Inferno, Canto 27
Dante Alighieri · Italian original · new English translation and commentary by Text Atlas
Overview
In the eighth bolgia, Guido da Montefeltro asks about Romagna, recounts his life as soldier, fox-like counselor, and Franciscan, then tells how Boniface VIII promised invalid absolution in exchange for fraudulent counsel against Palestrina; a black cherub defeats Francis by the logic that one cannot repent and will the sin at once.
Narrative arc
- Ulysses' flame departs, another flame arrives, and the Sicilian bull simile turns confused fire-speech into intelligible words
- The new flame recognizes Virgil's Lombard speech, asks about Romagna, and Virgil tells Dante to answer as an Italian speaker
- Dante maps Romagna through war, tyrants, city emblems, factional beasts, and the unstable line between tyranny and freedom
- Guido speaks from the flame, hides behind a false no-return premise, and summarizes his armed life, Franciscan conversion, fox-craft, and nearly useful repentance
- Guido recounts Boniface VIII's Christian war, disregard of office and Franciscan cord, promised absolution, papal keys, and the counsel to take Palestrina by false promise
- Francis comes for Guido, but the black cherub claims him by the law that one cannot be absolved while willing the sin
- Guido's grieving flame twists away, and the poets move to the next bolgia where division gains its burden
Central themes
- identity
- metamorphosis
- false counsel
- division
- falsification
Ulysses' flame departs, another flame arrives, and the Sicilian bull simile turns confused fire-speech into intelligible words XXVII.1–18
1Già era dritta in sù la fiamma e queta
per non dir più, e già da noi sen gia
con la licenza del dolce poeta,
quand’ un’altra, che dietro a lei venìa,
5ne fece volger li occhi a la sua cima
per un confuso suon che fuor n’uscia.
Come ’l bue cicilian che mugghiò prima
col pianto di colui, e ciò fu dritto,
che l’avea temperato con sua lima,
10mugghiava con la voce de l’afflitto,
sì che, con tutto che fosse di rame,
pur el pareva dal dolor trafitto;
così, per non aver via né forame
dal principio nel foco, in suo linguaggio
15si convertïan le parole grame.
Ma poscia ch’ebber colto lor vïaggio
su per la punta, dandole quel guizzo
che dato avea la lingua in lor passaggio,
1Already the flame was upright and still
to say no more, and already was going away from us
with leave of the sweet poet,
when another flame, which was coming after it,
5made our eyes turn toward its tip
because of a confused sound coming out from it.
As the Sicilian bull, which first bellowed
with the cry of the man, and that was just,
who had tempered it with his file,
10bellowed with the voice of the afflicted one,
so that, although it was wholly bronze,
still it seemed pierced by pain;
so, because they had no way or opening
from their beginning in the fire, into its own language
15the sorrowful words were changed.
But after they had found their course
up along the point, giving it that flicker
the tongue had given them in their passage,
Commentary
The transition from Ulysses to Guido, the Sicilian bull simile, and the mechanics of blocked words finding passage through the flame tip keep speech bodily, engineered, and punitive.
XXVII.7–9 The Sicilian bull is kept concrete as the torture-device simile that makes artifice return pain through its maker.
XXVII.7–9 The Sicilian bull is kept concrete as the torture-device simile that makes artifice return pain through its maker. Line 7: The Sicilian bull is kept concrete as the torture-device simile that makes artifice return pain through its maker.
XXVII.7 The Sicilian bull is kept concrete as the torture-device simile that makes artifice return pain through its maker. The Sicilian bull is kept concrete as the torture-device simile that makes artifice return pain through its maker.
XXVII.13–15 The fire has no via or opening, so the speech problem is physical before it becomes intelligible.
XXVII.13–15 The fire has no via or opening, so the speech problem is physical before it becomes intelligible. Line 13: The fire has no via or opening, so the speech problem is physical before it becomes intelligible.
XXVII.13 The fire has no via or opening, so the speech problem is physical before it becomes intelligible. The fire has no via or opening, so the speech problem is physical before it becomes intelligible.
