Read it through once

Finally, it should be noted that Dante's language is the vehicle of his thought. His words are not neutral; they are charged and colored by associations which come from his whole culture. To understand Dante we must be attentive to the sound and rhythm of his verse as well as to the meaning of his words; we must hear the voice as well as apprehend the sense. The art of Dante is the art of combining the exact word with the right cadence, and this combination creates the peculiar moral atmosphere of his poetry.