The Divine Comedy, Volume 2, PurgatoryDante Alighieri
Philosophy
The Divine Comedy, Volume 2, Purgatory
Dante Alighieri
Epic poetry, Italian -- Translations into English; Italian poetry -- To 1400 -- Translations into English
[9] Charles II., son of Charles of Anjou. In 1283 he was made captive
in a sea fight, by Ruggieri de Loria, the Admiral of Peter II. of
Aragon. In 1300, according to common report, he sold his young daughter
in marriage to the old Marquis of Este.
[10] Spite of his hostility to Boniface VIII., the worst crime of the
house of France was, in Dante’s eyes, the seizure of the Pope at
Anagni, in 1303, by the emissaries of Philip the Fair.
[11] The destruction of the Order of the Temple.
“What I was saying of that only bride of the Holy Spirit, and which
made thee turn toward me for some gloss, is ordained for all our
prayers so long as the day lasts, but when the night comes, we take up
a contrary sound instead. Then we rehearse Pygmalion,[1] whom his
gluttonous longing for gold made a traitor and thief and parricide; and
the wretchedness of the avaricious Midas which followed on his greedy
demand, at which men must always laugh. Then of the foolish Achan each
one recalls how he stole the spoils, so that the anger of Joshua seems
still to sting him, here.[2] Then we accuse Sapphira with her husband;
we praise the kicks that Heliodorus received,[3] and in infamy
Polymnestor who slew Polydorus[4] circles the Whole mountain. Finally
our cry here is, ‘Crassus, tell us, for thou knowest, what is the taste
of gold?’[5] At times one speaks loud, and another low, according to
the affection which spurs us to speak now at a greater, now at a less
pace. Therefore in the good which by day is here discoursed of, of late
I was not alone, but here near by no other person lifted up his voice.”
[1] The brother of Dido, and the murderer of her husband for the sake
of his riches—Aeneid, i. 353-4.
[2] Joshua, vii.
[3] For his attempt to plunder the treasury of the Temple.—2 Maccabees,
iii. 25.
[4] Priam had entrusted Polydorus, his youngest son, to Polymnestor,
King of Thrace, who, when the fortunes of Troy declined, slew
Polydorus, that he might take possession of the treasure sent with him.
[5] Having been slain in battle with the Parthians, their king poured
molten gold down his throat in derision, because of his fame as the
richest of men.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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