantos, stick to Cliff Notes.
**Note: I admit my review may be substantially biased. I was educated in critical literary theory, not graphic novels or pop art theory. I do have respected friends in that field who may have a different opinion of this book.
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April 23, 2024Jeg vet ikke helt om jeg forstår meg bedre på the divine comedy, men det var veldig gøy at Dante gikk med frakk, hatt og solbriller
August 4, 2014
I won this book from a Goodreads Giveaway, thanks Goodreads and Bloomsbury!
I have always been intrigued by Dante's Divine Comedy, but unfortunately I never got the chance to study it in college as an English major (I know!). So I thought this would be perfect. A simplified graphic novel version of the epic is about all I can manage at this busy stage in my life. I was excited.
This was a quick read. It's an extremely short summary of the work. The writing seems quick and hasty, as do the illustrations. It kind of had a manic feel to it. I wasn't too enlightened by this this book, it was only a summary. I thought the author would somehow make it his own, maybe add some humorous illustrations or historical footnotes. There was no real depth to the illustrations or the writing. It seemed like a good idea that could have been executed better.
I would think that in the graphic novel arena, an illustrator could have a field day with this one. In Dante's world, the punishments for each sin is quite imaginative (i.e. lying in human waste pools for the gluttonous, being tossed about violently by fierce winds for the sluttish, all in the nude, but of course). But each and every illustration fell flat. There was no spark, no gusto. It was kind of prudish, in fact. And I'm a Mormon...
So, I read it right away after I received it in the mail, then let it sit on my kitchen table for the next two or three days. I was kind of surprised that almost everyone who passed through my home picked the book up and said something like, huh, this sounds interesting, maybe I'll borrow it from you sometime. How do you like that! I thought this was an extremely Niche audience, but everyone seemed to be giving it the once over. I think this could be a great book, but this is kind of a boring version. Now if someone could have an R. Crumb type of go at it, then we'd be talking. Maybe I'll loan it out and my aunt/husband/brother/friend will be more generous with the stars.
I have always been intrigued by Dante's Divine Comedy, but unfortunately I never got the chance to study it in college as an English major (I know!). So I thought this would be perfect. A simplified graphic novel version of the epic is about all I can manage at this busy stage in my life. I was excited.
This was a quick read. It's an extremely short summary of the work. The writing seems quick and hasty, as do the illustrations. It kind of had a manic feel to it. I wasn't too enlightened by this this book, it was only a summary. I thought the author would somehow make it his own, maybe add some humorous illustrations or historical footnotes. There was no real depth to the illustrations or the writing. It seemed like a good idea that could have been executed better.
I would think that in the graphic novel arena, an illustrator could have a field day with this one. In Dante's world, the punishments for each sin is quite imaginative (i.e. lying in human waste pools for the gluttonous, being tossed about violently by fierce winds for the sluttish, all in the nude, but of course). But each and every illustration fell flat. There was no spark, no gusto. It was kind of prudish, in fact. And I'm a Mormon...
So, I read it right away after I received it in the mail, then let it sit on my kitchen table for the next two or three days. I was kind of surprised that almost everyone who passed through my home picked the book up and said something like, huh, this sounds interesting, maybe I'll borrow it from you sometime. How do you like that! I thought this was an extremely Niche audience, but everyone seemed to be giving it the once over. I think this could be a great book, but this is kind of a boring version. Now if someone could have an R. Crumb type of go at it, then we'd be talking. Maybe I'll loan it out and my aunt/husband/brother/friend will be more generous with the stars.
March 14, 2022
This wasn't what I expected. Rather than the actual poetry of the Divine Comedy, it's the writer/artists version of the story. Imagine someone read the text, then tried to describe to you what was going on. It leaned more into the name dropping of which well know figures were where than I expected, and that lost me a bit.
But overall I found the art interesting with amusing (hopefully on purpose) points to counteract the content. Also a good enough skim of the original story to get the general idea without having to read the poetry yourself.
But overall I found the art interesting with amusing (hopefully on purpose) points to counteract the content. Also a good enough skim of the original story to get the general idea without having to read the poetry yourself.
May 28, 2017
Enjoyable adaptation of the Divine Comedy, but one that made me feel that I needed to read the real thing (or a more detailed summary) to understand a lot of it. It felt more like a fun read for those who are already familiar with Dante's work than a guide for the perplexed. I enjoyed the bold, noir-ish illustrations although I did really want to colour them in. I might keep it as a colouring book.
