Marco of Lombardy's time in COMEDY comes to an end with a chatty back-and-forth between him and the pilgrim Dante. Dante wants to compliment Marco on creating such a great argument (the one, that is, that Dante the poet created!) but Marco's only answer seems to be irritation and an abrupt dismissal.

Join me, Mark Scarbrough, for a fascinating deep dive into the end of PURGATORIO, Canto XVI.

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

[01:33] My English translation of the passage: PURGATORIO, Canto XVI, Lines 130 - 145. If you'd like to read along or continue the conversation with me, please find this episode on my website, markscarbrough.com.

[03:10] The pilgrim Dante disallows land holdings for the papacy, based on Marco's reasoning.

[05:45] PURGATORIO, Canto XVI returns to Torah at its end, offering the argument deep, long-standing ballast.

[08:00] Gaia, Gherardo's daughter, has long been a troubling figure in commentary.

[10:45] What does this conversational coda to Marco's disquisition on free will do for the poem COMEDY as a whole?

[13:23] Why do the penitents work through anger in a lightless smoke?

[16:14] Rereading the passage: PURGATORIO, Canto XVI, lines 130 - 145.