In the Inferno by Dante Alighieri, the character Dante, a poet, goes on a journey through hell with a poet named Virgil. Together, they descend through the nine circles of hell and learn about the sins of the souls that reside there. Dante begins his journey through hell as a naïve, sympathetic, man, yet as the story progresses, the readers see a dramatic change in the way that Dante views things. It seems unusual, in a place such as Hell, that Dante would sympathize with any of the sinners in the poem. Although Dante understands that Hell is a place for sinners, he still cannot help but sympathize with people who have committed specific sins. Nevertheless, by allowing his protagonist Dante to develop his views throughout the poem, the author …show more content…
As a result of this we learn more about the development of the character than from the way Dante the author devises the plot. Dante the character is a crucial link to the thoughts and feelings of Dante the author. Most of the time, a protagonist that has their own thoughts separate from the narrator, but by appointing himself as the narrator and the protagonist Dante is able to be brutally honest, but still hide behind the fiction of his character. In the poem both the character Dante and the author are from Florence, Italy. Their origin sets up concepts of place and belonging throughout the poem. The largest display of this in the text is the struggle between the church and state. Once again, because Dante and the author are a reflection of one another, both belong to the white party, who supported the independence of Florence. Pope Boniface VIII, exiled the author Dante due to his influential status among the white party. The author then portrays this real life experience in his poem by reserving a spot in hell particularly for the Pope. This occurs when Pope Nicholas mistakes Dante for Pope Boniface VIII. “Are you so soon sated by the wealth for which you did not fear to marry the lovely lady fraudulently, and then to tear her apart?” (Inferno. XIX. 55-57) This is the only time the author speaks directly of Pope Boniface VIII, but it is a direct attack against him. In the quote the “lovely lady” refers …show more content…
His lack of pity for the souls who committed Simony such as Pope Nicholas is one of turning points for Dante. The readers learn that Dante weeps for souls that are suffering, but enjoys the sight of suffering from political enemies. By the time Dante enters the ninth circle of hell the author shows the readers that Dante is no longer as sympathetic and naïve as he was at the start of his descent. In Canto XXXII Dante accidentally kicks a soul in the cheek. As he begins to apologize, he recognizes Bocca degli Abati, an Italian traitor. We know that both character Dante and the author are proud Italians, and it becomes clear that the traitors of Italy do not deserve sympathy in the eyes of Dante. Dante proceeds to threaten Bocca and pull out chunks of his hair without remorse. (Inferno. XXXII p. ) Dante was timid and sympathetic to the souls he encountered in the beginning of the poem. Therefor it would have seemed unlikely for him to react to a soul in such an aggressive way. Yet the longer Dante is in hell, and the farther he travels, it becomes clear that he is no longer the same character that he was when he began his
In Dante’s Inferno, the relationship between Dante the Pilgrim and Virgil the Guide is an ever-evolving one. By analyzing the transformation of this relationship as the two sojourn through the circles of hell, one is able to learn more about the mindset of Dante the Poet. At the outset, Dante is clearly subservient to Virgil, whom he holds in high esteem for his literary genius. However, as the work progresses, Virgil facilitates Dante’s spiritual enlightenment, so that by the end, Dante has ascended to Virgil’s spiritual level and has in many respects surpassed him. In Dante’s journey with respect to Virgil, one can see
Dante’s descent into Hell in Inferno, the first part of his Divine Comedy, tells of the author’s experiences in Hades as he is guided through the abyss by the Roman author, Virgil. The text is broken into cantos that coincide with the different circles and sub-circles of Hell that Dante and Virgil witness and experience. Inferno is heavily influenced by classic Greek and Roman texts and Dante makes references to a myriad of characters, myths, and legends that take place in Virgil’s Aeneid, Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey, and Ovid’s Metamorphoses. Some of the most important references, however, are the most obvious ones that are easily overlooked simply because of the fact that they are so blatant. Dante is being escorted through Hell by the
Solely based on moral beliefs Dante's poem is obviously a deeply Christian standpoint. One might be surprised, then, to find that it is filled with allusions to pagan mythology and is populated not just by biblical figures, but also by characters of Greek and Roman myth and history. However taking place in hell on the evening of Good Friday through the morning of Easter Sunday in approximately the year 1300. The Inferno is an evil that is a contradiction to God's will; as most of the punishments of the sinners correspond symbolically to the sins they committed themselves. The walk through a dark and confusing world represents the life journey of men and women. Dante’s extensive literary treatment of death and afterlife aims to both comfort and warn; envisioning rewards for the
Dante's "Inferno" is full of themes. But the most frequent is that of the weakness of human nature. Dante's descent into hell is initially so that Dante can see how he can better live his life, free of weaknesses that may ultimately be his ticket to hell. Through the first ten cantos, Dante portrays how each level of his hell is a manifestation of human weakness and a loss of hope, which ultimately Dante uses to purge and learn from. Dante, himself, is about to fall into the weaknesses of humans, before there is some divine intervention on the part of his love Beatrice, who is in heaven. He is sent on a journey to hell in order for Dante to see, smell, and hear hell. As we see this experience brings out Dante's weakness' of cowardice,
Joseph Miller English 231 4-27-15 Justice and Pity in Dante’s Inferno Dante was obviously very interested in the underworld, and afterlife. His work regarding hell included references to many historical figures, political leaders, and Greek gods. I found the most interesting aspect of this story to be the relationship between crime and punishment, or simply put, justice. In Inferno, Dante tells us that god had created Hell for justice.