December 28, 2025
El trabajo de adaptación e ilustración es increíble, en cuanto a historia me falta contexto ://
September 13, 2010
I received Dante's Divine Comedy: A Graphic Adaptation for free through Goodreads First Reads program.
As a graphic novel, it was a quick read, so I made it through in two days' time. As I pen my review, I feel that to do it justice, I really ought to take a two-pronged approach: First to review Dante's Divine Comedy, and then to review Chwast's illustrated adaptation of it.
As I followed Dante through hell, purgatory, and heaven, I was surprised at how contemporary he made his poetry. Sometimes, Dante escorts his readers by lesioned sufferers writhing in hellish torment -- punishment for a political platform they sided with, or a scandalous relationship they cherished. Other times, our gaze is directed at Dante's contemporaries immortalized in blissful glory for their feeding of the poor, or fighting the corruption of the church.
Imagine the creative pleasure that a modern allegory like this would be to write: Assigning our political figures, movie stars and tele-evangelists a place in hell, heaven, or purgatory, based on their ranking in our subjective system of morality. Talk about "labeling!" In this Comedic world, everyone gets assigned a single title that determines the circle they land in. What label will you get? Perhaps you are a traitor, or a hoarder. Maybe a glutton, a heretic or a pervert. Is life really that simple? What if you are a two-timing obese pack-rat who preaches that porn is the way to salvation? Which level of hell do you land in?
Chwast leaves me somewhat disappointed in his treatment of the subject. Somewhat, but not entirely. His work is a tremendously enjoyable Cliffs Notes. I would recommend it immediately to any student of literature assigned to read all 100 of Dante's lengthy Divine poems. Chwast has done an excellent job of distilling the verbose into easily digestible images. He proves, backwards-like, that 1000 words are indeed worth a picture.
Kudos as well to Chwast for not shying away from the politically incorrect. I despise the re-writing of history. Chwast writes of Christ, the scriptures and a hellish punishment of sodomy that would leave many current writers selling to a solely fundamentalist Christian audience. He pulls it off, in part because of who he is, and in part because of who Dante is.
Who is Chwast? When I was in art school, his name, and his Push Pin Studio were touted as heavy-weights in the illustration/design world. This is primarily why I was so eager to obtain a copy of this work -- his first graphic novel. I was most disappointed with his style of illustration. Clearly, I'm sure this shows me to be unacquainted with his body of work and signature style to begin with, but my impression from the Divine Comedy is that his drawings are lack-luster and school-boyish.
One characteristic that Chwast brings to Dante's work, that is perhaps part of his signature, is a sense of crass simplicity. We plod through his depictions of the naked bodies of tortured beings on every page, almost as if it were a black-and-white circus of Hieronymus Bosch-ian proportions. Even once we depart from the pages of hell, and make our way to paradise, the heavenly circus is equally as fascinatingly bland. No chills run through our spines at the horrors of hell, and no ethereal choirs sing at the glories of heaven as we turn Chwast's pages. Dante's poetry is more likely to evoke the visceral responses we typically associate with these supernatural places. Chwast's worlds remain a 2-dimensional curiosity-shop with very little emotional impact.
And of course, I would be remiss if I did not speak to Chwast's nearly tackling the heart of the matter. For it is indeed the case that I may be a two-timing obese pack-rat. But if my sins are covered by the blood of Jesus Christ, you will find me in heaven, without a single doubt. Chwast hints at this as he depicts St. Peter's 4-question test of Dante's faith in Canto 24. However, we are left unfairly hanging when Chwast refuses to cite Dante's life-giving answers. Allow me to quote Dante, and so, to finish what was left unsaid.
Peter: "What is faith?"
Dante: "Faith is the substance of things hoped for, and the proof of things not seen."
Peter: "Do you have faith?"
Dante: "Yes, most certainly."
Peter: "What is the source of your faith?"
Dante: "The flood from the Spirit of God."
Peter: "How do you know that the source is true?"
Dante: "The works, that followed, evidence their truth."
And so it is, that a belief in the substantial work of Jesus Christ and a hope towards an invisible place called heaven, poured on us from the Spirit of God himself will most certainly save us from the wrath of hell. And the fine evidence of this faith in our souls, is then in the work that we do thereafter.
Amen!
--Jen
As a graphic novel, it was a quick read, so I made it through in two days' time. As I pen my review, I feel that to do it justice, I really ought to take a two-pronged approach: First to review Dante's Divine Comedy, and then to review Chwast's illustrated adaptation of it.
