In his epic poem, The Inferno, Dante Alighieri, the famous medieval poet, wrote a visitor's guide to the nine concentric circles of hell. Its 33 canti or episodes detail the sins and punishments meted out in hell. The ninth circle is a frozen lake and is itself divided into concentric rings of increasingly grim punishments.
Full Answer
What were the punishments in Dante's Inferno?
The souls here are punished by being blown about violently by strong winds, preventing them to find peace and rest. Sinners lie rotting away in a never ending icy rain, overlooked by a worm-monster Cerberus. The inhabitants drag about heavy weights and boulders with their chest all the time.
What is the punishment in circle 1 of Dante's Inferno?
Dante's First Circle of Hell is resided by virtuous non-Christians and unbaptized pagans who are punished with eternity in an inferior form of Heaven.
What is the punishment for circle 9 in Dante's Inferno?
Contrary to popular depictions of Hell as a hot, fiery place, Dante's Ninth Circle is a frozen lake because it is devoid of love and warmth. Those who get sent to the Ninth Circle are stuck in the lake, their bottom halves frozen into it and unable to move.
What is the punishment in circle 3?
In Inferno, Dante finds the Gluttonous in the Third Circle of Hell. These souls overindulged in food, drink, or something else in their lives. Their punishment is to wallow in disgusting mire created by eternally falling rain, hail, sleet, and snow.
What is the punishment in circle 4?
In the Fourth Circle of Hell, sinners are punished by being forced to fight each other. Each person pushes a large, rolling weight with his or her chest and crashes into someone guilty of the opposing sin from the other side of the circle.
What is the punishment in Canto 34?
Canto 34, Inferno by Dante In the Judecca traitors to God are punished, and Dante identifies these with traitors to the Catholic Church and the Empire. Most of these damned shades are buried in the ice, and Dante can not talk to any of them.
What is the punishment in Limbo?
The souls in Limbo are not punished directly, but are condemned to "suffer harm through living in desire"; their punishment is to be left desirous of salvation.
How many circles does Dante travel through?
Led by the Spirit Virgil, who serves as the guide in Hell, on a quest to save the woman he loves, Dante travels through nine circles of Hell, each circle giving rise to its own punishments. Residing within each circle are also names and faces familiar to Dante: literary and historical figures whose fates lie within the confines of the gates of Hell.
What is the first circle Dante encounters?
The first circle Dante encounters is limbo, which contains the souls of those who, despite living righteous lives, didn't accept Jesus Christ into their hearts and were thus cursed from entering Heaven, as said in the poem: ''The misery of that sight of souls in Hell. Condemned, and constant in their loss, prevailed.
How many levels of hell does Dante have to go through?
In ' Inferno ,' the first part of the larger work The Divine Comedy, Dante must travel through nine different levels of Hell to save the soul of his beloved, Beatrice. Each of the circles represents a specific sin, comes with its own set of trials and torments, and is often inhabited by notable figures in history that are associated with each sin.
What is the fifth circle of wrath?
Now onto the fifth circle. The fifth circle of wrath is also known as Styx and serves as a giant river filled with souls who fight each other for all eternity. As the poem says:
What is the third circle of gluttony?
In the third circle of gluttony, those with insatiable appetites are trapped in a freezing slush and are guarded by the three-headed dog, Cerberus. As described in the poem: ''For sodden around me was the place of bane, The third doomed circle, where the culprits know. The cold, unceasing, and relentless rain.
What is the punishment for each person in the circle?
Each person imprisoned in the various circles is punished harshly and horribly according to the sin. Dante is determined to save Beatrice, so he presses on with Virgil at his side, through horrifying, oppressive, and tormenting sights and sounds within each circle, proving that love is its own form of courage.
Who guards the fourth circle of greed?
Now let's look at the fourth circle. The fourth circle of greed, guarded by Plutus, the mythical deity of wealth, torments the souls by literally weighing them down with material possessions.
Who is in Dante's first circle of hell?
Dante’s First Circle of Hell is resided by virtuous non-Christians and unbaptized pagans who are punished with eternity in an inferior form of Heaven. They live in a castle with seven gates which symbolize the seven virtues. Here, Dante sees many prominent people from classical antiquity such as Homer, Socrates, Aristotle, Cicero, Hippocrates, ...
Who confiscated Dante's property?
Again, the punishment reflects the type of the sin committed during their lifetime. While passing through, the poets are approached by Filippo Argenti, a prominent Florentine politician who confiscated Dante’s property after his expulsion from Florence.
