Geryon and Malebranche-Fraud and Devils

Still propelled by the wonders of yesterday's trip to Firenze, we plunged into a double session today (10 Cantos). We were rewarded by some of my favorite characters-Geryon and the Malebranche.

Geryon is a triple hybrid creature modeled on Classical mythical beasts and  combining the "face of a just man" (faccia d'uom giusto) with hairy paws, a heavily patterned torso and scorpion's tail. His appearance at the end of Canto 16  is one of my favorite moments in this Canticle. He is a perfect monster-and as he ferries Dante and Virgil on his back to the lower reaches of hell, I followed absolutely.

In Dante's view, fraud-using words or manipulation to betray self, neighbor, community or God, is a most serious sin and Geryon's impact in the poem is akin to that of shrieking music in a Hitchcock film-you perk up and pay attention. Something is happening.


Action and emotion escalate up through Canto 19 where we hear some of Dante's harshest words against the simoniacs-those who sell sacred or spiritual offices or objects.

I have often heard that the Commedia is a poem that leads the reader to more reading. The Cantos dealing with the lower reaches of hell especially cry out for me to re-read Ovid (Metamorphoses) and Vergil (Aeneid), and dig into my church history readings from St. John's EFM class. The scathing criticisms leveled at the church and government officials hold so much power and resonate so keenly with modern day ethical crises that it is impossible to ignore the magnitude of Dante's achievement in the poem.

And just as I was waning after the tiresome trek through so much corruption, along come the malebranche (Evil claws)- the traditional devils iconic in medieval writings and depictions. They are like a terrifying comic interlude. Bill Stephany describes them as "Police Academy meets A Clockwork Orange"-love that!

After 6 hours of deeply engaging reading, all of us were ready to head off to the enoteca  (wine collection) at the Fortezza Medici near my apartment. Here they have installed an exhibit of the wines of Italy in the cavernous cellar that used to be the armory, and a well-stocked wine bar above. We were able to purchase bottles of wine and take them above to sit in the park with them. My favorite was the 2006 Talosa (Vino Nobile di Montepulciano).If you can find a bottle, open it with friends and raise a glass to Dante's creatures in all their splendor-and may we never find occasion to meet them face to face!