The terraces of Mount Purgatory, starting at pride and moving up beyond lust to the final staircase of the climb. Here are the episodes for PURGATORIO, Cantos X through XXVII, from the moment the pilgrim realizes what’s at stake until the climax of Virgil’s character in the poem. The episodes are in reverse order, so scroll to find what you want.

Posts tagged irony

PURGATORIO, Episode 211. The Flames Don't Burn Up Irony: PURGATORIO, Canto XXVII, Lines 49 - 90

Our pilgrim, Dante, gets into the flames of lust and comes out to a call for the redeemed to enter Paradise. Except those flames don’t burn up irony. Instead, they cause us to imagine the damned Virgil inside them. And we find out that our pilgrim isn’t perhaps as redeemed as we might first think.

Mark ScarbroughSeptember 24, 2025Purgatorio XXVII, Purgatorio, Purgatory, The terrace of lust, Love, irony, Dante's poeticsComment

PURGATORIO, Episode 173. Dante And Irony

An interpolated episode about Dante and irony: what it is, what are its literary forms, and how does Dante use irony in his own text to create the depths of meaning we find in COMEDY. Simple v. situational irony. Then dramatic, cosmic, and creative irony, all techniques our poet uses.

Mark ScarbroughMay 14, 2025irony, Dante's poeticsComment