Dante's Divine Comedy

• 1. In lines 1-3 some see an echo of Isaiah 16:9 (weeping over defeated Moab), Isaiah 34:7 (the defeat of nations, and of St. Augustine’s Confessions where a friend becomes drunk at the sight of the blood spilled at the Roman games. Why is Dante himself weeping again?

Probably because he sees his unavenged kinsman Geri del Bello who is threateningly calling to him. (lines 22-27)

• 2. What type of imagery is created in lines 40-42/

That of a monastery (sarcastically)

What is the specific sin of these “lay brothers”?

Alchemy, “the “fraudulent” blending of metals

How do you interpret lines 57-58?

While some think the book refers to Dante’s poem, others see the books in which good and bad deeds are recorded by the angels and read out at the Last Judgment as reported by St. John in the Book of Revelation: “And I saw the dead, small and great, standing before [a]God, and books were opened. And another book was opened, which is the Book of Life. And the dead were judged according to their works, by the things which were written in the books.”

How are this subset of falsifiers punished?

They are punished by disease. Line 75 refers to “scabby crusts.” Line 80 refers to “the great maddening itch.” Line 124 describes the disease as “leprous.”

Who are the named sinners among this subset?

According to Esolen’s note on lines 109-111 the first is Griffolino, falsely accused of heresy and burned at the stake.

The second, named in line 136, is Capocchio.

According to contemporary sources, Dante and Capocchio were students of natural science together. (In fact, Dante qualified for membership in the Arte dei Medici Speziali [the Guild of Physicians and Pharmacists]).

• 3. Who is the first new sinner mentioned in Canto XXX: 32?

Gianni Schicchi (a member of the Cavalcanti family and renowned for his ability to impersonate others.

He roughly corresponds to Athamas (lines 4-15) in long introductory allusion to Ovid’s Metamorphoses.

You can follow his extended story in Puccini’s eponymous opera.

Who is the second line 37?

Myrrha (the incestuous daughter of Cinyras who deceived her father into the act while here mother was absent; she was abetted by her nurse).

Myrrha very roughly corresponds to Hecuba (lines 16-24) in that same long introductory allusion to Ovid.

What is their specific sin (lines 37-41 and 42-45?

They are evil impersonators; they falsify their identities.

What is their punishment (line 32)?

Madness, though some say hydrophobia or rabies

• 4. Who is the third sinner (line 61)?

Master Adam

What musical imagery does Dante employ in describing him and his punishment?

The lute (lines 49) and a kettledrum (line 103)

What is his punishment (lines 52-58)?

Dropsy (edema)

What biblical parable do lines 62-63 recall?

The parable of the rich man and Lazarus in Luke 16:19-31

How do lines 64-69 supplement Master Adam’s punishment?

His thirst is magnified by his vision of “The little rushing brooks that splash their way/down the green hills of Casentino ot/the Arno, with heir streambeds cold and moist,/Are ever before me, and it’s not in vain,/for their sweet image dries me out far worse/than this which wastes the flesh within my face.”

Of course, his vision also recalls the punishment of Tantalus in Hades.

How do lines 88-90 make Adam like so many other sinners Dante has encountered above?

He places the entire blame on others for his own misdeeds. Like him, many others find a cause for their failures in the hearts and minds of others.

• 5. Who are the sinners Master Adam identifies in lines 97-98?

Potiphar’s wife and Sinon

What is their sin?

Simply telling lies or perjury

What is their punishment (line 99)?

A sharp, burning fever that causes them to stink

• 6. How does Virgil and Dante’s relationship stand at the end of this canto (lines 142-148)