I know I’ve said it before, but I truly love our literature studies. There is something quite magical about gathering together, opening a great book, and allowing words written centuries ago to come alive in our home. Over the years we have explored many classic works together, but this term we decided to take on something rather ambitious: Studying Dante’s Divine Comedy
To prepare the children for a ten-week study of Dante’s Inferno, I began by reading aloud Tusiani’s translation of the Divine Comedy. Our focus for the study will be Canto I, where Dante the pilgrim becomes lost in the dark forest, the beginning of one of the most famous journeys in literature.
I’ll admit that studying Dante with ten and eleven year olds felt like something of a gamble.
Would they understand it?
Would they find it interesting?
Would it capture their imagination in the same way it had captured mine?
As it turned out, I needn’t have worried at all.
From the very first page, they were completely enthralled.
Why Dante Worked So Well for Us
One of the reasons the story resonated with the children is that many of the figures mentioned in Dante’s work were already familiar to them.
Throughout the Divine Comedy, Dante encounters historical figures, mythological characters, and well-known personalities from classical and medieval history. Because we have studied many of these people in our homeschool over the years, the children immediately recognised them.
This familiarity helped enormously.
Rather than struggling to understand who these people were, the children could instead focus on why Dante placed them where he did in his imagined world.
Had the characters been entirely unfamiliar, I suspect they would have had to work much harder to follow the references and deeper meanings.
Studying Dante’s Divine Comedy: Choosing the Right Translation
Whenever we study a complex work of literature, I try to find two versions of the text:
- A translation suitable for adults
- A simplified or adapted version suitable for children
Dante contains themes that are clearly written for adults, so the closest I could find was a young adult adaptation.
This worked beautifully for us. The language was clear and engaging, and when more mature themes appeared I could gently guide the discussion and share only what felt appropriate for their age.
You know you’ve chosen the right book when the children begin asking:
“Just one more chapter?”
That is always the best sign.
Studying Dante’s Divine Comedy: Using a Study Guide (Just for Me!)
To support our study, I used a free study guide to help clarify passages I found difficult.
This was purely for my own benefit.
I deliberately did not allow the children to read it, as some of the themes are explained in quite blunt terms and are better filtered through a parent’s understanding.
To be honest, I had never studied Dante before and I wasn’t entirely confident I would understand everything myself. Having the guide nearby gave me reassurance and helped deepen my own understanding so I could better explain things to the children.
Studying Dante’s Divine Comedy: A Summary
For anyone unfamiliar with the work, Dante’s Divine Comedy is one of the greatest works of medieval literature.
Written in the early 14th century by the Italian poet Dante Alighieri, the poem tells the story of a spiritual journey through the afterlife. It is divided into three parts:
Inferno – Hell
The first section follows Dante as he travels through the nine circles of Hell.
Lost in a dark forest, Dante is guided by the Roman poet Virgil, who leads him through a series of increasingly severe punishments given to souls who have committed different sins.
Each circle of Hell represents a particular type of wrongdoing — such as greed, violence, or betrayal — and Dante meets many historical figures who suffer the consequences of their actions.
Purgatorio – Purgatory
In the second part, Dante climbs the mountain of Purgatory, where souls are purified before entering Heaven.
Unlike Hell, this realm contains hope. Souls here willingly endure hardships to cleanse themselves of sin and grow spiritually.
Paradiso – Heaven
The final part describes Dante’s journey through Heaven, guided by Beatrice, the woman he loved and who represents divine wisdom.
In this realm, Dante encounters saints, theologians, and celestial beings, eventually reaching a vision of God Himself.
The poem is deeply symbolic, exploring themes of sin, redemption, justice, love, and spiritual transformation.
At its heart, the Divine Comedy is about a soul moving from confusion and despair toward truth, understanding, and divine love.
Introducing Dante in a Modern Way
Before we began reading the text itself, I showed the children a YouTube introduction to Dante.
I realise this kind of modern interpretation may not be to everyone’s taste, but it worked wonderfully for us.
Last year the children loved a similarly styled introduction to Beowulf, and this video helped them see that literature from the Middle Ages can still feel exciting and relevant today.
Besides, anything that captures the imagination is worth exploring.
And wait until you hear the video I found later…
Dante’s Canto I — rapped.
Everyone should hear Dante rapped at least once in their lifetime!
A Book That Brought Dante’s World to Life
Over the summer I also read aloud Dante’s Invention by James Burge.
Originally, I had planned to read it privately and simply share the interesting details with the children.
However, the book was so beautifully written that I couldn’t resist sharing the entire story with them.
The book explores the connections between Dante’s real life and the world he imagined in the Divine Comedy, showing how the people, politics, and struggles of medieval Florence influenced his writing.
Although there were a few small sections I needed to censor, the story remained intact and deeply engaging.
It gave us a far richer appreciation of why Dante wrote the Divine Comedy and what inspired his vision of the afterlife.
Adding Art and Grammar to Our Study
Alongside reading and discussion, we will also be exploring Dante through art and language.
Our study will include:
Picture Study
We will examine two works by Sandro Botticelli, both inspired by Dante’s writings:
- Dante’s Inferno
- Botticelli’s depiction of the three beasts from Canto I
These images provide a powerful visual representation of the text and help the children imagine Dante’s journey more vividly.
Grammar Work
We will also be doing some grammar studies linked to Dante’s writing, looking at the structure and language used in the poem.
Imaginative Assignments
I have planned a few rather unusual assignments for the children.
They aren’t the typical hands-on craft activities we often enjoy in our homeschool, but I am hoping they will stretch the children’s imaginations and creativity in new ways.
Sometimes literature calls for reflection, interpretation, and imagination rather than glue and scissors.
Although, knowing us, there may still be a little of that as well.
Why I Love Literature Studies
What I treasure most about these studies is that they allow us to enter another world together.
Through great literature, the children meet remarkable people, encounter unfamiliar ideas, and discover that stories written hundreds of years ago still have something to say today.
Dante’s journey begins with confusion and darkness, but it leads toward understanding and light.
And in many ways, that feels like a rather fitting metaphor for learning itself.
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