Dante Alighieri - Dantes Inferno in Modern English

INFERNO from The Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri Originally translated by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow Translated into Modern English by Douglas Neff ISBN: 9781617925115 INFERNO: CANTO I Midway through the journey of my life I found myself lost in a dark forest, Having wandered off the main path. It is hard for me to express in words How savage, rough, and stern this forest was to me. The very thought of it renews my fear. It was so bitter that death could not be worse; But in order to show you the good that I eventually found, I must first tell you of the other things I saw. I cannot remember how I entered the forest, My thoughts were full of other things When I wandered off the path. But then I had reached the foot of a mountain, At the point where the forest came to an end.

Until that time, I felt lost, and my heart was full of fear. Then I looked up, and I saw its crest, Already bathed in the rays of the sun Which had lead many others to the right path. T hen my fear was calmed a little And my heart was feeling stronger, having survived The night, which I had passed so piteously. A nd even as a man, who, with labored breathing, Crawls out of the sea and onto the shore, Will turn to look back at the perilous water; M y soul, still fleeing from fear, Turned back to look at the pass Which no living person had ever left. A fter I rested my weary body, I resumed my journey along the mountain path, So narrow, that one foot was always lower on the slope. A s soon as I started to climb, I saw A panther light and swift, Covered in her spotted skin! S he never moved from my sight, And many times blocked my way, So that I had to turn off the path to retreat.

I t was still early in the morning, And the sun was rising, joining the last stars That were with him in the sky, since time had first begun W hen these wondrous things were first set in motion; So, I took all of these as a sign of good luck. The variegated skin of that wild beast, T he early morning sun, and the joyous season; I was able to push my fear aside Until a lion appeared in front of me. H e seemed as if he would charge at me With his head uplifted, and his hunger deep. Even the air on the mountain seemed afraid of him; T hen a she-wolf appeared, that was long and lean. She seemed to be consumed in her greediness, That had caused many folks to live in fear! S he made me feel so heavy in my heart, With the fear that came by just looking at her, That I relinquished all hope of making it to the top. A nd like a man who acquires many things, But then a time comes when he loses them, He weeps and becomes despondent over his loss.

T his is how I felt while being pressed by this relentless beast, And, coming towards me, closer and closer, step by step She moved me backward away from the sun. I turned and began to run to the bottom of the path, When suddenly, someone appeared in front of me, Who seemed hoarse from a long-continued silence. W hen I saw him standing alone in the vast desert, I cried out to him. "Have pity on me, whatever you are, Spirit or real man!" He answered me: "What am I?; Once I was a man, With parents from Lombardy, They were Mantuans both of them. I was born in the last days of the reign of Julius, And lived in Rome under good Augustus, During the time of false and lying gods. I was a poet, and I sang of that just Son of Anchises, who came out from Troy, After the city of Ilion was burned.

B ut you, why are you going back to your miserable life? Why don't you climb to the top of the mountain, Which holds the source and cause of every great joy?" "Are you Virgil? That prolific poet Who has spread a river of speech so broad and wide?" I blushed and turned away from him. "Of all the poets great and small, It was your works I studied most and loved best. I spent many days exploring your verses! Y ou are my master, and you are my sage, You, alone, are the one from whom I took The beautiful style that now honors me. S ee that beast? That is why I turned back; Please protect me from her, famous Sage, For she makes my heart race and my blood cold." "It behooves you to take another road," He responded, when he saw how frightened I was, "If you wish to leave this savage place; B ecause this beast, which you fear so much, Will not allow anyone to pass this way, And she will harass him, till she destroys him; S he has a nature so ruthless and cruel, That she never satisfies her greed, And after eating food is even hungrier than before. S he mates with many animals, and there will be Many more, until the Hound comes, who will finally Make her perish in her own pain. H e will not feed on either earth or wealth, But upon wisdom, and virtue and love; His nation will be between Feltro and Feltro; H e will be the savior of all of Italy, On whose account the maid Camilla died, As did Euryalus, Turnus, Nisus, of their wounds; T hrough every city he will hunt her down, Until he has sent her back to Hell, The place where envy first let her loose.

T herefore I think it best for you To follow me, and I will be your guide, And will lead you through the eternal place, W here you will hear the desperate cries of woe. You Will see the inconsolable ancient souls, Who cry out for a second death; A nd you will see those who are content Within the fire, because they hope to come, Whenever it may be, to blessed peace; A t that time, if you still want to ascend to Heaven, A soul, more worthy than me, must take you there; And I will give you to her when I leave; Y ou see, the Emperor, who reigns above, Because I was rebellious to his law, Will not allow anyone to come to his city through me. H e governs everywhere, but he rules from there; There is his city and his lofty throne; And joyous are the ones that he selects!" And I said to him: "Poet, I beg you, By that same God whom you never knew, So that I may escape this woe and worse, P lease take me to that glorious place, So that I can see the gates of Saint Peter, And also those whose anguish you have told me of." He nodded and then moved on, and I followed behind him. INFERNO: CANTO II The sun was setting, and the darkened sky Released the other Earthly animals From their daily toils; and I alone M ade myself ready to sustain the war, Both of the way and of the woe, Which I will, from memory, retrace as best I can. O Muses, O high genius, now assist me! O memory, that wrote down what I saw, Here your accuracy shall be revealed! A nd I began: "Poet, who guides me, Look into my soul, see if it is strong enough, For the arduous path you place me on. Y ou once said, that Silvius the parent, While yet corruptible, went to the world Of the Immortal, and was there bodily.

B ut the adversary of all evil Was courteous to him, knowing who he was And what would become of him, T his, to thoughtful men, seems fitting for him; For he was from great Rome, and from her empire The leaders of the church of Heaven would rule; G oing everywhere, speaking only the truth, He established the holy place, where The Popes, the successors of the great Peter, sit. U pon this journey, which you have written, Aeneas learned many things that would bring about Both his victory and the papal throne. A nd later came the Chosen Vessel, Paul, Who brought comfort to that Faith, Which is the beginning of salvation's way. B ut why was I chosen to come, and who allows it? I am not Aeneas, I am not Paul, Not I, nor others, think me worthy of it. T herefore, if I resign myself to come, I fear that coming may be ill-advised; You are wise, and know what I am saying." And as a man, who unwishes what he once wished, And by new thoughts does his intention change, So that from his original plan he withdraws, S uch I became, upon that dark hillside, Because, in thinking, I understood the journey, Which seemed so simple in the beginning. "If I understand what you are saying," Replied the ghost of Virgil, "Your soul is filled with cowardice, S o many times a man's thoughts will waver, That it turns him back from honored paths, As false sight turns a beast, when he is afraid.