[these OBSERVATIONS are all unedited notes to self—caveat lector

actually, that’s not quite true.

these are notes to me and to Stuart Hoffmann and Steve Powell, to give them the information they might need to give

me the counsel I need. Not that they actually plowed through them all.

Nor were they asked to.

So if sometimes the notes seem to be explaining, that’s why.

Stuart and Steve—my own Dante Club—have questioned the unclear,

and pointed out the unintelligible. They have repeatedly saved me from myself.

I liked “fear-turbulent.” Steve and Stuart’s insights have been marvels of acuity,

despite their lifelong remoteness from the world where words like acuity appear.

What they marvel at, actually, is how well I take having a perfect polished version

dented and tarnished before my eyes. Steve and Stuart are one hundred percent nonacademic.

I’m not, of course. So things that sound clear and simple to me can make Stuart and

Steve go hunh? Of such not making sense, you, reader, are the fortunate beneficiary.

They are wonderful friends, very very smart, enormously sophisticated in many ways,

and have had a long exposure to the full range of my own poetry,

which can detour into opacity like a highway arrow made it the only place you could go.

They’re musicians. With Mark Morse, now of Subterranean Music in Amsterdam,

we four were the Durians, a band that for about seven years improvised to my voice reading my poems,

which were themselves as far from improvised as Steve and Stuart from the world of “marvels of acuity.”

Without them, this translation would not even be close to what I have always known it could be.

My debt to these two great friends is as unpayable as the past is redoable.

Parole is one of the stages of getting ready to meet a new canto.

The osservazioni are another, but many of these still tend to spill into the parole,

which come first.

the English of the side-by-side translated lines is the translation of the Hollanders

(I quite agree with Slate’s Adam Kirsch that theirs is the gold standard)

for which go to the magnificent ocean that is the Princeton Dante site:

http://etcweb.princeton.edu/dante/index.html

(Sign up for free and explore to your great profit)

the Courier-font notes are from the vast Dartmouth Dante commentary treasury:

http://dciswww.dartmouth.edu:50080/?&&&7&s

Know that Robert Hollander is one of the Hollanders of the Hollanders’ gleaming translation

[the other being the poet Jean Hollander, and the making power behind both the

Princeton and Dartmouth Dante website wealth oceans. Know and thank.

a lot of the definitions are from Encarta’s Italian-English dictionary self-described tool,

but most are from the extraordinary Devoto-Oli Dizionario della Linga Italiana CD,

knowledge of which I owe to the introduction to the Durling-Martinez Inferno.]