The new flame recognizes Virgil's Lombard speech, asks about Romagna, and Virgil tells Dante to answer as an Italian speaker XXVII.19–33
19udimmo dire: «O tu a cu’ io drizzo
20la voce e che parlavi mo lombardo,
dicendo “Istra ten va, più non t’adizzo”,
perch’ io sia giunto forse alquanto tardo,
non t’incresca restare a parlar meco;
vedi che non incresce a me, e ardo!
25Se tu pur mo in questo mondo cieco
caduto se’ di quella dolce terra
latina ond’ io mia colpa tutta reco,
dimmi se Romagnuoli han pace o guerra;
ch’io fui d’i monti là intra Orbino
30e ’l giogo di che Tever si diserra».
Io era in giuso ancora attento e chino,
quando il mio duca mi tentò di costa,
dicendo: «Parla tu; questi è latino».
19we heard it say: "O you to whom I direct
20my voice, and who just now spoke Lombard,
saying, 'Now go your way; I spur you no more,'
though I have come perhaps somewhat late,
let it not displease you to stay and speak with me;
see that it does not displease me, and I burn!
25If you just now have fallen into this blind world
from that sweet Latin land
from which I carry all my guilt,
tell me whether the Romagnols have peace or war;
for I was from the mountains there between Urbino
30and the ridge from which the Tiber is unlocked."
I was still bent and attentive downward,
when my guide touched me in the ribs,
saying: "You speak; this one is Italian."
Commentary
The Lombard/Latin speech-recognition sequence echoes earlier Malebolge language scenes; Virgil now delegates speech to Dante because the sinner is modern and Italian rather than Greek.
XXVII.19–21 The voice reaches Virgil through the flame tip after the Ulysses episode closes. Istra is rendered by sense rather than preserved as dialect, though the word carries Lombard recognition pressure.
XXVII.19–21 The voice reaches Virgil through the flame tip after the Ulysses episode closes. Line 19: The voice reaches Virgil through the flame tip after the Ulysses episode closes. Line 21: Istra is rendered by sense rather than preserved as dialect, though the word carries Lombard recognition pressure.
XXVII.19 The voice reaches Virgil through the flame tip after the Ulysses episode closes. The voice reaches Virgil through the flame tip after the Ulysses episode closes.
XXVII.21 Istra is rendered by sense rather than preserved as dialect, though the word carries Lombard recognition pressure. Istra is rendered by sense rather than preserved as dialect, though the word carries Lombard recognition pressure.
XXVII.25–27 The blind world is Hell, while the speaker recognizes recent arrival from Italy by vernacular speech.
XXVII.25–27 The blind world is Hell, while the speaker recognizes recent arrival from Italy by vernacular speech. Line 25: The blind world is Hell, while the speaker recognizes recent arrival from Italy by vernacular speech.
XXVII.25 The blind world is Hell, while the speaker recognizes recent arrival from Italy by vernacular speech. The blind world is Hell, while the speaker recognizes recent arrival from Italy by vernacular speech.
XXVII.28–30 The Urbino-to-Tiber-source geography helps identify Guido da Montefeltro through the Montefeltro region.
XXVII.28–30 The Urbino-to-Tiber-source geography helps identify Guido da Montefeltro through the Montefeltro region. Line 30: Dante leaves Guido unnamed here; the birthplace between Urbino and the Tiber-source ridge is the geographical cue that helps identify him as Guido da Montefeltro.
XXVII.30 The Urbino-to-Tiber-source geography helps identify Guido da Montefeltro through the Montefeltro region. Dante leaves Guido unnamed here; the birthplace between Urbino and the Tiber-source ridge is the geographical cue that helps identify him as Guido da Montefeltro.
XXVII.31–33 latino is rendered by local sense as Italian; the word belongs to Dante's language-recognition field.
XXVII.31–33 latino is rendered by local sense as Italian; the word belongs to Dante's language-recognition field. Line 33: latino is rendered by local sense as Italian; the word belongs to Dante's language-recognition field.
XXVII.33 latino is rendered by local sense as Italian; the word belongs to Dante's language-recognition field. latino is rendered by local sense as Italian; the word belongs to Dante's language-recognition field.
