A. S. Kline—also known as Tony Kline—was born in 1947 and initially pursued a degree in Math, working as a System Director before switching fields to focus more heavily on the literary field. He produces original work in addition to translations and, in addition to Dante, has translated from Latin, Ancient Greek, Chinese, and a number of other languages. His prose edition of The Divine Comedy was published in the year 2000. Kline has made an effort to share all of his work digitally and free for the public on his website. His edition also includes a limited number of black and white photographs to supplement some of the cantos.

This prose translation understands itself to be different from the poetics of the others, yet it does not attempt to conform to the structure of prose entirely. At certain points, Kline draws on literary devices in order to give the text a more artistic and poetic feel. Purgatorio canto 28 stands out as an instance of repetition used to enhance poetics. First, the word “slowly” is repeated to demonstrate the manner in which Dante takes his time walking through the peaceful wood. Later, on that same page, the word “dark” is repeated. This time, the repetition enhances the shadows cast on the river. There was no necessity for repetition in these instances, but Kline draws upon it nonetheless, creating a rhythmic flow to the prose that slightly emulates the poem's original cadence.

Kline also utilizes images and breaks the prose in each canto down into sections to add a degree of art to the translation. Without these elements, the translation would read very similarly to a novel. There still are novel-like elements, with the different sections being given titles indicating the general event taking place, but these are accompanied by the original lines from which the prose was translated. This makes it impossible to ignore the poetic origins of the text. In a similar manner, the presence of images diverges from what is typically expected of a novel. Some cantos contain no images, while others have multiple. In addition, despite being printed in black and white, these illustrations grow gradually brighter as Dante proceeds through the circles and further passes through the different sections of the afterlife.

Without the poetic and rhythmic aspect, this translation is able to be read much faster than the other translations, but it also provides a different experience. The reading of prose is naturally very different from the reading of poetry. While the material is easy to digest, it is noticeably different from the rest of the translations. This translation could likely be read and understood the most quickly by most people and it provides an effective narrative, but it is important to note that it is a different genre of writing than most other translations and should be approached in a different manner as well.

Works Cited

Alighieri, Dante, and A. S. Kline. The Divine Comedy. Poetry in Translation, 2000.

“A. S. Kline.” A.S. Kline | Author and Translator, tonykline.co.uk/. Accessed 13 June 2025.