Walking With Dante
395 episodes - English - Latest episode: 10 days ago - ★★★★★ - 120 ratingsEver wanted to read Dante's Divine Comedy? Come along with us! We're not lost in the scholarly weeds. (Mostly.) We're strolling through the greatest work (to date) of Western literature. Join me, Mark Scarbrough, as I take on this masterpiece passage by passage. I'll give you my rough English translation, show you some of the interpretive knots in the lines, let you in on the 700 years of commentary, and connect Dante's work to our modern world. The pilgrim comes awake in a dark wood, then walks across the known universe. New episodes every Sunday and Wednesday.
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Episodes
Watch Out For Those Impersonators: INFERNO, Canto XXX, Lines 34 - 45
August 17, 2022 14:00 - 28 minutes - 26.3 MBWe've been to Thebes and Troy. We've seen two rabid souls arrive to tear up old Capocchio and maybe the other alchemist. But who are these rabid pigs? Impersonators. People who pretend to be who they're not. You know, most of the modern world. Join me, Mark Scarbrough, as we look closely at the two impersonators in the last of the evil pouches (the "malebolge") of fraud in the giant eighth circle of Dante's INFERNO. Here are the segments for this episode of WALKING WITH DANTE: [01:27] My...
Contagion, Fraud, And The Fall Of Civilizations: INFERNO, Canto XXX, Lines 1 - 33
August 14, 2022 14:00 - 35 minutes - 32.4 MBWe've come to the most complex opening of any canto in INFERNO. Canto XXX opens with two, long allusions about the tragedy of Thebes and Troy, both of which morph into similes for the damned, a medieval literary tour de force. Join me, Mark Scarbrough, as we stick around the final of the evil pouches (the "malebolge") of fraud, the eighth circle of Dante's INFERNO. We're almost done with fraud, but Dante saves the best for last: a canto that's part funny, part horrific, part repulsive, and ...
Gossip About The Fools Of This World Is About As Human As It Gets: INFERNO, Canto XXIX, Lines 124 - 139
August 10, 2022 14:00 - 29 minutes - 27.1 MBA second figure speaks up--this time, a leper named Capocchio who wants to gossip about the fools of Siena and find a personal connection with our pilgrim, Dante. Join me, Mark Scarbrough, as we look at this final passage in Inferno, Canto XXIX. We're in the tenth of the evil pouches (the "malebolge") of fraud, among the invalids in a medieval hospital of the damned. And we're hanging onto our humanity in the only ways we can. Here are the segments of this episode of the podcast WALKING WI...
Laughter Is The Best Medicine, Even In Hell: INFERNO, Canto XXIX, Lines 109 - 123
August 07, 2022 14:00 - 27 minutes - 24.9 MBThe first falsifier in the tenth of the evil pouches of fraud (those famed "malebolge") steps up to tell his tale: a funny joke about grifting, the stupidity of his mark, and the unexpected whims of damnation in Dante's INFERNO. Dante is clearly having a good time. And we should, too. Because one of the ways you save your humanity, even in hell, is to laugh at human foibles. Join me, Mark Scarbrough, for an explication of this short passage toward the end of canto XXIX in INFERNO. We've go...
How To Hold Onto Your Humanity, Even In Hell: INFERNO, Canto XXIX, Lines 73 - 108
August 03, 2022 14:00 - 35 minutes - 32.8 MBWe've come to the final evil pouch (or "malebolge") in the giant, hellish circle of fraud, Dante's largest piece of real estate in all of COMEDY. This last pit is also one of the more disgusting spots in Inferno: a medieval medical ward, full of contagion, the nightmare for anyone in the 1300s. Join me, Mark Scarbrough, as we hear from the first of many of the damned in this foul pit--and as we watch Dante the pilgrim hold onto his humanity, even in the face of the sorts of diseases that c...