Dante maps Romagna through war, tyrants, city emblems, factional beasts, and the unstable line between tyranny and freedom XXVII.34–57
34E io, ch’avea già pronta la risposta,
35sanza indugio a parlare incominciai:
«O anima che se’ là giù nascosta,
Romagna tua non è, e non fu mai,
sanza guerra ne’ cuor de’ suoi tiranni;
ma ’n palese nessuna or vi lasciai.
40Ravenna sta come stata è molt’ anni:
l’aguglia da Polenta la si cova,
sì che Cervia ricuopre co’ suoi vanni.
La terra che fé già la lunga prova
e di Franceschi sanguinoso mucchio,
45sotto le branche verdi si ritrova.
E ’l mastin vecchio e ’l nuovo da Verrucchio,
che fecer di Montagna il mal governo,
là dove soglion fan d’i denti succhio.
Le città di Lamone e di Santerno
50conduce il lïoncel dal nido bianco,
che muta parte da la state al verno.
E quella cu’ il Savio bagna il fianco,
così com’ ella sie’ tra ’l piano e ’l monte,
tra tirannia si vive e stato franco.
55Ora chi se’, ti priego che ne conte;
non esser duro più ch’altri sia stato,
se ’l nome tuo nel mondo tegna fronte».
34And I, who already had the answer ready,
35began to speak without delay:
"O soul who are hidden down there,
your Romagna is not, and never was,
without war in the hearts of its tyrants;
but I left no open war there now.
40Ravenna stands as it has stood for many years:
the eagle of Polenta broods over it,
so that it covers Cervia with its wings.
The city that once made the long test
and a bloody heap of Frenchmen
45finds itself beneath the green claws.
And the old mastiff and the new from Verrucchio,
who made bad governance of Montagna,
there, as they are used to, make drills of their teeth.
The cities of Lamone and Santerno
50the little lion from the white nest leads,
who changes side from summer to winter.
And that one whose flank the Savio bathes,
just as it sits between the plain and the mountain,
lives between tyranny and a free state.
55Now who you are, I beg you to tell us;
do not be harder than others have been,
so may your name keep its brow in the world."
Commentary
The Romagna catalogue covers Ravenna/Polenta/Cervia, Forli and the French defeat, Verrucchio/Malatesta/Montagna, Lamone/Santerno/Maghinardo, and Cesena/Savio political geography while the translation stays compact.
XXVII.37–39 Dante's reply turns Guido's question into a compact political map of Romagna.
XXVII.37–39 Dante's reply turns Guido's question into a compact political map of Romagna. Line 37: Dante's reply turns Guido's question into a compact political map of Romagna.
XXVII.37 Dante's reply turns Guido's question into a compact political map of Romagna. Dante's reply turns Guido's question into a compact political map of Romagna.
XXVII.40–42 The eagle of Polenta marks Ravenna and Cervia through the ruling family's emblem.
XXVII.40–42 The eagle of Polenta marks Ravenna and Cervia through the ruling family's emblem. Line 41: The eagle of Polenta marks Ravenna and Cervia through the ruling family's emblem.
XXVII.41 The eagle of Polenta marks Ravenna and Cervia through the ruling family's emblem. The eagle of Polenta marks Ravenna and Cervia through the ruling family's emblem.
XXVII.43–45 The French heap recalls Forli and Guido da Montefeltro's military history.
XXVII.43–45 The French heap recalls Forli and Guido da Montefeltro's military history. Line 44: The French heap recalls Forli and Guido da Montefeltro's military history.
XXVII.44 The French heap recalls Forli and Guido da Montefeltro's military history. The French heap recalls Forli and Guido da Montefeltro's military history.
XXVII.46–48 The mastiffs of Verrucchio and the tooth-drill image keep the predatory local rule concrete.
XXVII.46–48 The mastiffs of Verrucchio and the tooth-drill image keep the predatory local rule concrete. Line 48: The mastiffs of Verrucchio and the tooth-drill image keep the predatory local rule concrete.
