Sapía, Part One—The Pilgrim Gets More (And Less!) Than He Bargained For: PURGATORIO, Canto XIII, Lines 94 - 111

Dante the pilgrim worked up the courage (or the flattery) to get one of the envious to speak up on the second terrace of Purgatory proper. She does . . . and gives him both more and exactly what (or perhaps a bit less) than he asked for.

Join me, Mark Scarbrough, as I work our first sight of one of the most intricate souls in COMEDY: Sapía. She's a lot more than Dante bargained for.

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

[01:18] My English translation of the passage: PURGATORIO, Canto XIII, lines 94 - 111. If you'd like to read along or continue the conversation, please go to the page about this podcast on my website, markscarbrough.com.

[03:02] The penitent envious soul schools Dante the pilgrim by reassessing their relationship, both by family and by politics.

[05:53] Pilgrims choose to be other, to be strangers in a foreign land.

[09:19] Dante the poet focuses on the naturalistic details in an otherwise hyper-moral passage.

[11:35] Dante the pilgrim is apparently not teachable at the moment . . . . except he does understand the work of the will in Purgatory.

[14:30] The penitent soul identifies herself reticently . . . only by name and city.

[19:38] Her reticence is found in a generous canto full of explanations.

[20:55] One generosity: Sapía offers a succinct definition of envy.

[24:49] Rereading the passage: PURGATORIO, Canto XIII, lines 94 - 111.