A Medieval Hospital Of Horrors: INFERNO, Canto XXIX, Lines 37 - 72
July 31, 2022 14:00 - 34 minutes - 31.6 MBThe pilgrim, Dante, and his guide, Virgil, finally come to the last of the ten evil pouches of fraud (those famed "malebolge")--and wow, it's a doozy! They walk above a medieval malarial ward, full of festering bodies, rank sickness, and disgusting smells. This pit may well be the foulest yet. But if Dante and Virgil can walk it, so can we. Join me, Mark Scarbrough, as we begin to explore the farthest reaches of fraud in Dante's INFERNO. Here are the segments of this episode of the podcas...
A Medieval Hospital Of Horrors: Inferno, Canto XXIX, Lines 37 - 72
July 31, 2022 14:00 - 34 minutes - 31.6 MBThe pilgrim, Dante, and his guide, Virgil, finally come to the last of the ten evil pouches of fraud (those famed "malebolge")--and wow, it's a doozy! They walk above a medieval malarial ward, full of festering bodies, rank sickness, and disgusting smells. This pit may well be the foulest yet. But if Dante and Virgil can walk it, so can we. Join me, Mark Scarbrough, as we begin to explore the farthest reaches of fraud in Dante's INFERNO. Here are the segments of this episode of the podcast WA...
You Can Solve Your Family's Vendetta Even In Hell: INFERNO, Canto XXIX, Lines 1 - 36
July 27, 2022 14:00 - 46 minutes - 42.6 MBYou thought we were done with the ninth pit of fraud and the schismatics? No way! We're still there, no matter if Bertran de Born's appearance felt like an ending. Join me, Mark Scarbrough, as we look at this coda to the terrifying evil pouch (or malebolge) of fraud in Dante's INFERNO. In this passage, Dante sees a family member for the first time in the afterlife. And he may come to the first resolution of the vendetta theme that has run through INFERNO all along. Here are the segments of...
You Can Solve Your Family's Vendetta Even In Hell: Inferno, Canto XXIX, Lines 1 - 36
July 27, 2022 14:00 - 46 minutes - 42.6 MBYou thought we were done with the ninth pit of fraud and the schismatics? No way! We're still there, no matter if Bertran de Born's appearance felt like an ending. Join me, Mark Scarbrough, as we look at this coda to the terrifying evil pouch (or malebolge) of fraud in Dante's INFERNO. In this passage, Dante sees a family member for the first time in the afterlife. And he may come to the first resolution of the vendetta theme that has run through INFERNO all along. Here are the segments of th...
Bertran de Born, The Rationale For Inferno, & The Dangers Of Poetry: INFERNO, Canto XXVIII, Lines 112 - 142
July 24, 2022 14:00 - 49 minutes - 45.5 MBWe 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 ...
Bertran de Born, The Rationale For Inferno, & The Dangers Of Poetry: Inferno, Canto XXVIII, Lines 112 - 142
July 24, 2022 14:00 - 49 minutes - 45.5 MBWe 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 do...
Of The Florentine Civil War, The Bloody Aftermath, And Its Child, Rage: Inferno, Canto XXVIII, Lines 103 - 111
July 20, 2022 14:00 - 28 minutes - 26.1 MBWe've seen so many figures down in the ninth of the evil pouches of fraud, the ninth of the "malebolge" in Dante's INFERNO. And we're about to see more, including the guy who (maybe?) started the entire Florentine civil war that has torn Dante and his family apart. Join me, Mark Scarbrough, as we look through a short passage to discover a figure who is at the root of Dante's own troubles. Here are the segments of this episode of WALKING WITH DANTE: [01:41] My English translation of the passag...
