Pink Mythos

My first ten cantos of The Inferno are full of pink. I circled every name I recognized, mainly so that I could easily spot who was where, and I underlined passages that I found important or intriguing. I really loved Dante. The language, even translated to English, is beautiful and flowing. I found the presence of characters from Greek and Roman mythology especially interesting. Dante was as Christian, so why did he feel the need to insert Charon, the River Styx, Aeneas, Dido, Achilles, Paris, Helen, and so many others?  It’s not like Dante didn’t have other real historical figures that he could have inserted into the circles of Hell, in fact, he did insert many historical figures into Hell. This both intrigues and frustrates me as I don’t know that there’s any way to truly answer this question without going back in time and asking Dante himself. And, since I don’t speak Italian, that would be slightly difficult to do.

Until next time,

Tantum e tenebris receptum constabit,

Meghan

PS I commented on Tinsley’s “Honor’s Papers: Abandon Hope All Ye Who Enter Here”