How many Bolgias are there in the circle of Hell?
This circle of Hell is divided into 10 Bolgias or stony ditches with bridges between them. In Bolgia 1, Dante sees panderers and seducer. In Bolgia 2 he finds flatterers. After crossing the bridge to Bolgia 3, he and Virgil see those who are guilty of simony.
What are the 4 rounds of Hell?
Those who committed more severe sin are deeper within the ice. Each of the 4 Rounds is named after an individual who personifies the sin. Thus Round 1 is named Caina after Cain who killed his brother Abel, Round 2 is named Antenora after Anthenor of Troy who was Priam’s counselor during the Trojan War, Round 3 is named Ptolomaea after Ptolemy (son of Abubus), while Round 4 is named Judecca after Judas Iscariot, the apostle who betrayed Jesus with a kiss.
What are the two groups in the Fourth Circle of Hell?
They are divided into two groups – those who hoarded possessions and those who lavishly spent it – jousting.
What is the second circle of hell?
Second Circle (Lust) In the Second Circle of Hell, Dante and his companion Virgil find people who were overcome by lust. They are punished by being blown violently back and forth by strong winds, preventing them from finding peace and rest.
What are the three rings in the 7th circle of Hell?
Here, Dante sees Alexander the Great (disputed), Dionysius I of Syracuse, Guy de Montfort and many other notable historical and mythological figures such as the Centaurus, sank into a river of boiling blood and fire. In the Middle Ring, the poet sees suicides who have been turned into trees and bushes which are fed upon by harpies. But he also sees here profligates, chased and torn to pieces by dogs. In the Inner Ring are blasphemers and sodomites, residing in a desert of burning sand and burning rain falling from the sky.
Who guided Dante through the nine circles of Hell?
This is Dante’s journey through the nine circles of Hell, guided by the poet Virgil. At the beginning of the story, a woman, Beatrice, calls for an angel to bring Virgil to guide Dante in his journey so that no harm will befall him.
What is the circle Dante and Virgil pass through?
This is the first time they pass through a circle without speaking to anyone, a commentary on Dante’s opinion of greed as a higher sin.
What is heresy in Dante's life?
Heresy: Rejection of religious and/or political “norms.”. Dante encounters Farinata degli Uberti, a military leader and aristocrat who tried to win the Italian throne and was convicted posthumously of heresy in 1283. Dante also meets Epicurus, Pope Anastasius II, and Emperor Frederick II.
How many circles of hell are there?
Nine Circles of Hell. Here are the circles of hell in order of entrance and severity: Limbo: Where those who never knew Christ exist. Dante encounters Ovid, Homer, Socrates, Aristotle, Julius Caesar, and more here. Lust: Self-explanatory.
What is the first part of Dante's Divine Comedy?
Dante’s "Inferno" is the first part of his three-part epic poem " The Divine Comedy ," written in the 14 th century and considered one of the world’s great works of literature. "Inferno" is followed by "Purgatorio" and "Paradiso .". Those approaching "Inferno" for the first time might benefit from a brief structural description.
Who did Dante meet in the first circle?
Dante also meets Epicurus, Pope Anastasius II, and Emperor Frederick II. Violence: This is the first circle to be further segmented into sub-circles or rings. There are three of them—the Outer, Middle, and Inner rings—housing different types of violent criminals.
Who wrote the Inferno?
The Structure of the Italian Poet's 'Inferno'. Adam Burgess, Ph.D. is a university professor, literary reviewer, and expert in American and classical literature and criticism. Dante’s "Inferno" is the first part of his three-part epic poem " The Divine Comedy ," written in the 14 th century and considered one of the world’s great works ...
How many circles of hell does Dante Alighieri have?
In ''The Divine Comedy'', protagonist Dante Alighieri must travel through nine different Circles of Hell to save the soul of his beloved Beatrice from eternal damnation. During his perilous journey, Dante and his guide through the Underworld, Virgil, reach the Seventh Circle of Violence guarded by the mythological half-man half-bull, Minotaur.
How is each soul assigned to a level of the circle?
Each soul is assigned to a level of the circle according to the kind of violence that was committed while on Earth. Each level is occupied by faces that are sometimes familiar to Dante, as they were notable historical figures while they were alive. You must c C reate an account to continue watching.
What is Crystal's degree?
