Citings & Sightings of Dante's Works in Contemporary Culture
Among scheming serial killer Paul Spector’s books in his clandestine
hotel room is THE INFERNO. His 16-year-old minion, Katie Benedetto,
reads out the first few verses in a beautiful Italian. Paul then
attacks Katie, and in the following episode, she breaks into his hotel
room and leaves a not-so-nice message in lipstick on the bathroom
mirror. –Adam Glynn (Bowdoin College ’17)
“The Smithsonian’s new memorial of African American history and culture is at once triumphant and crushing.” […]
“The descent and ascent achieve an effect similar to Dante’s harrowing journey in Inferno, and the walk upwards through Reconstruction, Redemption, the civil-rights movement, and into the present day is a reminder of the constant push and pull of horror and protest.” –Vann R. Newkirk II, The Atlantic, September 23, 2016
Contributed by Pamela Montanaro
Retired from Hell, Paolo Says It Was Heaven
Inferno V
Aroused beside her, I went mute
because my every word was pinned
to shredded semaphores of wind,
and my resistance now was moot.
Her gentleness put on a storm.
Beauty without a stitch of cloth’s
a bonfire crackling with moths.
I rose and tumbled with her form.
She flared. Maybe I seemed depraved
to those who watch the sun’s eclipse
through a glass, darkly, but I caved
in, helpless, when she twitched her hips.
Our favored region was the nether
as we held tight against the weather.
Measure: A Review of Formal Poetry, vol. 10, no. 2 (2015)
“Come avrebbe reagito Dante Alighieri davanti all’Oulipo? Scopriamolo su Betwyll con #Stilnovo a settembre, preparandoci alla mostra ‘Il volto di Dante, per una traduzione contemporanea.’ […]
“Giocheremo a #Stilnovo sperimentando un approccio diverso, oltre al consueto: ogni giorno leggeremo e commenteremo una parte della poesia seguendo una delle regole elaborate dall’Oulipo e messe in pratica da Raymond Queneau nei suoi Esercizi di stile. Ogni giorno, i partecipanti potranno perciò trascurare nei loro tweet e twyll l’uso di particolari lettere (lipogramma), oppure riscrivere la strofa al passato remoto, o ancora commentarne il contenuto con un tweet formale e burocratico, facendo paragoni gastronomici o cromatici.”
All submissions will be considered for posting. Bibliographic references and scholarly essays are also welcome for consideration.
Coggeshall, Elizabeth, and Arielle Saiber, eds. Dante Today: Citings and Sightings of Dante’s Works in Contemporary Culture. Website. Access date.
