In this final installment of Dante's masterpiece trilogy, we witness the Pilgrim's ascent through the spheres of heaven to be reunited with his lover Beatrice. Having parted from his Guide, Virgil in Purgatory, Dante is guided by Beatrice through heaven. The spheres of paradise are planetary or celestial bodies, the first being the moon and the proceeding through the known solar system of the period. On each sphere, Dante describes beautiful glowing lights accompanied by angelic voices that recite hymns, most of which are in Latin, but the translations are provided in the notes. Unlike the previous two books there is markedly less action in Paradiso as Dante seems more inclined to describe the beatific, rapturous realms of Heaven. This may deter some readers who were expecting an action-packed denoument to the Divine Comedy, however, Dante retains his masterful narrative by using engaging discourse between narrator and character in each canto.
Perhaps the most striking images of Paradiso are the formations of a giant eagle composed of saints and other virtuous people that flies over the head of the Pilgrim and asks him questions; and also the celestial rose made of an assembly of angelic souls where in Dante is questioned about the origins of faith.
The theological themes of the Divine Comedy, derived from Dante's knowledge of Christianity and Aquinian philosophy, makes the work a vitally significant source for both religious and atheistic readers who may draw swifter conclusions from reading this work than sifting through the vast canon of Christian doctrine.
All in all, Paradiso is a fitting end to a brilliant trilogy. The touching reunion between Dante and his deceased lover, Beatrice makes for a delightful story and the wealth of religious allegory and analogy keeps the reader focussed on the intention of the text; to provide an insight into the unseen, the afterlife.
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