As I followed Dante through hell, purgatory, and heaven, I was surprised at how contemporary he made his poetry. Sometimes, Dante escorts his readers by lesioned sufferers writhing in hellish torment -- punishment for a political platform they sided with, or a scandalous relationship they cherished. Other times, our gaze is directed at Dante's contemporaries immortalized in blissful glory for their feeding of the poor, or fighting the corruption of the church.
Imagine the creative pleasure that a modern allegory like this would be to write: Assigning our political figures, movie stars and tele-evangelists a place in hell, heaven, or purgatory, based on their ranking in our subjective system of morality. Talk about "labeling!" In this Comedic world, everyone gets assigned a single title that determines the circle they land in. What label will you get? Perhaps you are a traitor, or a hoarder. Maybe a glutton, a heretic or a pervert. Is life really that simple? What if you are a two-timing obese pack-rat who preaches that porn is the way to salvation? Which level of hell do you land in?
Chwast leaves me somewhat disappointed in his treatment of the subject. Somewhat, but not entirely. His work is a tremendously enjoyable Cliffs Notes. I would recommend it immediately to any student of literature assigned to read all 100 of Dante's lengthy Divine poems. Chwast has done an excellent job of distilling the verbose into easily digestible images. He proves, backwards-like, that 1000 words are indeed worth a picture.
Kudos as well to Chwast for not shying away from the politically incorrect. I despise the re-writing of history. Chwast writes of Christ, the scriptures and a hellish punishment of sodomy that would leave many current writers selling to a solely fundamentalist Christian audience. He pulls it off, in part because of who he is, and in part because of who Dante is.
Who is Chwast? When I was in art school, his name, and his Push Pin Studio were touted as heavy-weights in the illustration/design world. This is primarily why I was so eager to obtain a copy of this work -- his first graphic novel. I was most disappointed with his style of illustration. Clearly, I'm sure this shows me to be unacquainted with his body of work and signature style to begin with, but my impression from the Divine Comedy is that his drawings are lack-luster and school-boyish.
One characteristic that Chwast brings to Dante's work, that is perhaps part of his signature, is a sense of crass simplicity. We plod through his depictions of the naked bodies of tortured beings on every page, almost as if it were a black-and-white circus of Hieronymus Bosch-ian proportions. Even once we depart from the pages of hell, and make our way to paradise, the heavenly circus is equally as fascinatingly bland. No chills run through our spines at the horrors of hell, and no ethereal choirs sing at the glories of heaven as we turn Chwast's pages. Dante's poetry is more likely to evoke the visceral responses we typically associate with these supernatural places. Chwast's worlds remain a 2-dimensional curiosity-shop with very little emotional impact.
And of course, I would be remiss if I did not speak to Chwast's nearly tackling the heart of the matter. For it is indeed the case that I may be a two-timing obese pack-rat. But if my sins are covered by the blood of Jesus Christ, you will find me in heaven, without a single doubt. Chwast hints at this as he depicts St. Peter's 4-question test of Dante's faith in Canto 24. However, we are left unfairly hanging when Chwast refuses to cite Dante's life-giving answers. Allow me to quote Dante, and so, to finish what was left unsaid.
Peter: "What is faith?"
Dante: "Faith is the substance of things hoped for, and the proof of things not seen."
Peter: "Do you have faith?"
Dante: "Yes, most certainly."
Peter: "What is the source of your faith?"
Dante: "The flood from the Spirit of God."
Peter: "How do you know that the source is true?"
Dante: "The works, that followed, evidence their truth."
And so it is, that a belief in the substantial work of Jesus Christ and a hope towards an invisible place called heaven, poured on us from the Spirit of God himself will most certainly save us from the wrath of hell. And the fine evidence of this faith in our souls, is then in the work that we do thereafter.
Amen!
--Jen
February 27, 2021
I'm reading Dante's Divine Comedy in both (translated) verse and prose text, a canto a day. Why not take a look at a graphic novel, too?