Dante is described as someone who is trying to find God in his life, even journeying through Hell to do so. However, along the way Dante begins to see things that bring out the worst in him. Dante sees two of his old political rivals, at two separate times with two separate punishments, and he stopped to enjoy their pain and even laugh at them. Obviously this is not something he would do in his normal life, so it is safe to assume that spending time in Hell is taking a toll on his judgement.
He also has the power to respond to certain vicious sinners in a manner befitting their sins. When the wrathful person strikes out wildly, Dante has no pity and would possibly strike back. Then, in the ironic description of the sullen, Dante, for the first time, uses ridicule, and in the next circle he is seemingly pleased when the sufferings of Filippo Argenti are increased. When a shade in the bottom of Hell refuses Dante's request for his name, Dante reaches out and uncharacteristically hurts the sinner by pulling out a tuft of his hair.
This sense of pity is an important indicator of his progress, or lack thereof, through Hell. At this, the beginning of his journey, Dante identifies with the condemned and thus has not only sympathy, but empathy toward them. He understands a life of sin and can picture himself in their place. As time goes by and the pilgrim's journey continues, Dante gets hardened against the strife and pain inflicted upon the sinners. Of course, seeing enough of anything begets tolerance, but in Dante's case his lessening sympathy shows lessening empathy as well. His thoughts and ideals have become progressively more pure and pious, and he's started to lose his identification with the life of sin and contempt. Virgil encourages his displacement
Dante is a poet who wrote an epic poem called The Divine Comedy. This epic poem is about Dante’s journey as he goes through 3 levels, which he calls Inferno, Purgatory and Paradise. In the Inferno, he meets Virgil, his guide throughout his voyage. They both pass through the nine circles of Hell, where they witness many different punishments for those who have done awful things in their past. Good versus evil is a major theme that occurred throughout Hell. In the Inferno, there are times where Dante sees good and evil and also represents it himself.
In the Divine Comedy, we follow Dante Alighieri on his journey through Hell, the Purgatory, and eventually into Paradise. Dante is depicted as a man whom has become lost on his path toward God. He has found that he has wandered away from the true way of life, and was seeking enlightenment. He is a symbol for the universal quest for God. Dante is a sympathetic and emotional man.
Abstract Through Schoder’s “Vergil in the Divine Comedy,” Ryan’s “Virgil and Dante: A Study in Contrasts,” Balassaro’s “Dante the Pilgrim: Everyman as Sinner,” Mazotta’s “An Epilogue,” and through my observations of the “The Divine Comedy” by Dante Alighieri, the two Dantes, Dante the Poet and Dante the Pilgrim, treat characters in “The Divine Comedy” very differently and have different motives. They use each encounter to display their personality traits, while also using each other to relay a message to the reader. For example, both the poet and the pilgrim treat Virgil with high respect and admiration even though he represents a pagan sinner in “The Divine Comedy.” Half the research I have done explains the relationship between Dante and Virgil, Virgil’s personality, and the treatment of the two lovers, Francesca and Paolo, and the two haters, Count Ugolino and Archbishop Ruggieri.
Furthermore, those he converses with had impacted Dante in some way during his lifetime. The combination of religion and nationality begin to form the prominent factors of Dante's identity as he commences his journey through Hell in order to reestablish himself as a committed Catholic.
Dante, the character, changes over the course of this journey. Dante begins his journey lost, and ignorant but then goes through a development when he travels through the inferno, purgatorio, and Paradiso. Experiencing the depths of Hell and light of Heaven, Dante’s life is then transformed. The influencers and assistants that Dante comes across will change Dante and make him closer and more united with God in the end.
The Inferno The role of church during the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries was extremely important especially the Roman Catholic Church. The role of church determined all facets of life culturally, politically, socially etc. According to spark notes Dante’s personal life and writings were greatly influenced by the politics of late-thirteenth-century Florence.
Judging by the character in the story Dante is a god fearing man who has moral issues in his life. He seem to be in a constant fight with himself about the right way he should live his life. By the end of the story Dante gives the impression that he a is strong believer in the theory of “you reap what you sow”. By the end of the story Dante gives you the impression that he does not feel pity for sinners being punished because he looks at it as a form of divine intervention.