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Themes In Dante's Inferno

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The Inferno was written around 1307 to 1314, and is Dante’s greatest piece. It is about a pilgrim named Dante, not the author Dante, and his journey through hell to the base of the mountain of purgatory. Throughout his journey, Dante, accompanied by Virgil, meets political rivals and creatures from mythology and past sinners. In the conclusion of the novel, the travelers climb down Satan’s back, and realize they are in Mount Purgatory. Dante develops many themes throughout the characters’ journeys, such as God’s divine justice. He develops this this theme through the punishments given to the sinners, his own journey through hell and the power God has given the characters that help Dante along the way.
Everything God does is just. So, when He allows Dante to pass through hell, He cannot be wrong. It is the fact that justice is being done, through Dante, that illustrates this point. When the Inferno begins, Dante finds himself in a dark wood and wants to attain paradise by climbing a mountain silhouetted by the sun. The three beasts of sin stop him, and divine justice leads him to find Virgil and begin the descent into hell. By relating the idea that his experience was predestined and thus part of God’s will, Dante has let himself become God’s justice embodied. When he first enters hell, he feels pity for the sinners he meets. Once he is through a couple of layers, he realizes that these people are not part of God’s plan and he begins to enjoy tormenting the sinners. Beside

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