Dante's Inferno: Translations by 20 Contemporary Poets

Dante's Inferno: Translations by 20 Contemporary Poets by Dante. hardcover edition. ISBN: 9780880012911.

This exciting new translation of Dantes masterpiece, considered by many the greatest poem ever written, brings together twenty of our most distinguished contemporary poets. One of the most important works of our literary and social imagination, Dantes Inferno has been translated by poets and scholars throughout the ages, but never before have so many talented voices worked in concert with each other and with Dante to produce this most compelling book of the Commedia. Dantes unique combination of formal and imaginative genius demands that only those in complete command of their own language should undertake to translate his. As James Merrill reminds us in his introduction, "masterpieces are timeless, but their translations date, and need redoing." This remarkable collaboration puts one of our "sacred texts" back into the hands of the keepers of the language, the poets themselves. Readers new to Dante will find a convincing and exciting tale of inner and outer exploration, and for the initiated, a Dante who speaks, in English, with a new lyrical power.