This vivid new translation of Dante's immortal classic, Inferno, opens a new vista and offers a fresh experience of this milestone in human literary genius. Throughout his life, Dante struggled with the question of how to convey the solemn gravity of the Latin classics into the "vulgar" language of his native Italy. At the same time, he was convinced that the vernacular of his time and place had color and vibrancy that the "heady," more cerebral, classic literature lacked. Writing the Inferno was Dante's breakthrough moment in wedding these two very different "personalities" of poetic expression. Jason Baxter's new, pulsing, rhythmic translation is alive with spiritual energy from both these streams. Here we have an Inferno that we feel in our nerves and in our blood, as well as in the heart and head.

About the Authors

Dante Alighieri was born in 1265. Considered Italy's greatest poet, he is the author The Inferno, The Purgatorio, and The Paradiso. Politically active in Florence, he was banished to Italy in 1302. In 1274, he met the love of his life, Beatrice, whom he immortalized in La Vita Nuova (1292) and The Divine Comedy. He died in 1321.

JASON M. BAXTER (PhD, Notre Dame) is a speaker, author, and Professor and Executive Director of the Center for Beauty and Culture at Benedictine College. He is the author of six books, including The Medieval Mind of C.S. Lewis and Beginner's Guide to Dante (jasonmbaxter.com). His writing and speaking focus on the relevance of the medieval experience of beauty for the modern world.

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