XXVII.48 The mastiffs of Verrucchio and the tooth-drill image keep the predatory local rule concrete. The mastiffs of Verrucchio and the tooth-drill image keep the predatory local rule concrete.
XXVII.49–51 The little lion from the white nest points to the Pagani/Maghinardo emblem and shifting factional allegiance.
XXVII.49–51 The little lion from the white nest points to the Pagani/Maghinardo emblem and shifting factional allegiance. Line 50: Dante's little lion from a white nest supplies the heraldic cue, while the side-changing line carries the factional instability associated with Maghinardo de' Pagani.
XXVII.50 The little lion from the white nest points to the Pagani/Maghinardo emblem and shifting factional allegiance. Dante's little lion from a white nest supplies the heraldic cue, while the side-changing line carries the factional instability associated with Maghinardo de' Pagani.
XXVII.52–54 Cesena's geography between plain and mountain is matched to its political position between tyranny and liberty.
XXVII.52–54 Cesena's geography between plain and mountain is matched to its political position between tyranny and liberty. Line 54: Cesena's geography between plain and mountain is matched to its political position between tyranny and liberty.
XXVII.54 Cesena's geography between plain and mountain is matched to its political position between tyranny and liberty. Cesena's geography between plain and mountain is matched to its political position between tyranny and liberty.
XXVII.55–57 The brow of the name keeps reputation personified before Guido's fear of infamy.
XXVII.55–57 The brow of the name keeps reputation personified before Guido's fear of infamy. Line 57: The brow of the name keeps reputation personified before Guido's fear of infamy.
XXVII.57 The brow of the name keeps reputation personified before Guido's fear of infamy. The brow of the name keeps reputation personified before Guido's fear of infamy.
Guido speaks from the flame, hides behind a false no-return premise, and summarizes his armed life, Franciscan conversion, fox-craft, and nearly useful repentance XXVII.58–84
58Poscia che ’l foco alquanto ebbe rugghiato
al modo suo, l’aguta punta mosse
60di qua, di là, e poi diè cotal fiato:
«S’i’ credesse che mia risposta fosse
a persona che mai tornasse al mondo,
questa fiamma staria sanza più scosse;
ma però che già mai di questo fondo
65non tornò vivo alcun, s’i’ odo il vero,
sanza tema d’infamia ti rispondo.
Io fui uom d’arme, e poi fui cordigliero,
credendomi, sì cinto, fare ammenda;
e certo il creder mio venìa intero,
70se non fosse il gran prete, a cui mal prenda!,
che mi rimise ne le prime colpe;
e come e quare, voglio che m’intenda.
Mentre ch’io forma fui d’ossa e di polpe
che la madre mi diè, l’opere mie
75non furon leonine, ma di volpe.
Li accorgimenti e le coperte vie
io seppi tutte, e sì menai lor arte,
ch’al fine de la terra il suono uscie.
Quando mi vidi giunto in quella parte
80di mia etade ove ciascun dovrebbe
calar le vele e raccoglier le sarte,
ciò che pria mi piacëa, allor m’increbbe,
e pentuto e confesso mi rendei;
ahi miser lasso! e giovato sarebbe.
58After the fire had roared somewhat
in its own way, it moved the sharp point
60this way, that way, and then gave such breath:
"If I believed that my answer were
to a person who ever returned to the world,
this flame would stand without further shaking;
but since never from this depth
65did anyone return alive, if I hear truth,
without fear of infamy I answer you.
I was a man of arms, and then a corded friar,
believing, so girded, to make amends;
and surely my belief would have been fulfilled,
70had it not been for the great priest (may evil seize him!),
who set me back into my first sins;
and how and why, I want you to hear from me.
While I was the form of bones and flesh
that my mother gave me, my works
75were not lion-like, but those of a fox.
The stratagems and the hidden ways
I knew them all, and so plied their art
that to the end of the earth the sound went out.
When I saw myself arrived at that part
80of my age where everyone should
lower the sails and gather in the ropes,
what pleased me before then grieved me,
and repentant and confessed I surrendered myself;
alas, miserable wretch! and it would have helped.