Of The Florentine Civil War, The Bloody Aftermath, And Its Child, Rage: INFERNO, Canto XXVIII, Lines 103 - 111
July 20, 2022 14:00 - 28 minutes - 26.1 MBWe've seen so many figures down in the ninth of the evil pouches of fraud, the ninth of the "malebolge" in Dante's INFERNO. And we're about to see more, including the guy who (maybe?) started the entire Florentine civil war that has torn Dante and his family apart. Join me, Mark Scarbrough, as we look through a short passage to discover a figure who is at the root of Dante's own troubles. Here are the segments of this episode of WALKING WITH DANTE: [01:41] My English translation of the pa...
Of The Roman Civil War, Idealism, And Its Child, Ambivalence: Inferno, Canto XXVIII, Lines 91 - 102
July 17, 2022 14:00 - 39 minutes - 36 MBWe're down in the crowded pit of the schismatics, the ninth of the evil pouches (or "malebolge") that make up the giant eighth circle of fraud in Dante's INFERNO. We've already seen two figures, heard about at least four others, and are about to meet yet another guy. Except he can't speak. His tongue's been cut out. Because he fomented the Roman civil war--and helps us see Dante the poet's ambivalence as an idealist. Join me, Mark Scarbrough, as we explore this short passage from INFERNO a...
The Wonder Of Historical Obscurity: Inferno, Canto XXVIII, Lines 64 - 90
July 13, 2022 14:00 - 24 minutes - 22.1 MBMuhammad has walked on, but we're not finished with the schismatics and those who make scandal for the faithful. The ninth of the evil pouches (the "malebolge") of fraud is a crowded pit! Join me, Mark Scarbrough, as we descend to some historical obscurity, part of the on-going difficulty of what may well be the most occluded and murky pit among all those in the giant, eighth circle of fraud in INFERNO. Here are the segments for this episode of WALKING WITH DANTE: [01:24] My English trans...
The Most Shocking Line In The Canticle Of Pain: Inferno, Canto XXVIII, Lines 46 - 63
July 10, 2022 14:00 - 23 minutes - 21.8 MBWe're down among the scandal makers and the schismatics in the ninth of the evil pouches (the "malebolge") that make up the great circle of fraud in Dante's INFERNO. We've heard Muhammad talk about his mutilation--and now we have the answer to his question as to who the pilgrim is. But Dante doesn't answer. Virgil does. And his answer provokes the most shocking line in all of INFERNO. You might miss it. But join me, Mark Scarbrough, to catch this miraculous utterance in all its truth. Her...
Dante, Muhammad, The Comedy, and Islam: Inferno, Canto XXVIII, Lines 22 - 45
July 06, 2022 14:00 - 36 minutes - 33.4 MBWe've come to the ninth pouch of fraud--and perhaps the most shocking malebolge of them all. Here stands Muhammad mangled in a pit full of those who create scandals and those who make schisms. But which is Muhammad for Dante? Join me, Mark Scarbrough, as we explore one of the most vulgar and shocking passages in all of INFERNO. Dante may be overcompensating for his Crusading ethic, or trying to overcome it, or simply stumbling over it in this passage far down toward the center of hell. Her...
The Body In Pain Is The Wreckage Of Empire: INFERNO, Canto XXVIII, Lines 1 - 21
July 03, 2022 14:00 - 37 minutes - 33.9 MBWe have come to the ninth pit of the sins of fraud, way down in the eighth circle of Dante's INFERNO. We're about to meet a set of souls--well, bodies, more like--who endure unbelievable agony, exactly as bodies have always endured agony under the sword of empire. Join me, Mark Scarbrough, as we look at this complicated opening passage for canto XXVIII. It's chock full of historical references. But more importantly, our poet seems to be changing his mind. And changing the rules of the crusa...
The Body In Pain Is The Wreckage Of Empire: Inferno, Canto XXVIII, Lines 1 - 21
July 03, 2022 14:00 - 37 minutes - 33.9 MBWe have come to the ninth pit of the sins of fraud, way down in the eighth circle of Dante's INFERNO. We're about to meet a set of souls--well, bodies, more like--who endure unbelievable agony, exactly as bodies have always endured agony under the sword of empire. Join me, Mark Scarbrough, as we look at this complicated opening passage for canto XXVIII. It's chock full of historical references. But more importantly, our poet seems to be changing his mind. And changing the rules of the crusadi...
