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Dante's Inferno: A Study on Part I of The Divine Comedy
Dante's Divine Comedy can rightly be called the greatest poem ever written, praised through the ages by a pantheon of writers and scholars. Romantic poet William Wordsworth (1770-1850) referred to Dante's crowned "visionary brow." Irish novelist James Joyce (1882-1941) said "Dante is my spiritual food!" Pope Benedict XV (1854-1922) called Dante "the most eloquent singer of the Christian idea." Even the 20th century literary critic T.S. Eliot (1888-1965) famously wrote that "Shakespeare and Dante divide the world between them, there is no third."
Yet today this great poem is often dismissed by modern scholars for its unabashed Catholic theology and deep spiritual vision. Shrug off these skeptical scholars disdain and discover for yourself the true grandeur, Christian nature, and sheer artistry of Dante's Divine Comedy .
Just as Dante needed Virgil to lead him through the bowels of Hell, you also need a true and trustworthy guide. Dr. Anthony Esolen serves as your Virgil in this course on the Inferno , the first canticle of the Divine Comedy . An expert who has taught Dante to college students for more than twenty years, Professor Esolen is also the preeminent modern translator of the entire Divine Comedy from the original Italian.
With Professor Esolen you will enter the terrible gates of Hell and progress level by infernal level to its diabolical depths. Professor Esolen places a special emphasis on the drama of the poem, leading you through each canto in succession. Along the way, he will highlight Dante's astonishing human and theological insights and discuss the destiny of man, how to find our way out of the wilderness of sin, the relationship between love and knowledge, and the integral unity between body and soul.
Professor Esolen will more than satisfy your curiosity about Hell and the fate of the damned. He will reveal in all its starkness the horror of sin, and awaken in your heart a longing for divine love.
Yet today this great poem is often dismissed by modern scholars for its unabashed Catholic theology and deep spiritual vision. Shrug off these skeptical scholars disdain and discover for yourself the true grandeur, Christian nature, and sheer artistry of Dante's Divine Comedy .
Just as Dante needed Virgil to lead him through the bowels of Hell, you also need a true and trustworthy guide. Dr. Anthony Esolen serves as your Virgil in this course on the Inferno , the first canticle of the Divine Comedy . An expert who has taught Dante to college students for more than twenty years, Professor Esolen is also the preeminent modern translator of the entire Divine Comedy from the original Italian.
With Professor Esolen you will enter the terrible gates of Hell and progress level by infernal level to its diabolical depths. Professor Esolen places a special emphasis on the drama of the poem, leading you through each canto in succession. Along the way, he will highlight Dante's astonishing human and theological insights and discuss the destiny of man, how to find our way out of the wilderness of sin, the relationship between love and knowledge, and the integral unity between body and soul.
Professor Esolen will more than satisfy your curiosity about Hell and the fate of the damned. He will reveal in all its starkness the horror of sin, and awaken in your heart a longing for divine love.
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Published January 1, 2012
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About the author
Anthony Esolen
60 books483 followersAnthony Esolen is the author of over twenty-five books and over 1,000 articles in both scholarly and general interest journals. A senior editor of Touchstone: A Journal of Mere Christianity, Esolen is known for his elegant essays on the faith and for his clear social commentaries. His articles appear regularly in Touchstone, Crisis, First Things, Public Discourse, The Catholic Thing, Chronicles, Inside the Vatican, and Magnificat, among others. An accomplished poet in his own right, Esolen is known for his widely acclaimed three-volume verse translation of Dante’s Divine Comedy (Modern Library). His Ten Ways to Destroy the Imagination of Your Child has been described as "a worthy successor to C.S. Lewis's The Abolition of Man." And its sequel, Life Under Compulsion, has been called "essential reading for parents, educators, and anyone who is concerned to rescue children from the tedious and vacuous thing childhood has become." His recent books of social commentary include Out of the Ashes: Rebuilding American Culture, Nostalgia: Going Home in a Homeless World, and the forthcoming, No Apologies: Why Civilization Depends upon the Strength of Men.