Commentary
Guido's false confidence that no living person returns, his reputation anxiety, Franciscan cord, fox-craft, hidden ways, old-age sail image, repentance, and confession keep his self-account legally and spiritually unstable.
XXVII.61–63 Guido's opening premise makes his speech depend on a false belief that no living witness returns.
XXVII.61–63 Guido's opening premise makes his speech depend on a false belief that no living witness returns. Line 61: Guido's opening premise makes his speech depend on a false belief that no living witness returns.
XXVII.61 Guido's opening premise makes his speech depend on a false belief that no living witness returns. Guido's opening premise makes his speech depend on a false belief that no living witness returns.
XXVII.67–69 Corded friar keeps the Franciscan cord visible without expanding the line into explanation.
XXVII.67–69 Corded friar keeps the Franciscan cord visible without expanding the line into explanation. Line 67: Corded friar keeps the Franciscan cord visible without expanding the line into explanation.
XXVII.67 Corded friar keeps the Franciscan cord visible without expanding the line into explanation. Corded friar keeps the Franciscan cord visible without expanding the line into explanation.
XXVII.70–72 The great priest is Boniface VIII; the curse is kept direct while the name remains implicit as in Dante. How and why renders come e quare, preserving Guido's causal/legal self-explanation.
XXVII.70–72 The great priest is Boniface VIII; the curse is kept direct while the name remains implicit as in Dante. Line 70: The great priest is Boniface VIII; the curse is kept direct while the name remains implicit as in Dante. Line 72: How and why renders come e quare, preserving Guido's causal/legal self-explanation.
XXVII.70 The great priest is Boniface VIII; the curse is kept direct while the name remains implicit as in Dante. The great priest is Boniface VIII; the curse is kept direct while the name remains implicit as in Dante.
XXVII.72 How and why renders come e quare, preserving Guido's causal/legal self-explanation. How and why renders come e quare, preserving Guido's causal/legal self-explanation.
XXVII.73–75 The lion/fox opposition keeps force and fraud distinguished under Virgil's taxonomy of injury.
XXVII.73–75 The lion/fox opposition keeps force and fraud distinguished under Virgil's taxonomy of injury. Line 75: The lion/fox opposition keeps force and fraud distinguished under Virgil's taxonomy of injury.
XXVII.75 The lion/fox opposition keeps force and fraud distinguished under Virgil's taxonomy of injury. The lion/fox opposition keeps force and fraud distinguished under Virgil's taxonomy of injury.
XXVII.76–78 Hidden ways links military craft, fraud, and the flame's concealment.
XXVII.76–78 Hidden ways links military craft, fraud, and the flame's concealment. Line 76: Hidden ways links military craft, fraud, and the flame's concealment.
XXVII.76 Hidden ways links military craft, fraud, and the flame's concealment. Hidden ways links military craft, fraud, and the flame's concealment.
XXVII.79–81 The lowered sails and gathered ropes set Guido against Ulysses' old-age voyage.
XXVII.79–81 The lowered sails and gathered ropes set Guido against Ulysses' old-age voyage. Line 81: The lowered sails and gathered ropes set Guido against Ulysses' old-age voyage.
XXVII.81 The lowered sails and gathered ropes set Guido against Ulysses' old-age voyage. The lowered sails and gathered ropes set Guido against Ulysses' old-age voyage.
XXVII.82–84 The line keeps both repentance and confession as sacramental preparation before Boniface's intervention.
XXVII.82–84 The line keeps both repentance and confession as sacramental preparation before Boniface's intervention. Line 83: The line keeps both repentance and confession as sacramental preparation before Boniface's intervention.
XXVII.83 The line keeps both repentance and confession as sacramental preparation before Boniface's intervention. The line keeps both repentance and confession as sacramental preparation before Boniface's intervention.
Guido recounts Boniface VIII's Christian war, disregard of office and Franciscan cord, promised absolution, papal keys, and the counsel to take Palestrina by false promise XXVII.85–111
85Lo principe d’i novi Farisei,
avendo guerra presso a Laterano,
e non con Saracin né con Giudei,
ché ciascun suo nimico era cristiano,
e nessun era stato a vincer Acri
90né mercatante in terra di Soldano,
né sommo officio né ordini sacri
guardò in sé, né in me quel capestro
che solea fare i suoi cinti più macri.
