The Curious Case Of Ciacco: INFERNO, Canto VI, Lines 34 - 57

In the third circle of hell, our pilgrim finds an emblematic glutton, Ciacco. This strange soul offers us a few problems. He mixes gluttony with another sin, thereby complicating the structure of the rings of hell in Dante's poem (and maybe of theology itself).

Ciacco is the first damned soul to recognize our pilgrim by the dialect he speaks.

We've stepped down into the muck of gluttony--and mystery, too. Ciacco remains a mysterious figure, obscured in the mists of time.

Let's talk about the social unrest that gluttony causes. And let's talk for a minute about the strange nature of Dante's art that sets the tone for Western literature for the next seven hundred years.

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Here are the segments for this episode of WALKING WITH DANTE:

[01:48] My English translation of INFERNO: Canto VI, lines 34 - 57. If you'd like to see this translation, find a deeper study guide, or continue the conversation with me by a comment on this episode, find its entry on my website: markscarbrough.com.

[03:26] Questions about the material nature of soul . . . and why those questions may not be important for now.

[08:56] Some gorgeous poetry and its importance to the canto's larger purpose.

[11:11] Two problems: 1) the first Tuscan in hell and 2) the fusion of two sins in a canto that's supposed to punish just one.

[15:28] Some thoughts about gluttony as a sin and how gluttony can get linked to politics in a world of scarcity.

[18:47] Who is Ciacco? Lots of answers. Is our inability to know him the point?

[23:08] The hallmark of the poet's art: to craft a story that rides the line between allegory and realism.

[29:43] Rereading the passage: INFERNO, Canto VI, lines 34 - 57.