Crystal has a bachelor's degree in English, a certification in General Studies, experience as an Educational Services Editor , and has assisted in teaching both middle and high school English. Dante's 'Inferno', an epic poem written by Dante Alighieri in 1300, chronicles the journey of Dante as he is guided through the Nine Circles ...
Who are the names of the people in the 7th circle of hell?
Historical and familiar faces, such as Pietro della Vigna, Capaneus, and Brunetto Latini , are present in the Seventh Circle of Hell, each on a level according to the types of violence that they committed while alive. Each section carries the consequences of its own punishments and is home to familiar historical figures, as well as unfamiliar souls.
What is the second section of the Seventh Circle?
The second section of the Seventh Circle is reserved for those who committed suicide, or Violence Against Self. Souls here are transformed into warped trees covered in thorns. The trees are tormented by Harpies, hybrid creatures that have the body of birds and the faces of human women.
How many circles are there in Dante's Inferno?
In Dante Alighieri's long poem Inferno, Dante imagines that he is being led through Hell by the famous Roman poet Virgil. In Dante's imagining of Hell, there are nine concentric circles, meaning one circle within the other. Each circle has different punishments that are based on the sin that a person commits.
What does Dante mean by the 9th circle?
Just as Dante sees Hell in general as concentric circles, meaning one circle within each other, the Ninth Circle has its own divisions within itself. The more serious the crime of betrayal, the further into the center of the lake a person would be sent, with Satan himself in the middle.
What does the Ninth Circle of Hell represent?
As you can see, the Ninth Circle of Hell in Dante's Inferno represents the worst kind of punishment for the worst kind of sins Dante can think of.
What is the next ring in the ninth circle?
The next ring of the Ninth Circle is called Antenora, named after the Trojan prince Antenor who is featured in Homer's Iliad. This layer is reserved for people who betray their political party or country, because many believe Antenor betrayed Troy.
What is the 9th circle of Hell?
The Ninth Circle of Hell is a frozen lake and, like Dante's vision of Hell in general, the Ninth Circle itself is divided into rings of increasingly bad sections with the worst in the center. The people who are sent to the Ninth Circle are people who have betrayed the trust of someone or something close and special.
Why is Dante's Ninth Circle frozen?
Contrary to popular depictions of Hell as a hot, fiery place, Dante's Ninth Circle is a frozen lake because it is devoid of love and warmth. Those who get sent to the Ninth Circle are stuck in the lake, their bottom halves frozen into it and unable to move.
What are the four sections of the Ninth Circle?
The four sections of the Ninth Circle signify different kinds of betrayal. The outermost layer is called Caina, named after the biblical figure Cain, who killed his brother Abel, and is for people who betray each other over money.
What is the second circle of the inferno?
The Second Circle of the Inferno is dedicated to the lustful, or people corrupted by excessive or immoral sexual appetites, including adulterers. Dante describes this area as a stormy, tempestuous place with endless, ever-changing winds that have the force of a hurricane.
What does Dante mean by the gate is wide?
He also indicates that ''the gate is wide,'' meaning that sins of incontinence are some of the most common and that many souls enter this circle.
Why are sinners in the second circle guilty of lust?
Because sinners in the Second Circle are guilty of the incontinent sin of lust, they're doomed to be caught up in and whipped around for eternity in the cyclones of wind. This punishment is symbolic. Just as the wind is forever changing direction and never settles down, so these sinners are guilty of frequently changing lovers or sexual partners.
What does "incontinent" mean in Dante's book?
However, in its more abstract sense, this word refers to a general lack of restraint in some form . This is what Dante meant when he assigned Circles Two through Five of Hell to sins of incontinence.
How does Minos judge?
Minos judges each soul, then wraps his tail around his body a certain number of times to indicate the numbered circle to which that sinner belongs. Each circle has a different punishment. In the Second Circle, sinners are doomed to be caught up in and whipped around for eternity in the stormy winds.
What is the first circle of hell in Dante and Virgil?
The First Circle of Hell is Limbo and is inhabited by the unbaptized and the virtuous pagans.
Where do the angels pass in the book of Dante?
First, they pass through the Vestibule where souls and fallen angels who refused to make a decision one way or another are on a futile chase after a whirling standard. Then they must cross the River Acheron. Charon, the ferryman, doesn't want to let the living Dante pass, but Virgil says the magic words.
Why do people grieve in Limbo?