Ma come Costantin chiese Silvestro
95d’entro Siratti a guerir de la lebbre,
così mi chiese questi per maestro
a guerir de la sua superba febbre;
domandommi consiglio, e io tacetti
perché le sue parole parver ebbre.
100E’ poi ridisse: “Tuo cuor non sospetti;
finor t’assolvo, e tu m’insegna fare
sì come Penestrino in terra getti.
Lo ciel poss’ io serrare e diserrare,
come tu sai; però son due le chiavi
105che ’l mio antecessor non ebbe care”.
Allor mi pinser li argomenti gravi
là ’ve ’l tacer mi fu avviso ’l peggio,
e dissi: “Padre, da che tu mi lavi
di quel peccato ov’ io mo cader deggio,
110lunga promessa con l’attender corto
ti farà trïunfar ne l’alto seggio”.
85The prince of the new Pharisees,
waging war near the Lateran,
and not against Saracens nor Jews,
since every enemy of his was Christian,
and none had gone to conquer Acre
90or been a merchant in the Sultan's land,
regarded neither the highest office nor holy orders
in himself, nor in me that halter
that used to make those girded with it leaner.
But as Constantine sought Sylvester
95inside Soracte to cure him of leprosy,
so this man sought me as a master
to cure him of his proud fever;
he asked me for counsel, and I kept silent
because his words seemed drunk.
100Then he said again: "Let your heart not mistrust;
from now I absolve you; and teach me how
to throw Palestrina to the ground.
Heaven I can lock and unlock,
as you know; therefore the keys are two
105that my predecessor did not hold dear."
Then the weighty arguments pushed me
where silence seemed to me the worse course,
and I said: "Father, since you wash me
of that sin into which I now must fall,
110a long promise with a short fulfillment
will make you triumph on the high throne."
Commentary
The passage brings together Boniface VIII, the new Pharisee frame, Lateran proximity, Christian enemies, Acre/Sultan contrast, papal keys, Constantine/Sylvester, Palestrina, and the fraudulent long-promise counsel.
XXVII.85–87 The new Pharisees frame Boniface's war as hypocritical ecclesiastical power.
XXVII.85–87 The new Pharisees frame Boniface's war as hypocritical ecclesiastical power. Line 85: The new Pharisees frame Boniface's war as hypocritical ecclesiastical power.
XXVII.85 The new Pharisees frame Boniface's war as hypocritical ecclesiastical power. The new Pharisees frame Boniface's war as hypocritical ecclesiastical power.
XXVII.88–90 Acre and the Sultan's land distinguish crusade or trade from Boniface's war against Christians.
XXVII.88–90 Acre and the Sultan's land distinguish crusade or trade from Boniface's war against Christians. Line 89: Acre and the Sultan's land distinguish crusade or trade from Boniface's war against Christians.
XXVII.89 Acre and the Sultan's land distinguish crusade or trade from Boniface's war against Christians. Acre and the Sultan's land distinguish crusade or trade from Boniface's war against Christians.
XXVII.91–93 Halter is deliberately harsher than cord here, matching Guido's accusation that Boniface disregarded his Franciscan sign.
XXVII.91–93 Halter is deliberately harsher than cord here, matching Guido's accusation that Boniface disregarded his Franciscan sign. Line 92: Halter is deliberately harsher than cord here, matching Guido's accusation that Boniface disregarded his Franciscan sign.
XXVII.92 Halter is deliberately harsher than cord here, matching Guido's accusation that Boniface disregarded his Franciscan sign. Halter is deliberately harsher than cord here, matching Guido's accusation that Boniface disregarded his Franciscan sign.
XXVII.94–96 Constantine and Sylvester introduce the healing/pope/emperor reversal behind Boniface's request.
XXVII.94–96 Constantine and Sylvester introduce the healing/pope/emperor reversal behind Boniface's request. Line 94: Constantine and Sylvester introduce the healing/pope/emperor reversal behind Boniface's request.
