OVERVIEW

Fr. Thomas Esposito is an Assistant Professor of Theology at the University of Dallas. He teaches courses in World Religions, Old and New Testament, and Biblical Greek.

Questions for Reflection

• In recent cantos, Dante has presented himself in some degree of contrast or competition with other great poets: Ovid, Lucan, perhaps even Virgil himself. Why do you think Dante is asserting his poetic genius here and now? Why draw a distinction between himself and his poetic forebears? Is the difference primarily poetic or is there a moral aspect as well?
• Why would these violent scenes of metamorphosis be the imagined justice against thievery? What is Dante revealing about the nature of sin here?
• Given Vanni’s blasphemous gesture that opens the canto, are we to believe that there is an integral connection between religious blasphemy and the act of thievery?