Walking With Dante6 Tammi 2021

The Curious Case Of Ciacco: INFERNO, Canto VI, Lines 34 - 57

In the third circle of hell, our pilgrim finds an emblematic glutton, Ciacco. This strange soul offers us a few problems. He mixes gluttony with another sin, thereby complicating the structure of the rings of hell in Dante's poem (and maybe of theology itself).

Ciacco is the first damned soul to recognize our pilgrim by the dialect he speaks.

We've stepped down into the muck of gluttony--and mystery, too. Ciacco remains a mysterious figure, obscured in the mists of time.

Let's talk about the social unrest that gluttony causes. And let's talk for a minute about the strange nature of Dante's art that sets the tone for Western literature for the next seven hundred years.

Support this podcast by offering a contribution through this PayPal link.

Here are the segments for this episode of WALKING WITH DANTE:

[01:48] My English translation of INFERNO: Canto VI, lines 34 - 57. If you'd like to see this translation, find a deeper study guide, or continue the conversation with me by a comment on this episode, find its entry on my website: markscarbrough.com.

[03:26] Questions about the material nature of soul . . . and why those questions may not be important for now.

[08:56] Some gorgeous poetry and its importance to the canto's larger purpose.

[11:11] Two problems: 1) the first Tuscan in hell and 2) the fusion of two sins in a canto that's supposed to punish just one.

[15:28] Some thoughts about gluttony as a sin and how gluttony can get linked to politics in a world of scarcity.

[18:47] Who is Ciacco? Lots of answers. Is our inability to know him the point?

[23:08] The hallmark of the poet's art: to craft a story that rides the line between allegory and realism.

[29:43] Rereading the passage: INFERNO, Canto VI, lines 34 - 57.

Tämä jakso on lisätty Podme-palveluun avoimen RSS-syötteen kautta eikä se ole Podmen omaa tuotantoa. Siksi jakso saattaa sisältää mainontaa.

Jaksot(509)

The Expanding Community of Women in the Moon: PARADISO, Canto III, Lines 109 - 130

Piccarda Donati doesn’t stop her monologue with the cryptic line about her life after the convent. She turns to another figure in the lunar landscape: Constance I of Sicily, the Holy Roman Empress and...

23 Syys 23min

The Violent yet Elliptical End to Piccarda Donati's Story: PARADISO, Canto III, Lines 88 - 108

Piccarda Donati finally answers the question about who she is. She's given her name but not much else about her. In twelve lines (or four tercets) she brings her personal story to its violent yet elli...

20 Syys 27min

Piccarda Donati's Apotheosis of the Will: PARADISO, Canto III, Lines 58 - 87

Piccarda has confessed to her more humble place in the heavens. Our pilgrim Dante then wants to know if she wants more.Her answer leads her to an apotheosis of the will. Everything in the universe is ...

16 Syys 30min

The First Soul in Paradise, Piccarda Donati: PARADISO, Canto III, Lines 34 - 57

At long last, the first soul--or "shade"--steps forward in Paradise. She's Piccarda Donati, a figure we've already encountered once (maybe even twice) in COMEDY.Dante flatters her to speak and she beg...

13 Syys 29min

Catching Feelings in the Sensual Sphere of the Moon: PARADISO, Canto III, Lines 1 - 33

Dante is about to meet the first souls in Paradise, emerging from the liquid light of the moon.The poetry is lush and sensuous. The metaphors are complex and compounded. And Beatrice is a bit chilly, ...

9 Syys 28min

The Souls of the Universe: PARADISO, Canto II, Lines 127 - 148

Beatrice concludes her explanation for moon spots by veering away from them specifically to talk about the nature of the universe.Blessed movers turn the spheres. Or perhaps inhabit them. Or are bound...

6 Syys 27min

The Diversity of Being in a Universe of Light: PARADISO, Canto II, Lines 106 - 126

Beatrice now launches into the true explanation for moon spots, found not in folklore, not in natural philosophy, but in metaphysics.Her explanation pushes her to disclose the parts of the universe we...

2 Syys 28min

Testing Theology With Optics: PARADISO, Canto II, Lines 85 - 105

Beatrice continues in her scientific and Scholastic explanation for moon spots by taking apart a secondary argument . . . and proposing an optical experiment.She voices an objection Dante might have: ...

30 Elo 26min