Dante finds himself in midlife alone in a dark valley and he travels to Hell with Virgil as his guide. As Dante enters Hell, he sees a sign on the entrance: Abandon all hope you who enter here. Virgil guides Dante to all the circles of hell. A newly dead is assigned to his circle by a monster who bases the assignment on the sins of the dead person. Here are the circles: 1 is limbo for those who died before Christ; 2 is for carnal sins; 3 is for the gluttonous; 4 is for the wasteful and hoarders; 5 is for the wrathful; 6 is for heretics; and 7 is for the violent. Even within each circle, there are levels and each has different levels of punishment. Virgil also takes Dante to Purgatory. In Purgatory, the dead are placed on different ledges. At the gates to Purgatory, an angel draws 7 Ps on Dante's forehead; Dante is told he must wash these away while he's in Purgatory. Dante sees the proud, the envious, the wrathful, the slothful, the avaricious, the gluttonous, and the lustful. Trembling earthquakes occur in Purgatory when a soul is purified and is ready to ascend to Heaven. Finally, Dante leaves Virgil and passes through the wall of fire into Paradise. All sins are gone and memory of sin is washed away. Dante feels God's grace and love. He sees many who he recognizes throughout Hell, Purgatory, and Heaven.
Like Dante needed Virgil to guide him on his journey, I found this graphic novel to be a useful guide to The Divine Comedy.
Dante finds himself in midlife alone in a dark valley and he travels to Hell with Virgil as his guide. As Dante enters Hell, he sees a sign on the entrance: Abandon all hope you who enter here. Virgil guides Dante to all the circles of hell. A newly dead is assigned to his circle by a monster who bases the assignment on the sins of the dead person. Here are the circles: 1 is limbo for those who died before Christ; 2 is for carnal sins; 3 is for the gluttonous; 4 is for the wasteful and hoarders; 5 is for the wrathful; 6 is for heretics; and 7 is for the violent. Even within each circle, there are levels and each has different levels of punishment. Virgil also takes Dante to Purgatory. In Purgatory, the dead are placed on different ledges. At the gates to Purgatory, an angel draws 7 Ps on Dante's forehead; Dante is told he must wash these away while he's in Purgatory. Dante sees the proud, the envious, the wrathful, the slothful, the avaricious, the gluttonous, and the lustful. Trembling earthquakes occur in Purgatory when a soul is purified and is ready to ascend to Heaven. Finally, Dante leaves Virgil and passes through the wall of fire into Paradise. All sins are gone and memory of sin is washed away. Dante feels God's grace and love. He sees many who he recognizes throughout Hell, Purgatory, and Heaven.
Like Dante needed Virgil to guide him on his journey, I found this graphic novel to be a useful guide to The Divine Comedy.
May 20, 2011
This adaptation of the journey to heaven and hell is a zoot suit riot!
Imagine Dante Alighieri as a trenchcoat-wearing 1930's sleuth, and Virgil as the Monopoly Man. Imagine souls dressed like flappers dancing and an artistic style that recalls doodles in an English Literature notebook, and you'll have the essence of this book. One of the quotes on the back: "Hell doesn't look so bad. I'm almost looking forward to floating in pools of excrement... Seymour has put the comedy back into the divine."
From the inane (needing to label rain and Garlands of Roses so we can tell what they are) to the silly ("Examples of Gluttony - Centaurs at a Wedding", the ghost of Dante's grandfather predicts, "Your book will be a big hit when they read about all the important people in Hell, Purgatory and Paradise"), this book presents the Divine Comedy in an endlessly quirky light. As Dante beholds a bonfire of the souls of the lustful, he's seen telling a poet, "I love your work." The author takes the flowery explanations in the original work and brings them to their most succinct meaning, which brings out the self-serving political nature of the work.
There's nothing in this that is too "adult" for a teen audience and I think teens struggling to read any part of the Divine Comedy would find this graphic adaptation helpful.
Imagine Dante Alighieri as a trenchcoat-wearing 1930's sleuth, and Virgil as the Monopoly Man. Imagine souls dressed like flappers dancing and an artistic style that recalls doodles in an English Literature notebook, and you'll have the essence of this book. One of the quotes on the back: "Hell doesn't look so bad. I'm almost looking forward to floating in pools of excrement... Seymour has put the comedy back into the divine."
From the inane (needing to label rain and Garlands of Roses so we can tell what they are) to the silly ("Examples of Gluttony - Centaurs at a Wedding", the ghost of Dante's grandfather predicts, "Your book will be a big hit when they read about all the important people in Hell, Purgatory and Paradise"), this book presents the Divine Comedy in an endlessly quirky light. As Dante beholds a bonfire of the souls of the lustful, he's seen telling a poet, "I love your work." The author takes the flowery explanations in the original work and brings them to their most succinct meaning, which brings out the self-serving political nature of the work.
