Purgatorio XX — Walking With Dante Across His Known Universe

PURGATORIO, Episode 163. Fear And Trembling On The Mountain: PURGATORIO, Canto XX, Lines 124 - 151

Dante the pilgrim and Virgil resume their walk along the fifth terrace of Purgatory, picking their way among the avaricious, when they’re brought to a stop by a mighty earthquake and much singing. Dante is afraid. Virgil tells him not to be . . . although Virgil seems afraid. There are references to divine births. And the walk continues apace.

Mark ScarbroughApril 9, 2025Purgatorio XX, Purgatorio, Purgatory, The terrace of the avaracious, The terrace of avariceComment

PURGATORIO, Episode 162. Hugh Capet's Antiphon: PURGATORIO, Canto XX, Lines 97 - 123

Hugh Capet abruptly turns from the pilgrim Dante’s first question about who he was to his second question about why the pilgrim only heard Hugh’s voice on the fifth terrace of avarice. Along the way, Hugh Capet offers a brief but well-stocked list of those who have been done in by greed. Then he offers a curious, curt ending to his monologue: a person does as much as they want.

PURGATORIO, Episode 161. The Depths Of The French Monarchy's Evil: PURGATORIO, Canto XX, Lines 82 - 96

Hugh Capet, the almost legendary founder of the Capetian line of Frankish/French kings, winds up his monologue with a shocking turn of events: The French monarchy has become so bad that it has made the papacy under Boniface VIII, Dante’s arch enemy, look . . . not just good, but divine.

PURGATORIO, Episode 160. The Madness Of Hugh Capet's Descendants: PURGATORIO, Canto XX, Lines 61 - 81

Hugh Capet continues the story of his family with three descendants who make a mess of Italy in Dante the poet’s own day: Charles I of Anjou, Charles of Valois, and Charles II of Anjou. The Capetian dynasty is driven mad by avarice, all starting with the acquisition of the dowry of Provence. (And in this passage, we get our first instance of antisemitism in COMEDY.)

PURGATORIO, Episode 159. Hugh Capet In Purgatory . . . Or Maybe Not: PURGATORIO, Canto XX, Lines 40 - 60

Dante the pilgrim walks up to the soul who has been citing Mary, Fabricius, and Nicholas as his exemplars against avarice. The pilgrim finds himself with Hugh Capet, the legendary (and historical) founder of the Capetian dynasty of French kings. Or maybe not, since Dante the poet gets his historical wires crossed.

PURGATORIO, Epsiode 158. Poverty As Reward And Compensation: PURGATORIO, Canto XX, Lines 16 - 39

Dante and Virgil pick their way slowly among the avaricious shades, face down and immobile on the fifth terrace of Mount Purgatory. Dante the pilgrim is attracted by one soul ahead who is speaking out examples of poverty . . . and perhaps generosity. This voice leads the pilgrim right up to the next major figure of PURGATORIO.

Mark ScarbroughMarch 23, 2025Purgatorio XX, Purgatorio, Purgatory, The terrace of the avaracious, The terrace of avariceComment

PURGATORIO, Episode 157. What The Pilgrim Can Do And What A Redeemer Must Do: PURGATORIO, Canto XX, Lines 1 - 15

Dante the pilgrim has to move on . . . because Pope Adrian V told him to. The pilgrim and Virgil pick their way among the crowds of penitents on the terrace of avarice. There are so many that the poet has to step out with a prophetic curse and a plea for a redeemer.

Mark ScarbroughMarch 19, 2025Purgatorio XX, Purgatorio, Purgatory, The terrace of the avaracious, The terrace of avariceComment

PURGATORIO, Episode 147. Greedy Beasts That Refuse The Lure: A Read-Through Of The Fifth Terrace Of PURGATORIO, Cantos XIX - XXI

The fifth terrace of Purgatory: a read-through of PURGATORIO, Cantos XIX, XX, and XXI. The terrace of the avaricious, which includes a late-to-repent pope, one of the founders of the French monarchy, and the Roman poet Statius who is so enamored with Virgil that he almost makes a grave mistake in the middle of Purgatory.