7: Dante's "Inferno"

Please read pages 146 - 169 in the Course Reader; then pages 183 - 188 (the end of The
Inferno selections).
Task 1
1. Do some light research on the historical figure of Virgil. Summarize your findings in
a paragraph (cite your sources).
Virgil was born on October 15 BCE, in the Andes near Mantua Italy, and he died September
21. Virgil was known as a great Roman poet. He went to Cremona, Milan, and Rome for his
philosophy study. He then became a great poet in both Greek and Roman literary traditions.
Virgil’s work reflects Roman life and culture. Some of Virgil’s major work is the Eclogues,
which is a collection of poems that discuss civil wars, and also Julius Caesar’s
assassination. This second work is the Georgics which talks about the agricultural
traditions in Italy. The last one that he was known for was his greatest poem the Aeneid
which was requested by the emperor Auguste who essentially wanted to link Roman
greatness to the ancient heroes because he believed that people would realize that if they
were connected and would come to the understanding that his leadership was meant to be
destine. The poem is intended to be a story, but also a political message to the people.
Virgil’s writing mostly focused on the cost of war, love, and duty.
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Virgil
2. Then explain why you think Dante picked him as his guide through the
Inferno. Don’t simply guess─look for the answer in the early Cantos of the text
itself. (Pay attention to the notes at the bottom.) Quote at least once.
Dante at the beginning of the story is in a scary place and he is confused as to what is going
wrong around him, he states “I found myself at the foot of a hill, at the edge of the Woods’s
beginning, down in the valley, where I first felt my heart plunged deep. I raised my head and
saw the hilltop shawled in the morning ...fear returned when a figure of a lion loomed up
before me”(Dante 5.1.15-36). Donate tried multiple times to get away but he couldn't,
Dante then saw Virgil, and after a couple of interactions and connection Dante decided to

follow him as his guide through the inferno(hell) to help him figure out what is going on
around him. Donte chose Virgil specifically because he represented knowledge, wisdom,
and reasoning. He was the best person who helped him fingers out his way out of hell.
Task 2
Throughout The Inferno, the punishment individuals are tortured by “fit their sins.” For
example, grafters (those who used political oVice to obtain wealth) are left in a pool of
tar, while demons use grappling hooks to tear pieces of their flesh oV. The symbolism
is two-fold: The tar is sticky in the way their hands were sticky (sticky hands allude to
people who are money-grabbers); and second, they have flesh torn from them the way
they used their positions to tear flesh (i.e. money) from others.
3. Explain how the punishment fits the sin in one of the Cantos from the assigned
reading. Quote once or twice.
In Cantos 5 where it talks about the people who committed the sin lust, they were
punished severely, Dante describes their punishment “The infernal storm, eternal in this
rag, sweeps and drives the spirits with its blast it whirls them, lashing them with
punishment” (Inferno, canto 5.31-33). The punishment fits their sin, because they were
unable to control their desire and were carried by and now they are now being carried by
the never-ending wind and being tossed by it.
4. Come up with your own punishment for a crime you find particularly evil. Explain
the punishment and the symbolism.
People who decide to kill another individual without a valid reason:
Punishment: They should be sitting in a dark room that has pictures of the people they
killed and pictures of there family as well. They will have to sit in a dark room looking at
their life stories and regretting the decision to kill them.
- The darkroom is meant to represent the feelings of the people who were killed.
- the picture being hanged on the wall represents the individual’s action and reflects
on their actions

notes:

The Divine Comedy: Overview

  • The Divine Comedy begins with a dark journey but ends on a happy, hopeful note.

  • It is considered the most important poem of the Middle Ages and the greatest literary work in the Italian language.

    • T.S. Eliot famously said, “Dante and Shakespeare divide the world between them. There is no third.”

  • Champion of the Vernacular: Dante wrote in Italian (the vernacular) rather than Latin, challenging the societal norms that reserved Latin for "high art."

Structure and Style

  • Terza Rima: The poem is written in a rhyming scheme known as terza rima (ABA BCB CDC…), where each stanza connects to the next through rhyme.

    • This interconnected rhyme scheme creates a flowing, continuous feel throughout the poem.

Purpose and Themes

  • Political Commentary: Dante used the poem to place his political enemies in Hell or predict their damnation, addressing current issues of his time.

  • Moral Exploration: The work is intended to offer a deep understanding of sin and moral evil, portraying the consequences of different sins.

  • The “Science of Ethics”: The Divine Comedy serves as a moral guide, exploring ethics and the nature of good and evil.