They eternally grieve because they must live without hope of God's grace. Limbo is quiet compared to the rest of Hell. Most of it is still dark, but there is a shining pavilion where the great leaders and thinkers of the past reside. This pavilion is described as a castle with seven tall walls and a deep moat.
Where do the unbaptized and virtuous pagans dwell?
Virgil explains that these souls didn't sin while they were alive, but because they were not baptized or lived before Christianity took hold, they were unable to go to heaven. They are not tormented like the Futiles Dante saw in the Vestibule or the others he will encounter later on, but they do grieve because they must live eternally without hope of God's grace.
Is Limbo a party dance?
Now, for modern people, Limbo might bring to mind the fun, back-breaking party dance. Not so much for Dante and his contemporaries. Still, if it helps you remember it, go for it. Limbo, the First Circle of Hell, is surprisingly nice compared to what Dante has already traveled through, so maybe thinking of it a little like a party won't hurt.
Who lived in the pavilion in Dante's time?
Here Dante sees many historical figures from the eras before Christianity. Rulers, soldiers, philosophers, mathematicians and many more great men and women from all over the world (or at least what Dante would have known of the world) reside, relatively comfortably, in the pavilion.
Is Limbo quiet in Hell?
Unlike the rest of Hell, which is deafening with screams, moans, and crying, Limbo is quiet ''except the sound of sighing.'' For the most part, the First Circle is dark and shadowy, but within Limbo is a special pavilion for great artists, poets, scientists, leaders, and thinkers that emit a bright light in the darkness. Virgil and Dante head for this shining beacon in the otherwise dark world, catching up with the legendary poets Homer, Horace, Ovid, and Lucan on the way.
How many circles of hell are there in Dante's Inferno?
Dante’s Inferno 9 Circles of Hell. Dante’s ‘Inferno’, an epic poem written by Dante Alighieri in 1300, chronicles the journey of Dante as he is guided through the Nine Circles of Hell by an ancient poet named Virgil. This lesson will focus on the Seventh Circle of Violence. Dantes Inferno 9 Circles of Hell.
Who are the heretics in Dante's Sixth Circle?
Here, Dante talks with a couple of Florentines – Farinata degli Uberti and Cavalcante de’ Cavalcanti – but he also sees other renowned historical characters including the ancient Greek philosopher Epicurus, Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II, and Pope Anastasius II. The latter, however, is according to some convenient scholars denounced by Dante as a heretic by confusion. Instead, as some scholars claim, the poet probably meant the Byzantine Emperor Anastasius I.
What monster is in the third circle of hell?
When reaching the Third Circle of Hell, Dante and Virgil find souls of gluttons who are faced by a worm-monster Cerberus. Sinners in this circle of Hell are penalized by being compelled to lie in a vile slush that is presented by never-ending icy rain.
What are the three rings in the 7th circle of hell?
Here, Dante sees Alexander the Great (disputed), Dionysius I of Syracuse, Guy de Montfort, and many other important traditional and imaginary figures such as the Centaurus, submerged into a river of boiling blood and fire. In the Middle Ring, the poet sees self-murders who have been transformed into trees and bushes which are fed upon by harpies. But he also sees here profligates, scattered and torn to pieces by dogs. In the Inner Ring are blasphemers and sodomites, residing in a desert of burning sand and burning rain falling from the sky.
What are the two groups of people in the Fourth Circle of Hell?
They are divided into two groups – those who acquired possessions and those who lavishly filled it – jousting. They use great weights as a weapon, forcing it with their chests which symbolizes their selfish drive for fortune during their lifetime. The two groups that are guarded by a character called Pluto (probably the old Greek ruler of the underworld) are so controlled with their actions that the two poets don’t try to speak to them. Here, Dante speaks to see many clergymen including cardinals and popes.
What are the 4 rounds of Hell?
Those who performed more severe sin are more buried within the ice. Each of the 4 Rounds is called after an individual who represents the sin. Thus Round 1 is named Caina after Cain who killed his brother Abel, Round 2 is called Antenora after Anthenor of Troy who was Priam’s counselor during the Trojan War, Round 3 is named Ptolomaea after Ptolemy (son of Abubus), while Round 4 is named Judecca after Judas Iscariot, the apostle who betrayed Jesus with a kiss.
What is the first circle of hell?
1st Circle of Hell (Limbo) Dante’s First Circle of Hell is inhabited by virtuous non-Christians and unbaptized pagans who are punished forever in an inferior form of Heaven. They live in a palace with seven gates which symbolize the seven virtues.