A Comparision And Contrast Between Ulysses And Guido Da Montefeltro: Inferno, Cantos XXVI And XXVII
June 29, 2022 14:00 - 40 minutes - 36.8 MBWe've spent a long time in the eighth of the malebolge, the evil pouches that make up the big circle of fraud in Dante's INFERNO. Before we take our leave, let's look at the way the two speakers, Ulysses and Guido da Montefeltro, can be compared and contrasted with each other. Join me, Mark Scarbrough, for this review episode of two of the most rewarding cantos in all of INFERNO. I've got lots of ideas. I hope you have more. Here are the segments of this episode of the podcast WALKING WITH...
The Demonic Struggle For Guido's Embittered Soul: Inferno, Canto XXVII, Lines 112 - 136
June 26, 2022 14:00 - 31 minutes - 28.6 MBDown in the eighth of the evil pouches (the malebolge) that make up the giant circle of fraud in INFERNO, Guido da Montefeltro has told the (self-justifying) tale of his life. And now comes the struggle at his death, a fight between Saint Francis and a black Cherub from hell. Join me, Mark Scarbough, as we slow-walk through INFERNO, finishing up Guido's incredible monologue about his life and death. This passage has a few problems in it, not the least of which is the off-handed way Dante (o...
Guido da Montefeltro's Take On His Own Life ("I Didn't Do Anything Wrong"): Inferno, Canto XXVII, Lines 58 - 111
June 22, 2022 14:00 - 47 minutes - 43.7 MBLet's pull apart the first chunk of the speech from Guida da Montefeltro in the eighth of the evil pouches (the malebolge) that make up the giant, eighth circle of INFERNO--that is, the sins of fraud. Join me, Mark Scarbrough, as I give you my English translation of Inferno, Canto XXVII, lines 58 - 111. I'll walk you through Guido's attempt at self-justification, the ironies inherent in his speech, and the history lying behind it. I'll also give you three implications we can draw from Guido...
An Interview And Reading Of Inferno, Canto XXVIII, Lines 58 - 129 With J. Simon Harris And His New Translation Of Inferno
June 19, 2022 14:00 - 27 minutes - 24.7 MBGuido da Montefeltro speaks! And he speaks with the voice of J. Simon Harris, whose new translation of INFERNO has just been published. Join me, Mark Scarbrough, for an interview with Harris about his new translation and then his own reading of Guido's unforgettable, self-serving, and (ultimately) self-damning monologue from this eighth evil pouch in the lower parts of fraud. Here are the segments of this episode of the podcast WALKING WITH DANTE: [01:57] My interview with J. Simon Harri...
Tiptoeing Around The Tyrants Of Romagna: Inferno, Canto XXVII, Lines 31 - 57
June 15, 2022 14:00 - 35 minutes - 32 MBGuido da Montefeltro is trapped in a tongue of fire in the eighth of the malebolge (evil pouches) that make up the eighth circle of hell, the landscape of fraud. But rather than bemoan his fate, he wants to know the fate of his beloved Romagna, where he was a mercenary for years. Join me, Mark Scarbrough, as we look over this elliptical and opaque passage, which is the pilgrim's response to Guido's question of whether his home is at war or peace these days. Here are the segments of this ep...
Beware Of Classical Figures, Modern Politicians, And Maybe Poets: Inferno, Canto XXVII, Lines 1 - 30
June 12, 2022 14:00 - 34 minutes - 32 MBUlysses leaves and a second flame shows up in the eighth of the malebolge, the evil pouches of fraud in Dante's INFERNO. Ulysses may be the great tragic figure, but this one is muttering, sputtering. He's a whining politician (and a local Romagna warlord). In other words, we're leaving epic and moving to comedy--as always with Dante. Join me, Mark Scarbrough, as we slow-walk through Dante's incomparable COMEDY. We're down in lower hell, toward the bottom of the eighth (or next-to-the-last)...
