Dante's Divine Comedy (audio)

The Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri, was composed between 1308 and his death in 1321. The book is widely considered the central epic poem of Italian literature, the last great work of literature of the Middle Ages and the first great work of the Renaissance.

The work is composed of three canticas (or “cantiche”) — Inferno (Hell), Purgatorio (Purgatory), and Paradiso (Paradise). Each is composed of 33 cantos (or “canti”).

Audio courtesy of Librivox.

Text translated by Henry Longfellow (1807-1882)