The epic grandeur of Dante's masterpiece has inspired readers for 700 years, and has entered the human imagination. But the further we move from the late medieval world of Dante, the more a rich understanding and enjoyment of the poem depends on knowledgeable guidance. Robert Hollander, a renowned scholar and master teacher of Dante, and Jean Hollander, an accomplished poet, have written a beautifully accurate and clear verse translation of the first volume of Dante's epic poem, the Divine Comedy. Featuring the original Italian text opposite the translation, this edition also offers an...

With his journeys through Hell and Purgatory complete, Dante is at last led by his beloved Beatrice to Paradise. Where his experiences in the Inferno and Purgatorio were arduous and harrowing, this is a journey of comfort, revelation, and, above all, love-both romantic and divine. Robert Hollander is a Dante scholar of unmatched reputation and his wife, Jean, is an accomplished poet. Their verse translation with facing-page Italian combines maximum fidelity to Dante's text with the artistry necessary to reflect the original's virtuosity. They have produced the clearest, most...

How did Dante come to create his masterpiece, the Divine Comedy, a work unrivaled by any of his other writings? In this book, a preeminent Dante scholar analyzes the only real biography of the poet that we have--his body of works--to illuminate this question. Robert Hollander considers Dante's political writings, commentary, and other poems as well as the Comedy to construct an intellectual biography of the great poet.
"Hollander's lucid and brilliant discussion . . . is a joy to read."--Bernard Knox, New York Review of Books