The Case For Ulysses: Inferno, Canto XXVI, Lines 85 - 142
June 08, 2022 14:00 - 29 minutes - 26.8 MBIn the last episode of WALKING WITH DANTE, I built a case against Ulysses without using anything but his own words against him. How do we know Ulysses is damned (other than Dante's placing him in the Inferno)? Where does his culpability lie? Join me, Mark Scarbrough, for this episode in which I build the case FOR Ulysses. Why does he so stand out among the sinners in hell (and even among the saints above us)? Why has his speech provoked more commentary than any other passage in Dante's COME...
The Case Against Ulysses: Inferno, Canto XXVI, Lines 85 - 142
June 05, 2022 14:00 - 24 minutes - 22.2 MBIn the last episode of this podcast, we took apart Ulysses' speech to discover its poetics and uncover some of its historical roots. Now it's time to turn to the interpretation of his words. Join me, Mark Scarbrough, as I build a case against Ulysses. Yes, he's in hell. But that's not enough for us readers to condemn him, given his rousing rhetoric and gorgeous poetics. What can we learn from his speech that will help us put him far down in hell, as Dante does? Here are the segments of th...
The Glorious Monologue Of The Damned Ulysses: Inferno, Canto XXVI, Lines 85 - 141
June 01, 2022 14:00 - 41 minutes - 38.3 MBFinally, Ulysses. We've waited long enough. Here he is in all his glory: a figure out of classical literature, whom Dante couldn't know, whom Dante wants to know, whom Dante admires, whom Dante damns. Join me, Mark Scarbrough, as we explore Ulysses' monologue in this first of three episodes on this most-written-about passage from INFERNO. In this episode, we'll discuss what Ulysses says, rather than what it means, untying some of the knots to better understand the gorgeous poetry at the root ...
The Glorious Monologue Of The Damned Ulysses: Inferno, Canto XXVI, Lines 85 - 142
June 01, 2022 14:00 - 41 minutes - 38.3 MBFinally, Ulysses. We've waited long enough. Here he is in all his glory: a figure out of classical literature, whom Dante couldn't know, whom Dante wants to know, whom Dante admires, whom Dante damns. Join me, Mark Scarbrough, as we explore Ulysses' monologue in this first of three episodes on this most-written-about passage from INFERNO. In this episode, we'll discuss what Ulysses says, rather than what it means, untying some of the knots to better understand the gorgeous poetry at the roo...
It's All Greek To Dante: Inferno, Canto XXVI, Lines 64 - 84
May 29, 2022 14:00 - 34 minutes - 31.9 MBVirgil has introduced Dante the pilgrim to the twinned souls in the tongue of fire: Ulysses and Diomedes. But there's a problem. Who will talk to them? Who is worthy to discuss such illustrious Greeks? Not Dante--that's for sure. Join me, Mark Scarbrough, as we explore this little back-and-forth between a very impatient pilgrim and his guide, who wins the battle and is willing to both abase and aggrandize himself to finally hear from the great Ulysses. Here are the segments of this episode...
The Fifth Great Sinner Of Hell, Ulysses: Inferno, Canto XXVI, Lines 49 - 63
May 25, 2022 14:00 - 34 minutes - 31.9 MBWe're in the eighth circle of hell, INFERNO's vast landscape of fraud. And we're way down in the eight of the evil pouches (the malebolge) that make up this most mucky and disgusting place--which holds one of the most noble and revered figures from classical poetry: Ulysses. Join me, Mark Scarbrough, as we get our first glimpse of Ulysses, trapped inside a tongue of fire with his compatriot, Diomedes. Virgil offers us an explanation for their damnation. We'll explore that bit first before w...