XXVII.94 Constantine and Sylvester introduce the healing/pope/emperor reversal behind Boniface's request. Constantine and Sylvester introduce the healing/pope/emperor reversal behind Boniface's request.
XXVII.97–99 The proud fever is Boniface's political disease, not penitential healing.
XXVII.97–99 The proud fever is Boniface's political disease, not penitential healing. Line 97: The proud fever is Boniface's political disease, not penitential healing.
XXVII.97 The proud fever is Boniface's political disease, not penitential healing. The proud fever is Boniface's political disease, not penitential healing.
XXVII.100–102 The anticipatory absolution is the theological crux: the line preserves Boniface's present-tense claim.
XXVII.100–102 The anticipatory absolution is the theological crux: the line preserves Boniface's present-tense claim. Line 101: The anticipatory absolution is the theological crux: the line preserves Boniface's present-tense claim.
XXVII.101 The anticipatory absolution is the theological crux: the line preserves Boniface's present-tense claim. The anticipatory absolution is the theological crux: the line preserves Boniface's present-tense claim.
XXVII.103–105 The keys remain real signs of office while Boniface misuses their meaning.
XXVII.103–105 The keys remain real signs of office while Boniface misuses their meaning. Line 103: The keys remain real signs of office while Boniface misuses their meaning.
XXVII.103 The keys remain real signs of office while Boniface misuses their meaning. The keys remain real signs of office while Boniface misuses their meaning.
XXVII.109–111 Long promise and short fulfillment is Guido's fraudulent counsel for taking Palestrina.
XXVII.109–111 Long promise and short fulfillment is Guido's fraudulent counsel for taking Palestrina. Line 110: Long promise and short fulfillment is Guido's fraudulent counsel for taking Palestrina.
XXVII.110 Long promise and short fulfillment is Guido's fraudulent counsel for taking Palestrina. Long promise and short fulfillment is Guido's fraudulent counsel for taking Palestrina.
Francis comes for Guido, but the black cherub claims him by the law that one cannot be absolved while willing the sin XXVII.112–129
112Francesco venne poi, com’ io fu’ morto,
per me; ma un d’i neri cherubini
li disse: “Non portar: non mi far torto.
115Venir se ne dee giù tra ’ miei meschini
perché diede ’l consiglio frodolente,
dal quale in qua stato li sono a’ crini;
ch’assolver non si può chi non si pente,
né pentere e volere insieme puossi
120per la contradizion che nol consente”.
Oh me dolente! come mi riscossi
quando mi prese dicendomi: “Forse
tu non pensavi ch’io löico fossi!”.
A Minòs mi portò; e quelli attorse
125otto volte la coda al dosso duro;
e poi che per gran rabbia la si morse,
disse: “Questi è d’i rei del foco furo”;
per ch’io là dove vedi son perduto,
e sì vestito, andando, mi rancuro».
112Francis came afterward, when I was dead,
for me; but one of the black cherubim
said to him: "Do not carry him off; do me no wrong.
115He must come down among my wretches
because he gave the fraudulent counsel,
since which I have been at his hair;
for one who does not repent cannot be absolved,
nor can one repent and will together,
120because of the contradiction that does not allow it."
O sorrowful me! how I shook
when he seized me, saying to me: "Perhaps
you did not think I was a logician!"
He carried me to Minos; and he twisted
125his tail eight times around his hard back;
and after, in great rage, he had bitten it,
he said: "This one belongs among the guilty of the thieving fire";
because of this I am lost where you see me,
and, so clothed, as I go, I rue myself."
Commentary
Francis, the black cherub, anticipatory absolution, repentance versus willing, contradiction, Minos' eighth tail-turn, and the thieving fire make the demon's argument expose Guido's failed will rather than become generic legalism.
XXVII.112–114 Francis' arrival tests Guido's hoped-for Franciscan death against the actual state of his will.
XXVII.112–114 Francis' arrival tests Guido's hoped-for Franciscan death against the actual state of his will. Line 112: Francis' arrival tests Guido's hoped-for Franciscan death against the actual state of his will.