Anthony Esolen has been writing his own poetry for decades, but until recently most of his published poetry has appeared in his verse translations of the great poets, Dante, Tasso, and Lucretius. More than a hundred of his own poems have appeared in such venues as Fine Madness, The Plains Poetry Journal, and Modern Age. After studying and teaching great poetry for nearly thirty years, Professor Esolen set out to write a book-length unified poem of his own, a project which he hopes will show that serious and significant long poetic works can still be written in our time. The result of his effort is The Hundredfold: Songs for the Lord, a book-length single poem composed of 100 parts -- short lyrics, dramatic monologues, and hymns -- centered on the life of Christ. He is working now on a second such long poem, The Twelve-Gated City, a collection of 144 interrelated poems centered on the parable of the prodigal son.
The grandson of Italian immigrants to America, Anthony Esolen was born and raised in the coal-mining country of Northeastern Pennsylvania. He received his B.A. from Princeton University, and his Ph. D. from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, where he was a Morehead Fellow. He is the 2020 recipient of the CIRCE Institute's Russel Kirk Prize, awarded each year to a writer and scholar "in honor of a lifetime dedicated to the cultivation of wisdom and virtue." He is writer-in-residence at Magdalen College in Warner, NH.
For more from the mind and pen of Anthony Esolen, visit his online magazine called Word and Song, at https://anthonyesolen.substack.com
Anthony Esolen has been writing his own poetry for decades, but until recently most of his published poetry has appeared in his verse translations of the great poets, Dante, Tasso, and Lucretius. More than a hundred of his own poems have appeared in such venues as Fine Madness, The Plains Poetry Journal, and Modern Age. After studying and teaching great poetry for nearly thirty years, Professor Esolen set out to write a book-length unified poem of his own, a project which he hopes will show that serious and significant long poetic works can still be written in our time. The result of his effort is The Hundredfold: Songs for the Lord, a book-length single poem composed of 100 parts -- short lyrics, dramatic monologues, and hymns -- centered on the life of Christ. He is working now on a second such long poem, The Twelve-Gated City, a collection of 144 interrelated poems centered on the parable of the prodigal son.
The grandson of Italian immigrants to America, Anthony Esolen was born and raised in the coal-mining country of Northeastern Pennsylvania. He received his B.A. from Princeton University, and his Ph. D. from the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, where he was a Morehead Fellow. He is the 2020 recipient of the CIRCE Institute's Russel Kirk Prize, awarded each year to a writer and scholar "in honor of a lifetime dedicated to the cultivation of wisdom and virtue." He is writer-in-residence at Magdalen College in Warner, NH.
For more from the mind and pen of Anthony Esolen, visit his online magazine called Word and Song, at https://anthonyesolen.substack.com
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Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
April 7, 2021
These lectures were spectacular.
I would not want to read The Inferno (or, I anticipate, the rest of the Divine Comedy) without them. Esolen weaves together history, theology, biography, and the rest to make Hell and its punishments in Dante's description not only understandable, but just and right. His careful explanation of the people and events that Dante refers to, even obliquely, is excellent and at times humorous. He is a very good, engaging lecturer and I learned so much.
I'm looking forward to continuing the series and heartily, highly recommended. I alternated the lectures with the cantos and am incredibly tempted to do a cantos-lecture-same cantos sequence. But, this is a first read and I'm trying to soak in. I'm sure that I'll revisit both the Comedy and these lectures again in the future.
Did I say Highly Recommended? I cannot often enough.
I would not want to read The Inferno (or, I anticipate, the rest of the Divine Comedy) without them. Esolen weaves together history, theology, biography, and the rest to make Hell and its punishments in Dante's description not only understandable, but just and right. His careful explanation of the people and events that Dante refers to, even obliquely, is excellent and at times humorous. He is a very good, engaging lecturer and I learned so much.
