''Nel mezzo del cammin di nostra vita,
mi ritrovai per una selva oscura,
ché la diritta via era smarrita.''
Dante, The Divine Comedy
Well, of course it is The Divine Comedy. The first three lines. Translated it means:
“Midway upon the journey of our life, I found myself within a forest dark, for the straightforward pathway had been lost.”
I read it all during my university years, in English, from Inferno to Paradisio. One of my Italian friends teased me saying that one cannot appreciate Dante if one does not read him in Italian, and thus that I should read it in the original language, my poor knowledge of Italian at the time be darned. My Italian now is still not up to scratch for Dante. A darn shame. I quoted Dante because I am still 35, midway in a man's life's journey, and because it is my birthday soon. And I thought this blog needed a bit of literary depth and meaning.
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3 comments:
I was listening to a cross-Canada radio call-in show today and one lady said her husbands family were the publishers of Dante's books in Venice way back when.. Interesting that you bring his work up too.
35? Don't wander off into the dark wood of a mid-life crisis! Not unless you've got the money to buy a sports car.
Thanks for commenting, you two.
@Gwen-Very interesting. Funny coincidence too.
@Debra-Well, the mid-life crisis of Dante was far more sinister and epic than our modern ones.
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