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The Complete Danteworlds: A Reader's Guide to the Divine Comedy

by Guy P. Raffa (Author)
4.7 4.7 out of 5 stars 59 ratings
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Dante Alighieri’s Divine Comedy has, despite its enormous popularity and importance, often stymied readers with its multitudinous characters, references, and themes. But until the publication in 2007 of Guy Raffa’s guide to the Inferno, students lacked a suitable resource to help them navigate Dante’s underworld. With this new guide to the entire Divine Comedy, Raffa provides readers—experts in the Middle Ages and Renaissance, Dante neophytes, and everyone in between—with a map of the entire poem, from the lowest circle of Hell to the highest sphere of Paradise.

Based on Raffa’s original research and his many years of teaching the poem to undergraduates, The CompleteDanteworlds charts a simultaneously geographical and textual journey, canto by canto, region by region, adhering closely to the path taken by Dante himself through Hell, Purgatory, and Paradise. This invaluable reference also features study questions, illustrations of the realms, and regional summaries. Interpreting Dante’s poem and his sources, Raffa fashions detailed entries on each character encountered as well as on many significant historical, religious, and cultural allusions.
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  1. ISBN-10
    0226702693
  2. ISBN-13
    978-0226702698
  3. Publisher
    University of Chicago Press
  4. Publication date
    May 15, 2009
  5. Language
    English
  6. Dimensions
    5.5 x 1 x 8.5 inches
  7. Print length
    392 pages
  8. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

Review

“In no sense is this just another Cliffs Notes approach to Dante. In my view, this guide to Dante’s poetry is clearly the very best single book available for any student or interested general reader. The commentary and structure of the guide constitute a very impressive work of scholarship in that it admirably fulfills its goal of presenting Dante’s poem in all of its complexity without reductionism. Raffa has managed to hit exactly the right balance between providing information to readers and challenging them to use sources and Dante scholarship to come to grips with the meaning of the poem.”

-- Peter Bondanella, Distinguished Professor Emeritus of Comparative Literature, Film Studies, and Italian, Indiana University Published On: 2008-12-04

“Danteworlds—the book and the website—makes the Comedy’s universal message accessible and meaningful to all readers. In his superbly written and always engaging presentation of the three realms of the afterlife Guy Raffa displays the rare ability to see, as it were, both the forest and the trees, capturing the grand outlines and shape of Dante’s poem as well as identifying and providing incisive commentary on its myriad components—people, places, events, themes. Not only will first-time readers of the Comedy appreciate Raffa’s meticulous overview, but seasoned scholars will also profit from his many critical insights. Danteworlds will have a major impact on the ways we read, teach, and study the Comedy.”

-- Christopher Kleinhenz, Carol Mason Kirk Professor Emeritus of Italian, University of Wisconsin-Madison Published On: 2009-01-06

"This useful study guide, aimed at the student or non-specialist reader, provides a detailed canto-by-canto summary of the Divine Comedy, together with explanations of the many literary, mythological, historical, and political allusions throughout the poem." ― Medium Aevum

 “Raffa’s volume, whose apt title captures the panoramic nature of his enterprise, makes comprehensible the nexus between the topographical journey undertaken by the poem’s protagonist. . . . At the same time, Raffa does not ignore the poet’s sources, and the overview of precursorial visions of the afterlife provided at the commencement of the volume help to elucidate the original features of the Comedy’s conceptual framework. . . . Under the author’s skillful guidance, the world of Dante’s creative output is lucidly explored and engagingly presented.” ― Forum Italicum

"Guy P. Raffa‘s accessible and in-depth guide offers a variety of cues
essential in interpreting Dante‘s infinite references." ― Annali d’Italianistica

About the Author


Guy P. Raffa is associate professor of Italian at the University of Texas at Austin. He is the author of Danteworlds: A Reader’s Guide to the Inferno, also published by the University of Chicago Press.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ University of Chicago Press (May 15, 2009)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 392 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0226702693
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0226702698
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.25 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.5 x 1 x 8.5 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.7 4.7 out of 5 stars 59 ratings

About the author

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Guy P. Raffa

Guy P. Raffa

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Guy Raffa is an award-winning scholar, teacher, and digital humanist who writes and speaks on Dante Alighieri’s life, works, and legacy. In addition to books, he has written essays on a wide range of Dante-related topics, from medieval battles, the Revolutionary War, the Civil War, and Google, to Mad Men, marriage equality, Dan Brown, Baseball Beards, and racial justice. He created the Danteworlds website, a multimedia tour of Hell, Purgatory, and Paradise. See more at guyraffa.com.

Customer reviews

4.7 out of 5 stars
4.7 out of 5
59 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Craig Attaway
5.0 out of 5 stars A Must-Have For Any (Serious) Dante Reader
Reviewed in the United States on January 30, 2024
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If you're delving into Dante's Comedy, this book is essential. I recommend this book be read in tandem with Joseph Gallagher's "A Modern Reader's Guide to Dante's The Divine Comedy." Both Raffa and Gallagher offer brilliant and insightful background information about the person, life, and mind of Dante.
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Bill
5.0 out of 5 stars Great Companion to the Divine Comedy
Reviewed in the United States on December 14, 2020
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I have had multiple friends who are interested in reading the Divine Comedy. This is one of the first books I give them.