XXVII.112 Francis' arrival tests Guido's hoped-for Franciscan death against the actual state of his will. Francis' arrival tests Guido's hoped-for Franciscan death against the actual state of his will.
XXVII.115–117 The black cherub names the category explicitly: consiglio frodolente, fraudulent counsel.
XXVII.115–117 The black cherub names the category explicitly: consiglio frodolente, fraudulent counsel. Line 116: The black cherub names the category explicitly: consiglio frodolente, fraudulent counsel.
XXVII.116 The black cherub names the category explicitly: consiglio frodolente, fraudulent counsel. The black cherub names the category explicitly: consiglio frodolente, fraudulent counsel.
XXVII.118–120 The demon's legal-theological argument distinguishes absolution from impossible unrepentant willing.
XXVII.118–120 The demon's legal-theological argument distinguishes absolution from impossible unrepentant willing. Line 118: The demon's legal-theological argument distinguishes absolution from impossible unrepentant willing.
XXVII.118 The demon's legal-theological argument distinguishes absolution from impossible unrepentant willing. The demon's legal-theological argument distinguishes absolution from impossible unrepentant willing.
XXVII.121–123 The devil's logic is dialectical rather than wise: he can use contradiction against Guido.
XXVII.121–123 The devil's logic is dialectical rather than wise: he can use contradiction against Guido. Line 123: The devil's logic is dialectical rather than wise: he can use contradiction against Guido.
XXVII.123 The devil's logic is dialectical rather than wise: he can use contradiction against Guido. The devil's logic is dialectical rather than wise: he can use contradiction against Guido.
XXVII.127–129 The eighth turn of Minos' tail assigns Guido to Malebolge's eighth bolgia. I rue myself keeps Guido's ongoing self-torment inside the flame-clothing image.
XXVII.127–129 The eighth turn of Minos' tail assigns Guido to Malebolge's eighth bolgia. Line 127: The eighth turn of Minos' tail assigns Guido to Malebolge's eighth bolgia. Line 129: I rue myself keeps Guido's ongoing self-torment inside the flame-clothing image.
XXVII.127 The eighth turn of Minos' tail assigns Guido to Malebolge's eighth bolgia. The eighth turn of Minos' tail assigns Guido to Malebolge's eighth bolgia.
XXVII.129 I rue myself keeps Guido's ongoing self-torment inside the flame-clothing image. I rue myself keeps Guido's ongoing self-torment inside the flame-clothing image.
Guido's grieving flame twists away, and the poets move to the next bolgia where division gains its burden XXVII.130–136
130Quand’ elli ebbe ’l suo dir così compiuto,
la fiamma dolorando si partio,
torcendo e dibattendo ’l corno aguto.
Noi passamm’ oltre, e io e ’l duca mio,
su per lo scoglio infino in su l’altr’ arco
135che cuopre ’l fosso in che si paga il fio
a quei che scommettendo acquistan carco.
130When he had so completed his speech,
the flame departed grieving,
twisting and beating its sharp horn.
We passed farther on, both I and my guide,
up along the crag until above the next arch
135that covers the ditch in which the penalty is paid
by those who, sundering, gain their burden.
Commentary
The twisting flame, sharp horn, and handoff to the ninth bolgia carry the canto out of fraudulent counsel toward schism and division through the burden language of carco.
XXVII.130–132 Twisting and beating the horn mirrors the contorted flame-speech and Guido's fraudulent counsel.
XXVII.130–132 Twisting and beating the horn mirrors the contorted flame-speech and Guido's fraudulent counsel. Line 132: Twisting and beating the horn mirrors the contorted flame-speech and Guido's fraudulent counsel.
XXVII.132 Twisting and beating the horn mirrors the contorted flame-speech and Guido's fraudulent counsel. Twisting and beating the horn mirrors the contorted flame-speech and Guido's fraudulent counsel.
XXVII.136 The closing line hands off to the ninth bolgia: those who set others at odds acquire guilt as burden. Scommettendo points to setting apart or dividing, while carco keeps the burden language concrete; the next canto frames the ninth bolgia around sowers of discord and schism.