Dante's Inferno Summary
- At the poem’s beginning, Dante is lost in a dark wood, both literally and spiritually. ...
- Dante and Virgil enter hell and explore its nine circles, observing the punishments suffered by the various categories of sinners.
- At the bottom of the Ninth Circle, Dante and Virgil encounter Lucifer. ...
Why does Dante go into the Inferno?
Virgil suggests that Dante is just feeling afraid and reassures Dante by telling him that he has been sent by Dante's deceased beloved, Beatrice, who resides in heaven. Dante does find this reassuring, and they proceed toward the entrance to the underworld.
Why does Dante use the Holy Trinity in the Inferno?
Dante reveals the true meaning of the Inferno through his leading motif, his interactions between the sinners, and the intertwining of other literary works into the Inferno. The repeated motif of the number three is used to represent the Holy Trinity and all things holy. The first Campaldino.
What is the plot of the Dante's 'Inferno'?
Dante's Inferno Summary At the poem's beginning, Dante is lost in a dark wood, both literally and spiritually. ... Dante and Virgil enter hell and explore its nine circles, observing the punishments suffered by the various categories of sinners. At the bottom of the Ninth Circle, Dante and Virgil encounter Lucifer. ...
What are some interesting facts about Dante Alighieri?
The structure: 3 cantiche, 100 canti and other important numbers.
- The work is divided into 3 books called Cantiche, which correspond to the three otherworldly realms: Inferno, Purgatorio and Paradiso.
- Each Cantica consists of 33 cantos (it. ...
- All cantos consist of tercets (form scheme of 3 verses) with concatenated rhymes (ABA BCB CDC DED …).
- Each verse consists of 11 syllables (it. ...
What is the plot of Divine Comedy?
The plot of The Divine Comedy is simple: a man, generally assumed to be Dante himself, is miraculously enabled to undertake an ultramundane journey, which leads him to visit the souls in Hell, Purgatory, and Paradise.
Is Dante's Inferno Based on a true story?
Brown's novels have drawn both praise and criticism for incorporating real life organizations and events into their storylines, blurring the line between fiction and reality, and Inferno looks to do the same. And even though Inferno isn't a true story, that doesn't mean that there isn't some truth to the tale.
What is the main point of Dante's Inferno?
The Divine Comedy is the allegorical record of Dante's quest to overcome sin and find God's love; in Inferno, Dante explores the nature of sin by traveling through Hell, where evil receives punishment according to God's justice.
What is the main idea of Dante's Inferno?
The main themes in Dante's Inferno are morality and divine justice, the soul's journey, and the poet's vocation. Morality and divine justice: The correspondence between the sinners' actions and their punishments in hell indicates Dante's belief in the fairness of divine authority.
What year is Inferno?
Inferno. Inferno opens on the evening of Good Friday in the year 1300 . Traveling through a dark wood, Dante Alighieri has lost his path and now wanders fearfully through the forest. The sun shines down on a mountain above him, and he attempts to climb up to it but finds his way blocked by three beasts—a leopard, a lion, and a she-wolf.
What is the second circle in Dante?
Dante continues into the Second Circle of Hell, reserved for the sin of Lust. At the border of the Second Circle, the monster Minos lurks, assigning condemned souls to their punishments. He curls his tail around himself a certain number of times, indicating the number of the circle to which the soul must go.
What is the fourth pouch in Dante's book?
In the Fourth Pouch are the Astrologists or Diviners, forced to walk with their heads on backward, a sight that moves Dante to great pity. In the Fifth Pouch, the Barrators (those who accepted bribes) steep in pitch while demons tear them apart.
What is the name of the monster that transports Dante and Virgil to the Eighth Circle of Hell
The monster Geryon transports Virgil and Dante across a great abyss to the Eighth Circle of Hell, known as Malebolge, or “evil pockets” (or “pouches”); the term refers to the circle’s division into various pockets separated by great folds of earth.
What river did Dante go to?
Dante witnesses their suffering with repugnance and pity. The ferryman Charon then takes him and his guide across the river Acheron, the real border of Hell. The First Circle of Hell, Limbo, houses pagans, including Virgil and many of the other great writers and poets of antiquity, who died without knowing of Christ.
Who did Dante meet in the 7th circle?
Going deeper into the Seventh Circle of Hell, the travelers find those who were violent toward God (the Blasphemers); Dante meets his old patron, Brunetto Latini, walking among the souls of those who were violent toward Nature (the Sodomites) on a desert of burning sand.
What is the fifth circle of hell?
The Fifth Circle of Hell contains the river Styx, a swampy, fetid cesspool in which the Wrathful spend eternity struggling with one another; the Sullen lie bound beneath the Styx’s waters, choking on the mud.
What does Dante say about the gate of hell?
Dante passes through the gate of Hell, which bears an inscription ending with the famous phrase " Lasciate ogne speranza, voi ch'intrate ", most frequently translated as "Abandon all hope, ye who enter here." Dante and his guide hear the anguished screams of the Uncommitted. These are the souls of people who in life took no sides; the opportunists who were for neither good nor evil, but instead were merely concerned with themselves. Among these Dante recognizes a figure implied to be Pope Celestine V, whose "cowardice (in selfish terror for his own welfare) served as the door through which so much evil entered the Church". Mixed with them are outcasts who took no side in the Rebellion of Angels. These souls are forever unclassified; they are neither in Hell nor out of it, but reside on the shores of the Acheron. Naked and futile, they race around through the mist in eternal pursuit of an elusive, wavering banner (symbolic of their pursuit of ever-shifting self-interest) while relentlessly chased by swarms of wasps and hornets, who continually sting them. Loathsome maggots and worms at the sinners' feet drink the putrid mixture of blood, pus, and tears that flows down their bodies. This symbolizes the sting of their guilty conscience and the repugnance of sin. This may also be seen as a reflection of the spiritual stagnation in which they lived.
