Inferno Revealed: From Dante to Dan Brown (2013)

by Deborah Parker

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Using Dan Brown's book as a jumping off point,Inferno Revealedwill provide readers of Brown'sInfernowith an engaging introduction to Dante and his world. Much like the books on Leonardo that followed the release of theDa Vinci Code, this book will provide readers with more information about the ever-intriguing Dante. Specifically,Inferno Revealed explores how Dante made himself the protagonist ofThe Divine Comedy, something no other epic poet has done, a move for which the ramifications have not yet been fully explored. The mysteries and puzzles that arise from Dante's choice to personalize the epic, along with his affinity for his local surroundings and how that affects his depiction of the places, Church, and politics in the poem are considered--along with what this reveals about Brown's own usage of the work. The authors will focus on and analyze how Dan Brown has repurposedInferno in his newest book--noting what he gets right and what errors are made when he does not. Of course, Dan Brown is not the first author to base his work on Dante.The Comedy has elicited many adaptations from major canonical writers such as Milton and Keats to popular adaptations like David Fincher'sSe7enand Tim Burton'sBeetlejuice-- all of which will be discussed in detail within Inferno Revealed.… (more)

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This review was written for LibraryThing Early Reviewers.

I really enjoyed this book, though it's taken me quite a while to pick it up and get into it, as I was absorbed with finishing my degree for so long. I read The Inferno in college and quite enjoyed Parker's take on explaining it. (

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Violaine | Mar 3, 2020 |

This review was written for LibraryThing Early Reviewers.

A very readable (and also semi-academic) take on Dante's classic epic, using the latest Dan Brown novel as the "jumping off point" for the analysis. A longer review of the book can be found here: http://eyesandearsblog.blogspot.com/2014/02/review-of-inferno-revealed.html (

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professoralan | Jun 19, 2014 |

This review was written for LibraryThing Early Reviewers.

I've always liked rereading _The Divine Comedy_, and I wanted to read this book because of Dante's name on the cover — not because of Dan Brown's. I found the authors' treatment of Dante's original work to be interesting and well-balanced. Their discussion of the later works that were inspired by the _Inferno_, or adaptations or derivations of it, some of which I was familiar with and some of which were new to me, was also enjoyable.

On the other hand, I have never read a page of Dan Brown; and this book did nothing to make me want to change that. While Brown may have drawn on a highly respectable source for his inspiration, the Parkers, perhaps unintentionally, make it clear that he had a rather imprecise understanding of Dante's depiction of Hell.

The one reservation I have about _Inferno Revealed_, then, is its degree of focus on Brown. I'm afraid that the cynical thought occurred to me that his name was included on the cover in part to capitalize on his popularity. I would have preferred to have seen less material devoted to Brown's _Inferno_ and more time allotted to the other, arguably more interesting, derivative works. (

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baroquem | Mar 3, 2014 |

This review was written for LibraryThing Early Reviewers.

With less than 300 pages, this book is packed with information. It is a great introduction to Dante's Divine Comedy and a useful review for those who haven't read Dante's Inferno. If you liked Dan Brown's Inferno, you will also want this book. All references to Dante's work that Dan Brown used are listed and analyzed. The authors also discuss other adaptations of Inferno, with my favorite being the film se7en. It would also be a poor choice to overlook The Appendix, Notes and Bibliography. Those were just as enjoyable to read and to get further reading. If you ever read Dante or you are a Dan Brown fan, you definitely need this book to read and keep. (

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atsirt | Feb 19, 2014 |

This review was written for LibraryThing Early Reviewers.

I had a hard time really getting into the book. I enjoyed Inferno and I enjoy Parker's analysis of Dante, but it did not hold my attention. Perhaps I am too deeply involved in my own research projects at the moment to read something scholarly. When I take a break, I want something more escapist and entertaining, i.e. the problem is mine and not Parker's. The book is well written and researched. (

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bill | Feb 4, 2014 |

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Canonical title

Inferno Revealed: From Dante to Dan Brown

Original title

Alternative titles

Original publication date

2013

People/Characters

Dante Alighieri, 1265-1321

Important places

Florence, Tuscany, Italy

Hell

Important events

Related movies

Epigraph

Dedication

First words

It's no wonder that a shrewd popular writer like Dan Brown would choose the Inferno, the first part of Dante Alighieri's three-part Divine Comedy, as a point of departure for his latest novel.

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(Click to show. Warning: May contain spoilers.)

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▾Book descriptions

Using Dan Brown's book as a jumping off point,Inferno Revealedwill provide readers of Brown'sInfernowith an engaging introduction to Dante and his world. Much like the books on Leonardo that followed the release of theDa Vinci Code, this book will provide readers with more information about the ever-intriguing Dante. Specifically,Inferno Revealed explores how Dante made himself the protagonist ofThe Divine Comedy, something no other epic poet has done, a move for which the ramifications have not yet been fully explored. The mysteries and puzzles that arise from Dante's choice to personalize the epic, along with his affinity for his local surroundings and how that affects his depiction of the places, Church, and politics in the poem are considered--along with what this reveals about Brown's own usage of the work. The authors will focus on and analyze how Dan Brown has repurposedInferno in his newest book--noting what he gets right and what errors are made when he does not. Of course, Dan Brown is not the first author to base his work on Dante.The Comedy has elicited many adaptations from major canonical writers such as Milton and Keats to popular adaptations like David Fincher'sSe7enand Tim Burton'sBeetlejuice-- all of which will be discussed in detail within Inferno Revealed.

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