Pope Francis has named the Divine Comedy as the official book of the Year of Mercy. We now begin the second part of the Comedy, the Purgatorio.
Handouts are below:
Listen online [here]!
Dante’s
Purgatorio
Introduction
I. Outline of sessions: Thursdays from May
19th to June 16th
A. Sessions
1. May 19th:
Introduction, Cantos 1-3
2. May 26th:
Ante-purgatory, Cantos 4-9
3. June 2nd:
Bad love, Cantos 10-17
4. June 9th:
Too little or too much love, Cantos 18-26
5. June 16th:
Earthly Paradise, 27-33
B. Reading schedule
May: Purgatorio,
Cantos 3-11
June: Purgatorio,
Cantos 12-20
July: Purgatorio,
Cantos 21-29
August: Purgatorio,
Cantos 30-33; Paradiso 1-5
September: Paradiso,
Cantos 6-14
October: Paradiso,
Cantos 15-24
November: Paradiso,
Cantos 25-33
II. Introduction to the Purgatorio
A. Map
of Purgatory (see handouts)
1. Ante-purgatory
a.
The island
b.
The excommunicated (cf. St Thomas, ST Suppl. q. 21, [a.4])
c.
The negligent
2. Purgatory (the seven capital sins)
a.
Bad love (the proud, envious, wrathful)
b.
Too little love (the slothful)
c.
Too much love (the avaricious, the gluttons, the lustful)
3. The Earthly Paradise
a.
The Heavenly Pageant
b.
Beatrice
c.
Final purification
B.
Differences between Hell and Purgatory
1.
Purification rather than punishment (soul’s move
when they wish)
2.
True friendship (with each other, with Dante,
with God)
3.
Humility (none defends himself, each accuses
himself)
4.
Angels rather than demons
5.
Hell is only darkness, heaven is only light,
purgatory is light/darkness (sleep)
6.
Two pilgrims in purgatory, and Virgil leaves at
the end