An Explanation For The Brief Halt In This Podcast
May 22, 2022 15:15 - 2 minutes - 2.06 MBHey there. Mark Scarbrough. As usual. Just a quick explanation of why the podcast WALKING WITH DANTE seems to have come to a halt. Thanks to all of you who've written, expressing your concerns. Here's the background. Boring adulting stuff. But a new episode soon. We'll be back in the regular sequence on Wednesday, 25 May 2022.
Fireflies, Elijah, And Messy Metaphors: Inferno, Canto XXVI, Lines 25 - 48
May 15, 2022 14:00 - 26 minutes - 24.4 MBOur first glimpse into the eighth of the evil pouches (the malebolge) that make up the giant circle of fraud in Dante's INFERNO. Except nothing's as clear as it should be. Two complex metaphors, a bumbling pilgrim, and a useless Virgil: it all adds up to the sort of interpretive fun we expect from Dante. Join me, Mark Scarbrough, as we slow-walk with Dante across hell and beyond. We're gearing up for one of the best sinners of hell. And it's proving challenging from the start. Here are th...
Poetic Theory In The Crack Between Two Evil Pouches: Inferno, Canto XXVI, Lines 13 - 24
May 11, 2022 14:00 - 21 minutes - 19.7 MBDante and his guide, Virgil, leave the seventh of the evil pouches (the malebolge) of fraud by means of a rocky scramble. Then the poet stops and drops into a short discussion of poetic theory. He's coming to understand how he has to write his own masterwork, COMEDY. Join me, Mark Scarbrough, for this short passage from INFERNO, sandwiched between two tour-de-force performances in the poem. Here are the segments of this episode of WALKING WITH DANTE: [01:52] My English translation of the...
Take Heart, Fellow Walkers!
May 08, 2022 14:00 - 28 minutes - 26.2 MBHi, I'm Mark Scarbrough and we've been walking with Dante for a long time. We're doing it slowly, a passage at a time, and we've come through some of the roughest bits of INFERNO, passages that require a great deal of classical learning and poetic know-how. This episode is my attempt to step back and get our bearings again. Why are we taking this walk? Why should we wrestle with Dante's masterwork, COMEDY? And how does Dante make sure his work remains readable? Here are the segments of thi...
More Questions Than Answers: An Overview Of The Metamorphosizing Thieves And The Seventh Of Fraud's Malebolge
May 04, 2022 14:00 - 32 minutes - 29.6 MBWe have spent a long time with the thieves in the seventh of the malebolge or the evil pouches of fraud's eighth circle of hell. It's time for a retrospective! Join me, Mark Scarbrough, as I bring more questions than answers to this most curious pit of hell. What's going on with all these metamorphoses? Where's our pilgrim in all this? And our poet? And what's truth, what's made up, and what's the difference? Here are the segments of this episode of the podcast WALKING WITH DANTE: [02:41]...
The Shifty Thieves, The Certain Judgment, The Uncertain Poet: Inferno, Canto XXV, Line 142 - Canto XXVI, Line 12
May 01, 2022 14:00 - 31 minutes - 28.6 MBDante the poet has finally wrapped up the pilgrim's time in the seventh of the evil pouches, the "malebolge" that make up the eighth circle of INFERNO, the great expanse of fraud. Our thieves have gone off stage and we're left with both an uncertain poet and a very certain prophet who sees Florence's destruction in the offing. Join me, Mark Scarbrough, as we explore the final passage among the thieves, a passage that stretches over the canto break from INFERNO XXV to canto XXVI. Here are t...
Morphing Into Your Own Father: Inferno, Canto XXV, Lines 79 - 141 (Part Two)
April 27, 2022 14:00 - 33 minutes - 30.3 MBWe've already explored the source material behind the third metamorphosis in the pit of the thieves, the seventh of the malebolge in the great landscape of fraud. Now let's talk through the implications in this passage. Join me, Mark Scarbrough, as we run from the mundane to the meta-insane with this most complicated metamorphosis, in which Dante the poet finally busts up the camaraderie he's had with his forefather poets and, well, becomes his own literary father. Or is scared to become hi...
