Torment

FROSCO & DELILAH

By the evening after taking a shower Burns finally got the chance to thoroughly scan the books she had. No doubt, she almost had her favourite books in her library from Sicily now resting in her current bookshelf. She even had the English version of Dante's 'Divine Comedy', which did not much appealed to her. Without further ado Burns quickly unlocked one of her suitcases to get the hardcover copy of Dante Alighieri's original version of the Divine Comedy. However, as she was just getting the book a brown envelop fell. Burns suddenly remembered how her father left it on top of the book for her to bring in the country. He actually warned her to open it when she got in Santa Lucia but for some unknown reasons, it terrified her. What could have been inside? She had no idea so Burns carefully placed it back to her bag to focus her attention on her book.

The Divine Comedy was an epic poem published during the 13th century. It was vastly considered as the most extravagant work of the Italian literature and perhaps people could say that the book had played a paramount significance in the universal literature. The poem's imaginative vision of the afterlife had fascinated Burns. It was the first ever poem established in Italian language due to the fact that only Latin language were used to publish books during the era.

Furthermore, the Divine Comedy was the poem her father had introduced her since she was only five years old and Burns grew up with it. It had three parts, Inferno, Purgatorio and Paradiso (hell, purgatory and heaven). Although Burns never had a religion, never believed in God, the poems were rich in imagery and allegory, something that she always admired about it so it was no surprise that she knew the book from the inside out. Every canto, every allegory behind it, every Italian word translated and analysed in English language, she could say it out loud.

Burns began to flip the pages and landed on the fifth canto of Inferno. She could not help but to read it out loud, "Amor, ch'al cor gentile ratto s'apprende prese costui de la bella personache mi fu tolta; e 'l modo ancor m'offende. Amor, che a nullo amato amar perdona, mi prese del costui piacer sì forte, he, come vedi, ancor non m'abbandona..." She sighed and stared at the verse for quite a long time. For some reasons she could not explain, the words struck her mind. Growing up, she had been attending various lectures about the poem. She had collected a number of analyses and annotated it herself but really, everyone was able to create their own conclusions of what it meant, of what it really conveyed. And the only person who could fully explain these allegories was Dante, the author who of course was dead already. And still, Burns was striving to fully understand everything, to try and realise the sense of its message.

"Love, which quickly arrests the gentle heart,
Seized him with my beautiful form
That was taken from me, in a manner which still grieves me.

Love, which pardons no beloved from loving,
took me so strongly with delight in him
That, as you see, it still abandons me not..."

She squeezed her eyes and suddenly, she was exhausted. Burns never truly realised how exasperated her body was but her mind, it was restless, raising and pounding with questions and ideas. She checked the time and remembered how she longed to hear Harriett's voice in her ears, to lull and comfort her from this strange place. Burns got her cracked mobile and dialled Harriett's number. Seconds then minutes later Harriett picked up. "Harriett." Burns was already half lying on the sofa next to the window with her book on her lap. She turned on the loudspeaker option to hear her properly.

"Oh Jane, why did you call? It's quite late there isn't it?"

"I can't sleep." She breathed. "Tell me something. My body is extremely tired but my mind is not making me sleep Harriett."

"Are you sure you're doing okay Jane?" It was evident that Harriett was weary for her but what could the old lady do? Whether she was feeling okay or not, of course Harriett had no power to come and fetch her back to Italy. Moreover, she still had less than six weeks in counting.