Hargrove to lead Dante's ‘The Inferno' discussion group
BY MARY RUMORE life@starkvilledailynews.com
Nancy Hargrove will lead a discussion group of Dante's "The Inferno" beginning Jan. 9 at 4 p.m. at the Starkville Public Library and continuing every Tuesday until Feb. 6. The discussion group is open to the public and informal.
At the first meeting, Hargrove will present background information that will provide insights into the work and how to read it, and each meeting after will focus on a small number of cantos of the work about the afterworld.
"It will be a challenging but rewarding journey," Hargrove said.
The library has copies of "The Inferno" that are available to be checked out, but those who prefer to purchase their own copy are welcome to, but the version translated by John Ciardi and published by Signet Classics is recommended.
"It is the best, most helpful edition with introductions to each canto and notes," Hargrove said. "I'll be showing some fabulous posters created by my students over the years that will help you to visualize various scenes and also show how many ways there are to imagine what settings and characters look like."
There are copies of helpful handouts at the library that can be picked up ahead of time or at the first meeting.
For the first meeting, those wanting to participate should read the first three cantos along with the short introductions and notes for those cantos.
Hargrove said if anyone has to miss a meeting, they will only miss the cantos discussed and then can come back to the next meeting and get right back into the discussion.
Hargrove has received numerous honors and awards for teaching and research, including five Fulbright grants, the John Grisham Master Teacher Award, the Mississippi Professor of the Year award and last year the Wolverton Legacy Award from Mississippi State University's College of Arts and Sciences for "significant contributions to the college." She has published three books and over fifty essays.