Dante’s Divine Comedy is one of the most celebrated works of world literature. While living in exile from his birthplace of Florence, the poet Dante Alighieri (1265-1321) creates a persona of himself as a pilgrim who travels on an arduous journey through hell, purgatory and heaven in search of redemption. On his journey to personal salvation, he also explores complex issues of Christian faith, the Roman Catholic Church and Florentine politics. Using the poetic form he created, terza rima, he weaves a compelling narrative that explores the journey of the human soul.  In this 6-week session we will continue our discussion from the OLLI winter session with the second half of Inferno.

Kathleen Duguay has an M.A. in Comparative Literature and a Ph.D. in English. She was a professor of English for 25 years at East Stroudsburg University of Pennsylvania where she taught a wide variety of courses in literature, linguistics, and writing. She currently lives in North Adams where you will often find her on the golf course or pickleball court.

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