Walking With Dante24 Jul 2022

Bertran de Born, The Rationale For Inferno, & The Dangers Of Poetry: INFERNO, Canto XXVIII, Lines 112 - 142

We end the crowded ninth evil pouch of the schismatics with . . . a poet: Bertran de Born. A poet Dante had previously praised. A poet who wrote poetry that is a direct influence on Dante's earlier works. And a poet who has actually been with us throughout Inferno, Canto XXVIII, even if we didn't realize it.

Join me, Mark Scarbrough, as we explore the historical and meta-literary details in his complicated passage--and then turn to an exploration of Bertran's use of a word that has come to dominate Dante criticism: "contrapasso."

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

[02:40] My English translation of this passage: Inferno, Canto XXVIII, lines 112 - 142. If you'd like to read along or drop a comment on this episode, please go to my website, markscarbrough.com.

[06:09] Who was Bertran de Born?

[10:26] Who was "the young king" Bertran de Born speaks about?

[14:02] What was Bertran de Born's place in the English/French civil wars?

[15:55] The first Biblical citation in the passage: Ahitophel, Absalom, and David.

[17:36] The second Biblical citation in the passage: See if there is any sorrow like my sorrow.

[21:53] Dante has twice mentioned Bertran de Born in other works.

[23:11] Why does this passage begin with a veracity problem?

[25:43] Bertran de Born's poetry has been in Canto XXVIII all along.

[28:04] Why is Bertran de Born here?

[30:59] What is "contrapasso"? And what are the limits of its meaning?

[36:11] There may be two types of "contrapasso": actual and metaphorical.

[42:48] Muhammad may bookend Canto XXVIII.

[46:19] Rereading Inferno, Canto XXVIII, lines 112 - 142.

Denne episoden er hentet fra en åpen RSS-feed og er ikke publisert av Podme. Den kan derfor inneholde annonser.

Episoder(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 Sep 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 Sep 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 Sep 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 Sep 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 Sep 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 Sep 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 Sep 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 Aug 26min