Identity Theft In The Middle Ages: Inferno, Canto XXV, Lines 79 - 141 (Part One)
April 24, 2022 14:00 - 42 minutes - 38.5 MBWe've reached the third and final metamorphosis in the seventh of the evil pouches, the malebolge that make up the eighth circle of hell in INFERNO. Join me, Mark Scarbrough, as we explore Lucan, Ovid, and Dante's own masterwork COMEDY to uncover the roots of this complicated yet clear passage among the thieves in hell. Identity theft is not just a modern problem. It's a medieval one, too. Here are the segments of this episode of the podcast WALKING WITH DANTE: [02:23] My English translat...
Identity Theft In The Middle Ages: Inferno, Canto XXV, Lines 79 - 141
April 24, 2022 14:00 - 42 minutes - 38.5 MBWe've reached the third and final metamorphosis in the seventh of the evil pouches, the malebolge that make up the eighth circle of hell in INFERNO. Join me, Mark Scarbrough, as we explore Lucan, Ovid, and Dante's own masterwork COMEDY to uncover the roots of this complicated yet clear passage among the thieves in hell. Identity theft is not just a modern problem. It's a medieval one, too. Here are the segments of this episode of the podcast WALKING WITH DANTE: [02:23] My English translation ...
Turning The Beast With Two Backs Into Poetry: Inferno, Canto XXV, Lines 34 - 78 (Part Two)
April 20, 2022 14:00 - 23 minutes - 21.1 MBIn the last episode of WALKING WITH DANTE, I helped you understand the sources and textual problems in this second metamorphosis from the seventh of the evil pouches (the malebolge) in INFERNO's great ring of fraud. Two become one, two beasts become one, and both become nothing. Now let's talk through the implications of the passage and follow out some of its premises and conclusions. We're about to get very meta. But you knew that already. Here are the episodes of this episode of the podc...
The Beast With Two Backs--Or, Two Things And Nothing: Inferno, Canto XXV, Lines 34 - 78 (Part One)
April 17, 2022 14:00 - 37 minutes - 34.1 MBFirst, a guy burns up, turns to ashes, comes back to life, and prophesies the future. Then a centaur run by with snakes and dragons on his back. And if that wasn't enough, now one of the most daring metamorphoses of all. Join me, Mark Scarbrough, as we watch the second metamorphosis in the seventh evil pouch in the sub-circles of the thieves. This passage is so complex that this episode is the first of two on it. Poor Angello. He never knew what hit him. Here are the segments of this episo...
Cacus, A Centaur Like None Other, Not Even In Classical Literature: Inferno, Canto XXV, Lines 17 -33
April 13, 2022 14:00 - 24 minutes - 22.7 MBVanni Fucci has run off, wrapped up in snakes. But he's now just prey for Cacus, a centaur who arrives toting lots of snakes and even a dragon. Can it get any more dramatic? Join me, Mark Scarbrough, as we explore this strange passage in which we get a centaur who doesn't look much like his classical representations in Virgel, Ovid, and Livy--passages in which he's not even a centaur! This passage may explain the insistence on poetics throughout the seventh evil pouch, the seventh of the ma...
Revenge Is Ever So Sweet: Inferno, Canto XXV, Lines 1 - 16
April 10, 2022 14:00 - 24 minutes - 22.9 MBVanni Fucci has given his big speech, complete with a clear statement of his crime/sin and an opaque statement of the future of Dante's friends and family (and even the poet himself) in Florence. But we're not done with Fucci. Join me, Mark Scarbrough, for his final moments in Dante's INFERNO. Fucci gives God a vulgar hand gesture, is wrapped up in snakes, and runs off, leaving our poet with the last laugh. Here are the segments of this episode of WALKING WITH DANTE: [01:21] My English tr...
