• Dante's Inferno. An epic and searing poem, that takes the reader on an intense journey through the darkest pits of hell. As important and classic as the day it was written over 600 years ago. Dante's Inferno is one of the best and enduring works of Western Civilization. The immortal drama of a journey through Hell. Belonging in the immortal company of Homer, Virgil, Milton, and Shakespeare, Dante Alighieri's poetic masterpiece is a moving human drama, an unforgettable visionary journey through the infinite torment of Hell, a supreme expression of the Middle Ages, a glorification of the ways of God, and a magnificent protest at the ways in which men have thwarted the divine plan.

One of the few literary works which has enjoyed a fame that was both immediate and enduring, The Inferno's power has not been lessened or obscured after six centuries. It confronts the most universal values—good and evil, free will and predestination—while remaining intensely personal and ferociously political, for it was born out of the anguish of a man who saw human life blighted by the injustice and corruption of his times.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Dante Alighieri was born in 1265 in Florence. His family, of minor nobility, was not wealthy nor especially distinguished; his mother died when he was a child, his father before 1283. At about the age of 20 he married Gemma Donati, by whom he had three children. Little is known of Dante's formal education-it is likely to have included study with the Dominicans, the Augustinians, and the Franciscans in Florence, and at the university in Bologna. In 1295 he entered Florentine politics and in the summer of 1300 he became one of the six governing Priors of Florence. In 1301, the political situation forced Dante and his party into exile. For the rest of his life he wandered through Italy, perhaps studied at Paris, while depending for refuge on the generosity of various nobles. He continued to write and at some point late in life he took asylum in Ravenna where he completed the Divine Commedia and died, much honored, in 1321.

• Publisher ‏ : ‎ Bantam Classics; Bantam Classic Edition, February 1982 (January 1, 1982)
• Language ‏ : ‎ English
• Mass Market Paperback ‏ : ‎ 432 pages
• ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0553213393
• ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0553213393
• Item Weight ‏(incl packaging) : ‎1 lb
• Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 4.12 x 0.89 x 6.86 inches