There are many good sources to assist you as you work your way through the Divine Comedy. This is one of the best. Even if you have read Dante in the past, this is definitely worth reading. My copy is so tatered from referencing it that I am believe I am going to have to get another copy soon.
3 people found this helpful
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David S. Wellhauser
4.0 out of 5 stars Useful Entry Point into the Work of Dante
Reviewed in the United States on September 19, 2014
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Guy Raffa’s The Complete Danteworlds is an excellent entry text for coming to terms with the forbidding world of Medieval Florentine/Italian history and politics as well as an excellent book for explaining Dante’s Divine Comedy.

It appears to have been written with educators, high school teachers at least, in mind, for at the end of each chapter there are a list of study questions.

The writing is clear but occasionally condescending—there are several instance in which Mr. Raffa speaks down to the reader by offering information on biblical references that anyone with a passing acquaintance of Western intellectual history would have, or could easily look up. For this reason this book has lost one star in its rating. There may, of course, be those who miss these references but how could they be interested in Dante? Personal opinion, but, really, how can you be interested in the Divine Comedy without at least an intellectual interest in religion?

Excepting the above, mild, criticism this is an excellent work and a very good entry point for any reader interested in digging deeper into Dante than the text.

Rating 4 out of 5 stars
One person found this helpful
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MomPuffin.
5.0 out of 5 stars Critical Reading to take on the Journey
Reviewed in the United States on October 28, 2011
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Two years ago, I thought it high time to undertake Dante's Commedia. Having a doctorate in philosophy, and more recently having steeped myself in Classical Literature and Mythology, I was still insufficiently girded to proceed beyond the first few Cantos.
Flipping through critical books on the library's shelves, I encountered Raffa's book along with two others and headed home. Within days, it was immediately apparent that THIS was THE book I myself needed to catapult myself over whatever obstacles which I had perceived there to be. Indeed I purchased a copy through Amazon of which I made photocopies of a few pages for a young student. Next I purchased for him his own copy.
At the same time,I had ordered another book by a notable and widely respected academic company; it was a compilation of essays about Dante, his life, his time, his sources and his legacy. Raffa's book, however, rendered Dante accessible for the beginning student. I recommend it highly.

R. A. Sheehan, Ph.D.
19 people found this helpful
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David Hoffman
5.0 out of 5 stars Reader's Guide to the Afterlife
Reviewed in the United States on January 15, 2012
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Dante Alghieri's Divine Comedy is one of the great classics of world literature, and a personal favorite of mine. Unfortunately, unless the reader is familiar with the Bible, Christian theology, classical mythology, and medieval Italian politics, he is going to miss many of the allusions in this great poem. Of course, it is possible to enjoy reading the Divine Comedy without knowing very much about all the people Dante encounters but it is so much better if you have a guide with you, as Dante had Virgil.
The Complete DanteWorlds by Guy P. Raffa is the perfect guide to the Divine Comedy. In this adaptation of his website, Raffa takes the reader through each section of Hell, Purgatory, and Paradise, explaining who every person or creature Dante encounters is and every allusion made in his poem. He clarifies some of the more obscure points in the poem and generally greatly enriches the experience of reading Dante. Don't go to Hell without it!
29 people found this helpful
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jack lauder
5.0 out of 5 stars What sparknotes could be (and should be) for high schoolers.
Reviewed in the United States on December 10, 2019
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This is the sparknotes type of guide that every English teacher should use for their class as it goes through the entire work and not just the first third. It breaks down each book into easily comprehensible sections of cantos, a must for understanding for sure.

I recommend this title for use along with Dante in absolute spades.
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richard iii
4.0 out of 5 stars Very Valuable for Appreciating Dante's Divine Comedy
Reviewed in the United States on January 26, 2016
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I'm fairly knowledgeable on the Bible and English Medieval History but do not have a strong background in Greek/Roman mythology nor Medieval Italian history so a reader's guide was imperative to make sense of Dante's Divine Comedy. I don't have another product to compare the Raffa Reader's Guide to but I was completely satisfied with the much needed assistance this provided.
3 people found this helpful
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Amy Richter
5.0 out of 5 stars Astute Guide
Reviewed in the United States on January 8, 2022
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This reader's guide offers a number of important insights into The Divine Comedy.
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Top reviews from other countries

Robert Garton
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on June 17, 2017
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A must buy for anyone reading Dante's ' Devine Comedy'. Excellent
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Amazon Customer
4.0 out of 5 stars One of the best introductory books for the Divine Comedy
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 21, 2018
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Although it’s not entertaining to read, this is one of the most accessible and helpful books for the general public readers of Dante’ DC that i’ve read so far. It might be good to read Divine Comedy accompanying with this book as a reference.
One person found this helpful
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