Terrill Shepard Soules, February 7, 2004, Atlanta

Inferno Canto 3	Inferno, Canto 3 this canto is one big cart on cobblestones rumble, with all the “random” repetitions: dolore from the gate, parole (and remember the starring role parole had in Canto 2—no canto in the C matches the five appearances of a form of parola in Canto 2) from D’s mention of the gate inscription: <V 26 INF3> parole di dolore, accenti d'ira, finally, the parole in their final appearance in 3 are harsh and hopeless, in the mouth of Charon: <V 102 INF3> ratto che 'nteser le parole crude. in 1 and 2 there was no real effort to contrast D with the damned. in 3 it is one of the main objectives
[1] INF3.1	"Per me si va ne la città dolente, 1 THROUGH ME THE WAY TO THE CITY OF WOE, surely the three etternes of the inscription reflect the trinity 3.1 like 1.1, there are no elisions. D seems to show respect to some lines’ special importance by giving every syllable its full oral due. this seems cool: the first caesura of the opening is after the final through me: V 3 INF3> PER ME SI VA || TRA (U) LA PERDUTA (U)GENTE(C). Actually, Pertile puts a fairly strong caesura after the first va, almost none after the second, and the strongest after the third. Three strikes and you’re in. rhyme: e / e / e
[1] INF3.2	per me si va ne l'etterno dolore, 2 THROUGH ME THE WAY TO ETERNAL PAIN,
[1] INF3.3	per me si va tra la perduta gente. 3 THROUGH ME THE WAY AMONG THE LOST. D can be saved—he is only smarrito the damned cannot—their straying off course is permanent—they are perduta both words are journey-travel-road words
[2] INF3.4	Giustizia mosse il mio alto fattore; 4 JUSTICE MOVED MY MAKER ON HIGH. rhyme: e / e / e
[2] INF3.5	fecemi la divina podestate, 5 DIVINE POWER MADE ME,
[2] INF3.6	la somma sapïenza e 'l primo amore. 6 WISDOM SUPREME, AND PRIMAL LOVE.
[3] INF3.7	Dinanzi a me non fuor cose create 7 BEFORE ME NOTHING WAS BUT THINGS ETERNAL, rhyme: e / [o] / e
[3] INF3.8	se non etterne, e io etterno duro. 8 AND I ENDURE ETERNALLY.
[3] INF3.9	Lasciate ogne speranza, voi ch'intrate." 9 ABANDON ALL HOPE, YOU WHO ENTER HERE. 3. 9 ch’intrate: interesting to see right after the last line of 2—intrai 3.8 duro Hell Gate endures, just as, as B told V, V’s words will endure, forever, or in V’s case, as long as the world is here <V 58 INF2> "O anima cortese mantoana, [20] <V 59 INF2> di cui la fama ancor nel mondo dura, <V 60 INF2> e durerà quanto 'l mondo lontana,
[4] INF3.10	Queste parole di colore oscuro 10 These words, dark in hue, I saw inscribed 3.10 and 3.11 this is undoubtedly nothing, but in 10 we have fem then masc, in 11 we have masc then fem <V 10 INF3> Queste(C) parole(C) di(C) colore(C) oscuro(C) [4] <V 11 INF3> vid(C)' ïo scritte(C) al sommo d'una porta(archaic F);
[4] INF3.11	vid' ïo scritte al sommo d'una porta; 11 over an archway. And then I said: 3.11 what’s this? sommo again? so soon? vid' ïo scritte al sommo d'una porta(archaic F); three questions: [11] V answers immediately question 1: same progression as sospiri/lingue: what do I hear and who makes these sounds? 15. V says he will answer briefly question 2: why? 26. V says he’ll tell D later just one more way D keeps ratcheting up the narrative, keeping it taut, keeping it interesting
[4] INF3.12	per ch'io: "Maestro, il senso lor m'è duro." 12 'Master, for me their meaning is hard.' <V 12 INF3> per ch'io: «Maestro(C), il senso lor m'è duro». the same hard/last play on words (here + the I endure of <V 8 INF3> SE NON ETTERNE, E IO ETTERNO DURO) we first met in HELL 1/2: (in HELL 1 as here rhyming with oscuro/a): <V 4 INF1> Ahi quanto a dir qual era è cosa dura hard <V 59 INF2> di cui la fama ancor nel mondo dura, endures why? Maybe to contrast the difficulties of the individual existence with the implacable ongoingness of time
[5] INF3.13	Ed elli a me, come persona accorta: 13 And he, as one who understood:
[5] INF3.14	"Qui si convien lasciare ogne sospetto; 14 'Here you must banish all distrust, qui si convien the same construction as the gate’s per me si vas seems like V’s repetitions are kind of a counterpoint chant to D, tailored for his very special circumstances <V 14 INF3> «Qui si convien lasciare ogne sospetto; <V 15 INF3> ogne viltà convien che qui sia morta. they who are dead must leave behind hope D who is not must leave behind, as dead, fear
[5] INF3.15	ogne viltà convien che qui sia morta. 15 here must all cowardice be slain.
[6] INF3.16	Noi siam venuti al loco ov' i' t'ho detto 16 'We have come to where I said 6 and 7 am I right in thinking detto/intelletto and puose/cose are both instances of a closed vowel rhyming with an open? think how much will happen before B says to D: <V 37 PAR30> con atto e voce di spedito duce <V 38 PAR30> ricominciò: «Noi siamo usciti fore <V 39 PAR30> del maggior corpo al ciel ch'è pura luce: [39] <V 40 PAR30> luce intellettüal, piena d'amore; <V 41 PAR30> amor di vero ben, pien di letizia; <V 42 PAR30> letizia che trascende ogne dolzore. !!! of course! This really clarifies V’s “they have lost the good of their intellect/ mental health of their soul: <V 18 INF3> c'hanno perduto il ben de l'intelletto». the luce intellettüal is spiritual, not physical light, which of course would be light in its purest form so perduto . . . l’intelletto would mean something like their spirit has spoiled, gone rotten like a fruit, it’s lost its freshness, its ben the light comes on