There's nothing in this that is too "adult" for a teen audience and I think teens struggling to read any part of the Divine Comedy would find this graphic adaptation helpful.
May 29, 2017
Für Neulinge und Einsteiger eine straffe, komprimierte Fassung der Göttlichen Komödie. Zeitgemäß interpretiert - was in Ordnung ist - aber durch das doch etwas hingehudelte malerische Geschludere des Zeichners kein größerer Lustgewinn - ähem.
Als kleine Einstimmung auf das eigentliche Werk Dantes' aber durchaus amüsant.
Als kleine Einstimmung auf das eigentliche Werk Dantes' aber durchaus amüsant.
March 5, 2018
In my opinion, this adaptation only makes a great deal of sense if you know Dante's Divine Comedy. For those who aren't familiar with it, I do hope this graphical piece tickles their interest to go 'n grab a copy of the original!
January 4, 2015
I wasn't crazy about the . . . graphics, but it was an engaging overview of the Divine Comedy.
April 23, 2020
I like Chwast’s funny, whimsical and sometimes ironic approach to cartooning (is that even the right word?), but I didn’t love this. Most reviewers mention that they were excited to read a more entertaining and digestible version of such a complex classic, but that they ended up disappointed by the book’s tendency to represent large sections of text with simple and seemingly random images. I don’t envy the task of representing Dante visually, much less making him funny (which I do think Chwast often succeeds at here), but I agree with the consensus on Goodreads. I think that the issue here is mostly one of compatibility: Chwast’s typical style and method don’t correspond well with a 14th-century epic poem; it seems that he should have either gone the route of a complete satire--that is, one that doesn’t aim to summarize Dante at all-- or selected a work of literature better suited to his approach. As it is, I felt like I was receiving an only halfway faithful and halfway funny rendering of the original text.
April 22, 2025
This graphic novel is really only good in the sense that it will give you an idea of what Dante's series of Hell and Heaven is vaguely about. That's where its merits end. The drawings appear lacking in effort. While there is a place and time for this type of style, it didn't fit the story it was trying to narrate. There was even one page that had a drawing of circles and swirls that the artist even had to label "circle of roses." Maybe if the drawings had color, it'd be a little bit better. I could've read the Wikipedia article about Dante's "Inferno" and gotten the same information. What a bummer.
December 11, 2021
Ambitious and hallucinatory. Much of this reminded me of the art and absurdity of Yellow Submarine . Only Chwast could be this playful, confident, bold, and free while transversing the rings of Hell…
September 4, 2019
I haven't read the real Divine Comedy, but I feel like this is a good first step (baby step!). It is very bare bones, gives you a visual and a brief overview of each circle. No real story line.
Read
May 14, 2024i loved the art style and “creative spin” taken. it was actually admirable!! i was thinking “wow i’d love to draw like this and do interesting things.” tbh i didn’t pay much mind to the actual “Dante’s Divine Comedy” part of it😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭😭fire tho
April 18, 2023
Read this for the Rogers Park library book club. It's a decent enough visual representation of the book, but it lacks good storytelling on its own. Issues from trying to read the divine comedy (I haven't) like understanding all the circa 1300 political and historical figures in Europe that are referenced are not given any context.
Good to go with your high school classics unit on it, not really good on its own. Art Linework is just plain sloppy in some places.
Good to go with your high school classics unit on it, not really good on its own. Art Linework is just plain sloppy in some places.
August 28, 2018
This is a very, very simplistic overview of Dante's Divine Comedy. As a high school librarian, I think this graphic adaptation is a fantastic way to introduce this classic literature to teens.
Read
April 17, 2011Lately I have really enjoyed me some epic poems in new forms or new translations. I had to reread Beowulf for my M.A. exam, and I was surprised by how much I genuinely liked Seamus Heaney's 2001 translation. Then I picked up the most recent version of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, a poem I remember liking anyway, but liked particularly as translated by Simon Armitage. Now these are both new translations, in verse, that are in my opinion better than the translations that I have read in the past, but that aren't playing with form or anything of the sort. I had also read both of these epics previously.
But then, Armitage published a "dramatic retelling" of The Odyssey in 2008. I haven't ever read Homer *gasp.* I tried to read both epics - The Illiad and The Odyssey - as a summer project after college, but I didn't get too far. Maybe someday. But anyway, I really enjoyed the version that Armitage produced, despite what I imagine are substantial differences from the "original."
