L ' I N F E R N O

INF C17 82-84 / DANTE
Omai si scende per sì fatte scale; Now we must descend by means of these stairs:
monta dinanzi, ch'i' voglio esser mezzo, you climb in front: I wish to be in the centre,
sì che la coda non possa far male». so that the tail may not harm you.
VIRGIL :
INF C17 85-87 / DANTE INF C17 85-87 / KLINE
Qual è colui che sì presso ha 'l riprezzo Like a man whose fit of the quartan fever is
de la quartana, c'ha già l'unghie smorte, so near, that his nails are already pallid,
e triema tutto pur guardando 'l rezzo, and he shakes all over, by keeping in the shade,
INF C17 88-90 / DANTE
tal divenn' io a le parole porte; so I became when these words were said:
ma vergogna mi fé le sue minacce, shame in me, that makes the servant brave
che innanzi a buon segnor fa servo forte. in the presence of a worthy master.
DANTE: & DANTE:
INF C17 91-93 / DANTE INF C17 91-93 / KLINE
I' m'assettai in su quelle spallacce; I set myself on those vast shoulders.
sì volli dir, ma la voce non venne I wished to say: “See that you clasp me tight.”
com' io credetti: `Fa che tu m'abbracce'. but my voice did not come out as I intended.
DANTE:
INF C17 94-96 / DANTE INF C17 94-96 / KLINE
Ma esso, ch'altra volta mi sovvenne He, who helped me in other difficulties,
ad altro forse, tosto ch'i' montai at other times, embraced me,
con le braccia m'avvinse e mi sostenne; as soon as I mounted, and held me upright.
INF C17 97 / DANTE INF C17 97-99 / KLINE
e disse: «Gerïon, moviti omai: Then he said: Now move, Geryon!
134
VIRGIL:
INF C17 97-99 / DANTE INF C17 97 / KLINE
e disse: «Gerïon, moviti omai: Then he said: Now move, Geryon!
le rote larghe, e lo scender sia poco; Make large circles, and let your descent be gentle:
pensa la nova soma che tu hai». think of the strange burden that you carry.
DANTE READS./.SPEAKS TO THE AUDIENCE. VIRGIL INTERPRETS A VERSE OR SO BEHIND.
♫INFERNAL: SPIRALLING DESCENT TO GREAT EVILS * * * * * * * * * *
INF C17 98
DANTE: & VIRGIL:
INF C17 100-102 / DANTE INF C17 100-102 / KLINE
Come la navicella esce di loco As a little boat goes backwards, backwards,
from
in dietro in dietro, sì quindi si tolse; its mooring, so the monster left the cliff, and
when
e poi ch'al tutto si sentì a gioco, he felt himself quite free, he turned his tail
around,
INF C17 103-105 / DANTE
là 'v' era 'l petto, la coda rivolse, to where his chest had been, and stretching,
e quella tesa, come anguilla, mosse, flicked it like an eel, and gathered
e con le branche l'aere a sé raccolse. the air towards him with his paws.