The Bad Boys Get The Best Prophecies: Inferno, Canto XXIV, Lines 121 - 151
April 06, 2022 14:00 - 37 minutes - 33.9 MBWe have watched a sinner burn up from a snakebite and reconstitute right in front of the pilgrim Dante's eyes. But who is this damned guy? The answer to that question is as complicated as it gets. Join me, Mark Scarbrough, as we explore the revelation of the sinner (Vanni Fucci), the problems with the historical record, and his sin (theft, although maybe not). Vanni Fucci comes shrouded in historical ambiguities. And he comes into INFERNO comes hauling behind him a giant prophecy about Da...
Snakebit: Inferno, Canto XXIV, Lines 97 - 120
April 03, 2022 14:30 - 33 minutes - 30.7 MBOur pilgrim, Dante, and his guide, Virgil, have come down to a place where they can see into the darkness of the seventh of the malebolge, the evil pouches that make up the eighth circle of fraud in hell. And what a sight they see! A pit of writhing snakes, one sinner bitten, then incinerated and reconstituted, right before their eyes. Join me, Mark Scarbrough, as we slow-walk through Dante's masterwork COMEDY. Hell is about to get wild. The poet, too! Here are the segments of this episod...
A Swarm Of Snakes And Literary Texts: Inferno, Canto XXIV, Lines 79 - 96
March 30, 2022 14:00 - 22 minutes - 22.5 MBDante the pilgrim has wanted a good, close look into the seventh of the evil pouches, the seventh of the malebolge that make up the great landscape of fraud in the eighth circle of hell. And boy, does he get what he wants! Join me, Mark Scarbrough, as the pilgrim and his guide, Virgil, slip down the wall and catch a glimpse of a nightmare of snakes, a tangle of them--that almost rivals the tangle of literary allusions the poet makes in a mere twelve lines. Here are the segments of this epi...
Get Me Closer To That Unintelligible Stuff: Inferno, Canto XXIV, Lines 61 - 78
March 27, 2022 14:00 - 27 minutes - 27.2 MBDante is still out of breath because of the arduous climb out of the sixth of the malebolge of fraud. But he doesn't want Virgil to know it! Join me, Mark Scarbrough, as the pilgrim Dante hears something he can't understand and wants to get a lot closer to this unintelligible voice. He and Virgil cross the bridge to climb down a bit on the wall and peer into the seventh pit of the eighth circle of hell. Here are the segments of this episode of WALKING WITH DANTE: [01:17] Virgil is the cha...
Virgil's Reprimand, The Pilgrim's Hypocrisy, The Poet's Games: Inferno, Canto XXIV, Lines 46 - 60
March 23, 2022 14:00 - 26 minutes - 26.2 MBDante the pilgrim has gotten up to the top of the crag and out of the sixth of the malebolge, the evil pouches that make up the giant eighth circle of hell, the landscape of fraud. The poor pilgrim is out of breath, but Virgil has got no sympathy for him! Join me, Mark Scarbrough, as we find perhaps a new role for Virgil in COMEDY and discover that the poet is playing more games with our minds than we ever imagined. Here are the segments of this episode of WALKING WITH DANTE: [01:27] My E...
The Struggle Is Real: Inferno, Canto XXIV, Lines 22 - 45
March 20, 2022 14:00 - 26 minutes - 27.2 MBDante and Virgil have to get out of the sixth evil pouch, the pocket of the hypocrites. And the only way out is up! Join me, Mark Scarbrough, as we set out on this epic climb from the sixth of the malebolge in the giant landscape of fraud, the eighth circle of INFERNO. Virgil is a sure guide. But it's all Dante's effort. And that might say more about COMEDY than we first imagine. Here are the segments of this episode of WALKING WITH DANTE: [01:48] My English translation of this passage: I...