And that leads me to Seymour Chwast's graphic representation of Dante's Divine Comedy. First of all, Chwast condenses all three parts of the epic into 127 pages without a lot of text. As many other reviews have noted, this leaves the reader a little short on context. I was also, again, going in a little bit blind, since I haven't ever read much Dante (yet another aborted attempt, this one in high school). Although I did get a feel for Dante from reading this, it was a bit disjointed. The story took on qualities of the absurd, broken down into little snippets of information that sometimes felt unrelated and without transition. The panels are also rather large and unconventionally broken up on many pages, with sloping and scattered text, which adds an additional level of disorientation for the reader. I believe this is intentional, capturing the disorientation Dante feels as he is rapidly and blindly guided through the Hell, Purgatory and Paradise.
Then, there are the illustrations. Chwast's Dante looks quite a bit like Dick Tracey, in a trench coat and fedora, with an ever-present pipe hanging from the corner of his mouth. All of the illustrations have an air of 1920's camp that makes them playful and a little frightening at the same time. For instance, the entrance to Hell appears like the entrance to an Art Deco casino with the word "Hell" in flashing lights. The minotaur is dressed in a striped wrestling unitard and Paradise is littered with buxom beauties in flapper dresses. The illustrations are all black and white, and are certainly "cartoonish," but not lacking in detail. Dante's journey through the underworld visually reminds me of many things:
1. A Keith Haring mural
2. Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas
3. Loteria Cards and Day of the Dead
None of these things is bad. In fact, they are quite awesome.
So, my bottom line is that this is no replacement for Dante, nor is it meant to be. However, it does give a very diluted understanding of the political and theological implications of the original text. What it really gives the reader is a dizzying visual journey through Chwast's very unique representation of Dante's path. Look out, because there be monsters.
Now, someone just has to do something fun with The Canterbury Tales.
But then, Armitage published a "dramatic retelling" of The Odyssey in 2008. I haven't ever read Homer *gasp.* I tried to read both epics - The Illiad and The Odyssey - as a summer project after college, but I didn't get too far. Maybe someday. But anyway, I really enjoyed the version that Armitage produced, despite what I imagine are substantial differences from the "original."
And that leads me to Seymour Chwast's graphic representation of Dante's Divine Comedy. First of all, Chwast condenses all three parts of the epic into 127 pages without a lot of text. As many other reviews have noted, this leaves the reader a little short on context. I was also, again, going in a little bit blind, since I haven't ever read much Dante (yet another aborted attempt, this one in high school). Although I did get a feel for Dante from reading this, it was a bit disjointed. The story took on qualities of the absurd, broken down into little snippets of information that sometimes felt unrelated and without transition. The panels are also rather large and unconventionally broken up on many pages, with sloping and scattered text, which adds an additional level of disorientation for the reader. I believe this is intentional, capturing the disorientation Dante feels as he is rapidly and blindly guided through the Hell, Purgatory and Paradise.
Then, there are the illustrations. Chwast's Dante looks quite a bit like Dick Tracey, in a trench coat and fedora, with an ever-present pipe hanging from the corner of his mouth. All of the illustrations have an air of 1920's camp that makes them playful and a little frightening at the same time. For instance, the entrance to Hell appears like the entrance to an Art Deco casino with the word "Hell" in flashing lights. The minotaur is dressed in a striped wrestling unitard and Paradise is littered with buxom beauties in flapper dresses. The illustrations are all black and white, and are certainly "cartoonish," but not lacking in detail. Dante's journey through the underworld visually reminds me of many things:
1. A Keith Haring mural
2. Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas
3. Loteria Cards and Day of the Dead
None of these things is bad. In fact, they are quite awesome.
So, my bottom line is that this is no replacement for Dante, nor is it meant to be. However, it does give a very diluted understanding of the political and theological implications of the original text. What it really gives the reader is a dizzying visual journey through Chwast's very unique representation of Dante's path. Look out, because there be monsters.
Now, someone just has to do something fun with The Canterbury Tales.
July 11, 2023
For my library's summer reading program, I had to read a graphic novel. I chose this one because I've never read the Divine Comedy and also this was short. It was in a sort of film noir, hard-boiled detective type style and I enjoyed it. I recognized parts of the story from general cultural osmosis and it was fun to see where those parts actually fit in. There was an introduction that explained who Dante was and a little about his life and why he wrote the story.
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