The Paradise of Dante Alighieri Author:Dante Alighieri General Books publication date: 2009 Original publication date: 1885 Original Publisher: Macmillan Subjects: Literary Criticism / European / Italian Poetry / Continental European Notes: This is a black and white OCR reprint of the original. It has no illustrations and there may be typos or missing text. When you buy the General Books edi... more »tion of this book you get free trial access to Million-Books.com where you can select from more than a million books for free. Excerpt: CANTO VIII. ARGUMENT. They ascend to the third Heaven, of Venus, wherein are the souls of those who on earth were lovers. Dante talks with the King Charles Martel, who reproves his own house, and explains how if Nature be thwarted, a good seed may bring forth evil fruit. The world to its own peril used to deem that the fair one of Cyprus beamed forth the foolish love, turning in the third epicycle; wherefore not to her only did they pay honour of sacrifices and of votive shouts, the ancient folk in their ancient error, but they honoured Dione and Cupid, her for her Solea creder lo mondo in suo periclo, Che la bella Ciprigna il folle amore Raggiasse, volta nel terzo epiciclo; Per che non pure a lei faceano onore Di sacrifici e di votivo grido Le genti antiche nell ' antico errore : Ma Dione onoravano e Cupido, a a Majunone Gg,; dove 14. 1 suo periclo. "I. e. animarum pernitiem," Comm. Gg. 2 Ciprigna = Cyprigenia, formed, no doubt, after KiwpoyeVeia. il folle amore, as opposed to "honestus amor conjugalis," P. di Dante. 3 The epicycle was a contrivance of the Ptolemaic astronomy to account for the " retrograde " movements of the planets. Each wasb Quella W. mother, him for her son, and said that he sat in Dido's lap and from her, from whom I am taking my opening, they took the name of the star with which the Sun dallies, now to rearward, now in front. I was not conscious of my ascent to it; but of being in it my Lady gave me assurance enough,, in that I saw her grown more fa...« less