[6] INF3.17	che tu vedrai le genti dolorose 17 you would see the miserable sinners <V 17 INF3> che tu vedrai le genti dolorose another cool instance of D and company seeming to accidentally quote each other—because they are so in synch e.g., D calls the wood selvaggia and later so does V here V quotes the Gate (but then in this case he’s just read what he’s echoing) and then there’s B telling V that D is smarrito
[6] INF3.18	c'hanno perduto il ben de l'intelletto." 18 who have lost the good of the intellect.'
[7] INF3.19	E poi che la sua mano a la mia puose 19 And after he had put his hand on mine 7 a pause hiatus tercet—i.e, a between-episode marker
[7] INF3.20	con lieto volto, ond' io mi confortai, 20 with a reassuring look that gave me comfort, lieto happy—how everyone feels in Paradise. compare V’s comforting hand on D’s with the suon di man note stark contrast of rhyming of confortai and lagrimai: D is ever the rollercoaster
[7] INF3.21	mi mise dentro a le segrete cose. 21 he led me toward things unknown to man.
[8] INF3.22	Quivi sospiri, pianti e alti guai 22 Now sighs, loud wailing, lamentation intro to hell sensations: 1. quivi sospiri sighs, cries, wailing 2. diverse lingue now the cries become intelligible and they also help establish the idea that the people here are from everywhere on earth this idea must be firmly in place before D begins to single out Florentines
[8] INF3.23	risonavan per l'aere sanza stelle, 23 resounded through the starless air, this is the third time we’ve encountered air so far 1. the air of the hill in daylight: <V 48 INF1> sì che parea che l'aere ne tremesse. 2. the air of the hill at twilight: <V 1 INF2> Lo giorno se n'andava, e l'aere bruno 3. the starless air of Hell: <V 23 INF3> risonavan per l'aere sanza stelle,
[8] INF3.24	per ch'io al cominciar ne lagrimai. 24 so that I too began to weep. 8 as soon as D hears the cries, he starts doing it too terzina begins with the cries of the damned and ends with the crying of D
[9] INF3.25	Diverse lingue, orribili favelle, 25 Unfamiliar tongues, horrendous accents, heaven hell contrast: B, with the voice of an angel, spoke in her very own favella Here, the favelle are horrifying: <V 25 INF3> Diverse(C) lingue(C), orribili(C) favelle(U), [9]
[9] INF3.26	parole di dolore, accenti d'ira, 26 words of suffering, cries of rage, voices dolore: [1] twice [6] once [9] once
[9] INF3.27	voci alte e fioche, e suon di man con elle 27 loud and faint, the sound of slapping hands— 9 contrast the suon di man with a la mia puose
[10] INF3.28	facevano un tumulto, il qual s'aggira 28 all these made a tumult, always whirling cf girando in [18]-- D wants to establish circularity
[10] INF3.29	sempre in quell' aura sanza tempo tinta, 29 in that black and timeless air,
[10] INF3.30	come la rena quando turbo spira. 30 as sand is swirled in a whirlwind. rena quando turbo spira in contrast with earth’s random occasional dust devils, hell’s are continual
[11] INF3.31	E io ch'avea d'error la testa cinta, 31 And I, my head encircled by error, said:
[11] INF3.32	dissi: "Maestro, che è quel ch'i' odo? 32 'Master, what is this I hear, and what people the sounds of [8], [9], and [10] --- three successive tercets in the C is very serious emphasis
[11] INF3.33	e che gent' è che par nel duol sì vinta?" 33 are these so overcome by pain?'
[12] INF3.34	Ed elli a me: "Questo misero modo 34 And he to me: 'This miserable state is borne misero modo I believe that when D in his question later uses costume, he is doing what all students do in placing questions to teachers—they try to talk the way the teacher talks rhymes: o / o / o questo misero modo: trochaic inevitability
[12] INF3.35	tegnon l'anime triste di coloro 35 by the wretched souls of those who lived
[12] INF3.36	che visser sanza 'nfamia e sanza lodo. 36 without disgrace yet without praise. compare lodo di Dio and the praises one hears in Heaven
[13] INF3.37	Mischiate sono a quel cattivo coro 37 'They intermingle with that wicked band exquisitely grim echo of the unlodo ending [12] does fuero play on fuoro? I think so. cattivo coro the neutral angels and the neutral humans the humans, once D recognizes the Refuser, are clearly a sect of cattivi, which helps unite the two groups
