Big Dog

“For the clarification of what I am going to say, then, it should be understood that there is not just a single sense in this work: it might rather be called polysemous, that is, having several senses.”– Dante Alighieri (1265-1321)

Six questions, of subject and form, of agent and end, of title and philosophy,

And most unanswered,

Still.

Departure of the soul sanctified

From bondage to earthly corruption

Into freedom eternal glorious

allegory, alleon

alienus – belonging to another

or

diversus – different

state of souls after death

man, his free will exercised, earns

Just rewards

And punishments.

comos oda

A village, a song

Comedy’s a rusty saw to cut

From goat song foul and tragic

Paradiso prosperous,

And leave the horror-reek of hell

Below