I'm looking forward to continuing the series and heartily, highly recommended. I alternated the lectures with the cantos and am incredibly tempted to do a cantos-lecture-same cantos sequence. But, this is a first read and I'm trying to soak in. I'm sure that I'll revisit both the Comedy and these lectures again in the future.
Did I say Highly Recommended? I cannot often enough.
December 5, 2021
Fantastic. I found these lectures super helpful as I read Dante’s Inferno. Now off to start Purgatory-and the accompanying lessons by Prof. Esolen.
(I could not find the version I listened to which I found on Audible)
(I could not find the version I listened to which I found on Audible)
August 6, 2023
This lecture by Prof. Esolen was a delightful banquet for my mind. Dante was a genius! I will return to this in the future.
March 14, 2021
First and most important, this is available at Scribd.
This lecture is a particularly good follow up to the Clive James translation after having read each canto twice in succession and having just recently finished the Inferno. (I have a strong bias for the Clive James translation, but any translation that works for you will suffice).
This lecture is best for those who have recently read the Inferno and are looking for further insights.
A poem such as the Inferno can be understood with multiple valid interpretations such as at the narrative, literal, allegorical, or analogical level, and a reader often forgets that it is meant for us in our journey through the dark woods as well as being the first humanist statement marking the end of the scholastic dark ages.
I plan to read each canto from The Purgatory at least twice and then download Part II of this series.
This lecture is a particularly good follow up to the Clive James translation after having read each canto twice in succession and having just recently finished the Inferno. (I have a strong bias for the Clive James translation, but any translation that works for you will suffice).
This lecture is best for those who have recently read the Inferno and are looking for further insights.
A poem such as the Inferno can be understood with multiple valid interpretations such as at the narrative, literal, allegorical, or analogical level, and a reader often forgets that it is meant for us in our journey through the dark woods as well as being the first humanist statement marking the end of the scholastic dark ages.
I plan to read each canto from The Purgatory at least twice and then download Part II of this series.
April 8, 2020
Superb! Dr. Esolen gives just enough information to add to the enjoyment of Dante’s masterpiece.
February 7, 2020
These lectures, available on Scribd in the Audiobooks category, take the listener through all of Dante's Inferno. Dr. Esolen is a great guide to this classic work: he knows it and loves it. His lectures are illuminating, historically informative, morally insightful, and passionately delivered.
The Inferno, and the whole Divine Comedy, is one of those foundational texts of the Western tradition. But the world which gave rise to it is a distant land, foreign in almost every way to modern people. Those of us who retain belief in God must do so while soaking in the 'acids of modernity'; acids which erode religious belief. This means that even conservative Catholics (and to some degree conservative evangelicals like myself), who have the same general moral and theological beliefs as Dante, tend to find the moral and theological vision of Dante very difficult to appreciate.
I can understand this reaction, but I think there is something tremendously healthy about exposing oneself to the moral certainties of another age. Try to resist the ubiquitous modern urge to assume moral superiority. I might even call it a pathology. We are utterly convinced of our moral progress. Rene Girard described this as a kind of mob mentality - the mob of the living turning on the dead in judgment. The image of that clamoring mob is what comes to mind when people say "the right side of history." Such moral certainty; such a stunning lack of self-doubt. Are we really so sure of our own righteousness? Do we not recognize that this self-assured righteousness is itself a mark of the people throughout history that are most deluded?
Well that's a long and roundabout way to encourage you to tackle an old book like the Inferno. In Dr. Esolen the modern reader finds as helpful and trustworthy a guide as Dante found in Virgil.
The Inferno, and the whole Divine Comedy, is one of those foundational texts of the Western tradition. But the world which gave rise to it is a distant land, foreign in almost every way to modern people. Those of us who retain belief in God must do so while soaking in the 'acids of modernity'; acids which erode religious belief. This means that even conservative Catholics (and to some degree conservative evangelicals like myself), who have the same general moral and theological beliefs as Dante, tend to find the moral and theological vision of Dante very difficult to appreciate.
