FROM DAN TO DANTE

I finished reading the book Inferno by Dan Brown.  In this book, the author’s imagination took him to make Dante’s Divine Comedy the main tool to stir up the story.  I had no knowledge about the Divine Comedy until Dan Brown made Inferno.   And so because of curiosity I just needed to find out what Divine Comedy is all about.  Wikipedia, Goodread, Youtube and Game.  Yes there is a game called Dante;s Inferno which is based on the first part of the Divine Comedy.  And there was this black and white and no talk film of Dante’s Inferno done in the days of Charlie Chaplin’s time I guess.  I watched a bit of it and I got bored and nauseated because the screen was wiggling once and a while and there was no sound – no talk and no music.  And my impression was that it was badly made.  There was this scene that there were dozens of naked guys sleeping or dead and lying on the ground and there was this one naked guy who raised his head and looked at the camera probably wondering if the camera is on.  I guess during those times when films were rather new, people wouldn’t give the heck about small blunders in midst of the experiencing something new.  I was just guessing.  And so I decided to read the Divine Comedy instead.  I learned that Divine Comedy made quite an impact back then and there were numerous famous people who were inspired by Dante’s Epic Poem.  Poem, songs, painting, games were made out of their inspiration with Dante’ Work.  Until now, now that Mr Brown made a novel out of it. I like the novel but there is something which I am less satisfied about.  I don’t want to be a spoiler but what puzzles me in the ending is that I had a hard time relating Inferno’s wrath to the end result of the scheme of the “villain” in the novel.  I mean the “villain” literally eliminated one of what the Vatican is fighting against.  The “villain” was not so villain after all.  Naaah, I was just jokingly messing around.  I know there would be a lot more serious hang-ups of the aftermath which some people would consider hell.  I stop there before I reveal too much.  Anyhow back to Dante.  I find that Dante was romantic.  Beatrice: the love of his life.  Inferno is just the first part of Divine Comedy.  The last two parts were Purgatorio and Paradiso.  My impression with Epic Poem is that it is not just about what one should see in afterlife and guide to spiritual salvation.  It was also obvious that he was trying to make way to motivate people to do political actions.  Some may interpret the poem to be all political and that the guidance to salvation is just a front liner.   During those times in Italy, that could be the case.  Interpretation may vary overtime, I believe.  But are there changes, really politically? Spiritually?  While I was reading it, I found some horrid punishments from some human faults which I find in the age of computers, internets, generation-x and what have you to be just ordinary human hang-ups or simple human quirkiness.  Are we letting loose too much of our conscience?  Are we becoming too relaxed about damnation?  Don’t worry.  Be happy.  Think positive and erase all the negativity. And so let us sin and be positive that nothing will happen.  That doesn’t sound right.  I am glad that I have read it.  It might have helped me to get back to my senses.  This reminds me that God is not kidding.  There is an afterlife.  Where you want to go is what you should be right now.