"Dante's Inferno" is the most famous section of "The Divine Comedy," poet Dante Aligheri's, 14,000 line epic poem. It's where Dante must face his sins before moving beyond an eternity in hell, where the doomed can still find redemption in the acceptance of their humanity.
This story is Dante's real life story in 14th century Italy. Deeply wrapped in the politics of his time, he dared to cross the Pope, suffering exile from his beloved city of Florence. He was alone, in despair and never to return.
Nearly broken, Dante wrote a masterpiece of his time in his "dark wood" that is remarkably relevant today for all of us who have ever been in our own dark wood of loss. This hour, we talk to people who emerged from the darkness of hell with Dante by their side.
Listen to some of those voices here. You'll hear inmates from Connecticut's Macdougall-Walker Correctional Institute.
GUESTS:
- Joseph Luzzi - Professor of comparative literature at Bard College, and author of My Two Italies and In a Dark Wood: What Dante Taught Me About Grief, Healing and the Mysteries of Love
- Ron Jenkins - Professor of theater at Wesleyan University, and visiting professor of theater and the arts at Yale Divinity School
- Rod Dreher - Senior editor at The American Conservative, and author of The Little Way of Ruthie Leming and How Dante Can Save Your Life: The Life-Changing Wisdom of History's Greatest Poem
MUSIC:
- “What is Life” by Black Uhuru
- "Francesca Da Rimini" op. 32 by Tchaikovsky
- "Purgatory Road" by Ray Wylie Hubbard
- "O Fortuna" by Carl Orff
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Colin McEnroe and Chion Wolf contributed to this show.