[13] INF3.38	de li angeli che non furon ribelli 38 of angels, not rebellious and not faithful but V was rebellious—no we can see some virtue in what seemed only self-deprecation: [42] INF1.125 perch' i' fu' ribellante a la sua legge, 125 wills not, because I was a rebel to His law, and D is fidele! [33] INF2.98 e disse: "Or ha bisogno il tuo fedele 98 «Your faithful one is now in need of you so V is clearly no fencesitter and D once again enjoys a heavenly contrast with the damned
[13] INF3.39	né fur fedeli a Dio, ma per sé fuoro. 39 to God, who held themselves apart. heaven hell contrast: Mary refers to D as Lucy’s faithful one: <V 39 INF3> né fur fedeli a Dio(C), ma per sé fuoro. but these souls are here because they were not faithful 13. do the three furs reflect the Trinity? furon fur fuoro (note that sono refers to the fencesitters, not the angels)
[14] INF3.40	Caccianli i ciel per non esser men belli, 40 'Loath to impair its beauty, Heaven casts them out,
[14] INF3.41	né lo profondo inferno li riceve, 41 and depth of Hell does not receive them first appearance of inferno in the C—and almost not a place name at all: “the deepest part of the underplace”
[14] INF3.42	ch'alcuna gloria i rei avrebber d'elli." 42 lest on their account the evil angels gloat.' look at this genius: these angels who were for themselves only rhyme on themselves: coro, fuoro, elli, ribelli
[15] INF3.43	E io: "Maestro, che è tanto greve 43 And I: 'Master, what is so grievous to them,
[15] INF3.44	a lor che lamentar li fa sì forte?" 44 that they lament so bitterly?'
[15] INF3.45	Rispuose: "Dicerolti molto breve. 45 He replied: 'I can tell you in few words.
[16] INF3.46	Questi non hanno speranza di morte, 46 'They have no hope of death,
[16] INF3.47	e la lor cieca vita è tanto bassa, 47 and their blind life is so abject
[16] INF3.48	che 'nvidïosi son d'ogne altra sorte. 48 that they are envious of every other lot. how many times have we heard these words already? and giustizia is coming up again, not for the final time. and how many times do we see gente? Five. this is a fugue of damnation almost chasing itself, perhaps, like the damned behind the flag
[17] INF3.49	Fama di loro il mondo esser non lassa; 49 'The world does not permit report of them. the Gate’s lasciate is echoed by V’s <V 49 INF3> Fama di loro il mondo esser non lassa(archaic F); [17] another reverberation
[17] INF3.50	misericordia e giustizia li sdegna: 50 Mercy and justice hold them in contempt.
[17] INF3.51	non ragioniam di lor, ma guarda e passa." 51 Let us not speak of them— look and pass by.'
[18] INF3.52	E io, che riguardai, vidi una 'nsegna 52 And I, all eyes, saw a whirling banner
[18] INF3.53	che girando correva tanto ratta, 53 that ran so fast it seemed as though ah, B was so ratta to come to D’s aid and the damned will be ratta again, when Charon’s Hell Gate reprise sinks in
[18] INF3.54	che d'ogne posa mi parea indegna; 54 it never could find rest.
[19] INF3.55	e dietro le venìa sì lunga tratta 55 Behind it came so long a file of people try and emulate the enambment—tratta of what?
[19] INF3.56	di gente, ch'i' non averei creduto 56 that I could not believe
[19] INF3.57	che morte tanta n'avesse disfatta. 57 death had undone so many. an undoing will be very specific when we meet Pia in Purgatory 5: "ricorditi di me, che son la Pia; 133 'please remember me. I am La Pia. Siena mi fé, disfecemi Maremma: 134 Siena made me, in Maremma I was undone. tanta disfatta continuing to plant the idea that multitudes are here, giving us a picture, a very vivid one, so that we can see the many many undone by death progression: 1. so many undone 2. I recognized a few 3. I recognized the great refuser the progression of a master storyteller—the complete credibility of recognizing the refuser depends on our first accepting that the crowd is huge, that D is able to a) see faces well enough to identify them and b) identify, in fact, some ---then I understood—satori—summarizes the idea of the neutrals and only now gives us sickening detail.
[20] INF3.58	Poscia ch'io v'ebbi alcun riconosciuto, 58 After I recognized a few of these,
[20] INF3.59	vidi e conobbi l'ombra di colui 59 I saw and knew the shade of him notice how D manages to fill the entire line exclusively with his sighting notice too what a nice blur (appropriate for such an ill-defined bunch) the sounds make: it’s like one long rumble <V 59 INF3> vidi e conobbi l'ombra di colui and listen to the wonderful rumble of <V 87 INF3> ne le tenebre etterne in [caldo e ’n gelo] first vowel swallowed \\ nay lay tay nay brate TARE neen \\ (TARE as in tear a hole) remember that viltade was D’s great failing at the end of INF 2. <V 60 INF3> che fece per viltade(archaic F) il gran rifiuto.
[20] INF3.60	che fece per viltade il gran rifiuto. 60 who, through cowardice, made the great refusal.
[21] INF3.61	Incontanente intesi e certo fui 61 At once with certainty I understood
[21] INF3.62	che questa era la setta d'i cattivi, 62 this was that worthless crew
[21] INF3.63	a Dio spiacenti e a' nemici sui. 63 hateful alike to God and to His foes. 21 very very cool: the [English] ch sound for a) D b) Go