The Divine Comedy

Original title: La Divina Commedia

Dante Alighieri (1265-1321)

Translation en 108193 words First published 1320 Italy

Dante Alighieri's monumental poem, the foundation stone of Italian literature. Lost in a dark wood, the poet is guided by the Roman sage Virgil down through Hell and up the mountain of Purgatory, before his beloved Beatrice leads him into Paradise. Across one hundred cantos in three canticles, Dante builds a complete vision of the medieval cosmos — a journey through sin, redemption and glory that remains one of the great imaginative achievements of any age.

Text sourced from Project Gutenberg (public domain in the United States); the Project Gutenberg trademark and license text have been removed on import. Public-domain status determined by the author's death year + 50 years rule.

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