Dante the pilgrim has had a "P" wiped off his forehead by the angel at the stairs. He's started his climb to the next terrace. All seems well, but he's still sad, bent over with worry, troubled about his dream.

Virgil again comes to the rescue. He reinterprets the dream for the pilgrim (leaving us with quite a few questions!) and commands the pilgrim to direct his eyes up to the heavens, the ultimate lure to God.

Join me, Mark Scarbrough, as we look at this passage that brings us to the cusp of the fifth circle of Mount Purgatory.

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

[01:35] My English translation of the passage: PURGATORIO, Canto XIX, lines 52 - 69. If you'd like to read along or continue the conversation, please find this episode's listing on my website, markscarbrough.com.

[03:23] Possible structural changes in the canto breaks in PURGATORIO.

[05:51] Dante the pilgrim as the mourner.

[07:02] The dream as a "new vision."

[09:39] The question of what exactly is "above us."

[12:22] The open interpretative space in Virgil's interpretation of Dante's dream.

[17:00] Virgil's impatience, the workings of desire, and the rocky landscape of Purgatory.

[20:02] The second major instance of falconry imagery in COMEDY.

[22:31] The heavens as the ultimate lure.

[25:10] Rereading this passage: PURGATORIO, Canto XIX, lines 52 - 69.