I can understand this reaction, but I think there is something tremendously healthy about exposing oneself to the moral certainties of another age. Try to resist the ubiquitous modern urge to assume moral superiority. I might even call it a pathology. We are utterly convinced of our moral progress. Rene Girard described this as a kind of mob mentality - the mob of the living turning on the dead in judgment. The image of that clamoring mob is what comes to mind when people say "the right side of history." Such moral certainty; such a stunning lack of self-doubt. Are we really so sure of our own righteousness? Do we not recognize that this self-assured righteousness is itself a mark of the people throughout history that are most deluded?
Well that's a long and roundabout way to encourage you to tackle an old book like the Inferno. In Dr. Esolen the modern reader finds as helpful and trustworthy a guide as Dante found in Virgil.
June 26, 2021
This is the perfect resource to go along with reading The Divine Comedy. Esolen not only translated the whole thing (and his translation is excellent), but he also did this whole series of notes to go along with each book, chapter by chapter. I found him really helpful and easy to listen to. Highly recommended if you decide to read The Divine Comedy.
June 26, 2024
Very helpful!
April 1, 2020
Practically perfect in every way. An insightful, accessible guide from the translator of one of my favorite versions of Dante. Highly recommended for both beginners and those with more Dante experience.
June 25, 2021
Incredibly grateful for those who advised me to read the Clive James translation and take this course. Best use of a couple of Audible credits so far. My mind is blown with all the relations between the work and so many phrases and ideas we have and remain a large part of todays fiction. Although I wish I had not waited so long to finally read it, I am glad this was my introduction.
October 5, 2021
The translation was excellent and a wonderful read. The story has been often retold by others, but to read it for oneself from a very good translation is profoundly helpful. There are so many lessons to be learned from this work that it seems it would be a good idea to read it once a year...along with Pilgrim's Progress and at least 20 other books. What a blessing to have so many teachers to instruct us in spiritual growth.
March 10, 2024
I started studying this because Jordan Peterson would reference it so often in his lectures.
This guide through Dante's Inferno was superb! The lectures were concise yet packed with valuable insights, making them easily digestible. Pairing it with Esolen's translation on Audible was a brilliant choice. Dante's masterpiece truly shines through this remarkable journey.
This guide through Dante's Inferno was superb! The lectures were concise yet packed with valuable insights, making them easily digestible. Pairing it with Esolen's translation on Audible was a brilliant choice. Dante's masterpiece truly shines through this remarkable journey.
April 1, 2020
This was an excellent guide through Dantes Inferno. The lectures were short enough to be manageable and yet full of helpful information. I listened to it in audible while reading Esolen's translation. What an incredible work Dante accomplished!
March 4, 2023
Amazing! Anthony Esolen mines the depths of Dante Alighieri’s story. If you wish to dig deeply and understand how carefully Dante considered this story from the perspective of a Catholic believer, this is it.
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November 29, 2023Deeply Catholic, dogmatic lectures on Dante, as advertised. It’s the point of view of an advocate for Dante’s theology. I share little political territory with the author but it’s worthwhile to have an informed, passionate reading from the inside, so to speak.
May 6, 2019
While Esolen's lectures are not a comprehensive analysis of "Inferno," it functions as a nice companion to one reading the epic.
April 2, 2020
Excellent guide for reading the Inferno. Thanks, Dr. Esolen!
October 16, 2023
Good commentary on erroneous ideas of hell. Read for the poetry, not for truth.
October 27, 2023
Good study!
May 19, 2025
Dr. Esolen makes the themes come alive. I found these thoughts to be quite helpful as I read Inferno.
February 3, 2023
Dr Esolen's rhetorical gifts are on full display in this sublime set of lectures explaining Dante's Inferno. I learned far more from listening to this than from reading the poem and notes myself.
February 13, 2021
Jan 2021. Looking forward to a feast.
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews