The Divine Comedy and The Inferno
The copy of The Divine Comedy, written by Dante Alighieri, that is held in the Rare Book Room, was published in Florence, Italy in 1497. It is an Incunabulum, meaning that it is from the very early years of printing. The Divine Comedy was published by Barnadindo Vinarda and someone else, however, their name has since been lost to history. Florence was the town from which Dante was exiled in 1302. This is important because Florence was the town that Dante had most connected with; it was a symbol of his heritage and his identity. The Comedy is an allegorical narrative. It is believed that Alighieri's interactions with his love, Beatrice, took place in 1274, and her influence on his work is often seen. It is considered a comedy in the classic sense of the word- a story that has a happy ending. The poem is about the author's story journey towards God.
It is split into three parts, The Inferno (Hell), Purgatorio (Purgatory), and Paradiso (Heaven). The Inferno contains thirty-four cantos, while the other two contain thirty-three explaining the journey that is taken. The purpose of this poem was to show the people the terrors and horrors their souls would go through if they did not obey God's laws or live righteously. In the first section of The Inferno, Dante finds himself lost in a forest. Virgil helps him on his journey, accompanying him throughout Inferno and Purgatorio. He encounters the horrors within The Inferno and goes through the nine circles. As he goes through these circles, he has compassion and putty for these sinners. He knows that they are guilty of their sins, however, he still believes that there is good in them and he finds their suffering heartbreaking. He is terrified by all of the horrors he ran into. He is very curious during this part of the story, as he attempts to talk with many of the sinners along the way. In the forest that he begins in, he meets Virgil, a man who was sent by Beatrice, Dantes's love, to help Dante.
As a brief overview of the circles of hell, there are nine in total. Limbo, the first circle, is not of sinners, but of people who are not baptized. Many people lived before Christ, Virgil is one of these people. The second circle is Lust, a more traditional depiction of Hell, it holds people who were lustful throughout their lives. The third circle is Gluttony, the people in this circle have weak will and cannot resist the earthly pleasure of indulgence. The fourth circle is Greed- guarded by Pluto, the Roman god of wealth, the sinners are divided up into two groups- those who hoarded and those who overspent. The fifth circle is that of anger, people who are guilty of wrath and fury. The sixth circle is heresy, people who have opinions that are contrary to the opinion of Christian beliefs. The seventh circle is violence, where a lot of the souls are those who have killed themselves. The eighth circle, fraud, is one of the most full circles, where the path is dangerous, as many kinds of people are there. The ninth circle is treachery. This is where the classical depiction of Satan where he is frozen from the waist down comes from.
Eventually, they make their way through and they survive. Then, in the last circle of The Inferno is Satan himself. Purgatorio is the part of the Comedy where Dante and Virgil travel through seven mountains, representing the seven deadly sins. In Paradiso, Beatrice (call back to earlier in the paragraph) guides Dante through the nine celestial spheres of Heaven. Being the final part of Dante's poems, it differs from the previous two experiences. He encounters virtues rather than sins, and, because of this, the poem ends on a happy note, which is another reason why it is called the Divine Comedy.
How might this relate to Saint Mary College? This collection of poems looks at the intricate parts of religion and ultimately shows how Dante ends up in a better place than when he began, with the help of a partner. All of these are concepts taught at Saint Mary’s College. This is because the importance of spirituality, collaboration, and teamwork are all things that Saint Mary’s College prides itself on teaching and implementing into the day-to-day lives of those who live there. These may not be glaringly obvious when initially reading the story, but, when looking below the surface of the story, it makes sense. The story of The Inferno specifically is a bit harder to relate to Saint Mary's College, but there are some connections that I can see. There is a strong sense of justice, compassion, religion, and love throughout this story that is carried over into the morals and standards of Saint Mary’s College. The core values of Saint Mary’s College include spirituality (religion), justice (justice), and community (compassion and love). This is something that is not outwardly obvious, however, when looking at how Dante portrays those in The Inferno and those who are a part of the circles of hell, a lot of his ideas and talks cover these ideas.
The Inferno was written by Dante Alighieri and the copy that we have in the Rare Book Room was published in London, England, in 1867. This copy of The Inferno is interesting as it was printed in England by Chapman and Hall, a publishing company that is still around today. This is not an extraordinary copy of the book by any measures, however, it is very interesting because it has survived as long as it did and is in such good condition. This book is a prime example of something we would want in the Rare Book Room, as it was kept in good condition before we got it, and then we had the opportunity to provide it with a safe home where it will continue to be kept in such good condition.