What does Dante perceive in the distance?
In the distance, Dante perceives high towers that resemble fiery red mosques. Virgil informs him that they are approaching the City of Dis. Dis, itself surrounded by the Stygian marsh, contains Lower Hell within its walls. Dis is one of the names of Pluto, the classical king of the underworld, in addition to being the name of the realm. The walls of Dis are guarded by fallen angels. Virgil is unable to convince them to let Dante and him enter.
What is the name of the circle in Canto IV?
Canto IV#N#Dante wakes up to find that he has crossed the Acheron, and Virgil leads him to the first circle of the abyss, Limbo, where Virgil himself resides. The first circle contains the unbaptized and the virtuous pagans, who, although not sinful enough to warrant damnation, did not accept Christ. Dorothy L. Sayers writes, "After those who refused choice come those without opportunity of choice. They could not, that is, choose Christ; they could, and did, choose human virtue, and for that they have their reward." Limbo shares many characteristics with the Asphodel Meadows, and thus, the guiltless damned are punished by living in a deficient form of Heaven. Without baptism ("the portal of the faith that you embrace") they lacked the hope for something greater than rational minds can conceive. When Dante asked if anyone has ever left Limbo, Virgil states that he saw Jesus ("a Mighty One") descend into Limbo and take Adam, Abel, Noah, Moses, Abraham, David, and Rachel (see Limbo of the Patriarchs) into his all-forgiving arms and transport them to Heaven as the first human souls to be saved. The event, known as the Harrowing of Hell, would have occurred in AD 33 or 34.
What is the name of the first part of the Divine Comedy?
Canto I from the Inferno, the first part of the Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri. v. t. e. Dante 's Divine Comedy. Inferno ( Hell) Purgatorio ( Purgatory) Paradiso ( Heaven) Inferno ( Italian: [iɱˈfɛrno]; Italian for "Hell") is the first part of Italian writer Dante Alighieri 's 14th-century epic poem Divine Comedy.
What are the nine circles of Hell?
Virgil proceeds to guide Dante through the nine circles of Hell. The circles are concentric, representing a gradual increase in wickedness, and culminating at the centre of the earth, where Satan is held in bondage. The sinners of each circle are punished for eternity in a fashion fitting their crimes: each punishment is a contrapasso, a symbolic instance of poetic justice. For example, later in the poem, Dante and Virgil encounter fortune-tellers who must walk forward with their heads on backward, unable to see what is ahead, because they tried to see the future through forbidden means. Such a contrapasso "functions not merely as a form of divine revenge, but rather as the fulfilment of a destiny freely chosen by each soul during his or her life". People who sinned, but prayed for forgiveness before their deaths are found not in Hell but in Purgatory, where they labour to become free of their sins. Those in Hell are people who tried to justify their sins and are unrepentant.
How many circles does Dante have in Hell?
As a Christian, Dante adds Circle 1 (Limbo) to Upper Hell and Circle 6 (Heresy) to Lower Hell, making 9 Circles in total; incorporating the Vestibule of the Futile, this leads to Hell containing 10 main divisions. This "9+1=10" structure is also found within the Purgatorio and Paradiso.
Where do Canto V#N#Dante and Virgil enter the second circle?
Canto V#N#Dante and Virgil leave Limbo and enter the Second Circle – the first of the circles of Incontinence – where the punishments of Hell proper begin. It is described as "a part where no thing gleams". They find their way hindered by the serpentine Minos, who judges all of those condemned for active, deliberately willed sin to one of the lower circles. Minos sentences each soul to its torment by wrapping his tail around himself a corresponding number of times. Virgil rebukes Minos, and he and Dante continue on.
Dante's Inferno
Dante's "Inferno" is the first part of Dante Alighieri's epic poem known as the Divine Comedy, where he himself, alongside the poet Virgil, provides a thorough guide through the biblical depiction of Hell. The story begins with Dante lost in the woods where he is set upon by three wild beasts.
Satan in Dante's Inferno
Before discussing Satan, it's worth stepping back and understanding where and why he resides in Hell's deepest circle. When Dante proceeds to the Ninth Circle of Hell, he learns that, instead of the fiery pit that encompassed the other circles, it is instead a vast frozen lake, known as Cocytus, with massive gusts of wind plaguing the land.
Analysis of Lucifer in Dante's Inferno
Before he was the beast of the pit, Satan, otherwise known as Lucifer (meaning "the Morningstar" or "Lightbringer"), was originally the most beautiful and revered of God's angels. He lived in Heaven and served at the hand of God until his own pride got the better of him.
Who is the protagonist in Inferno?
Inferno opens as the poet Dante, narrator and protagonist, finds himself in a dark forest. He comes to a hill, but is prevented from climbing it by three animals. The famous Roman poet Virgil appears and tells Dante he must take a different path—one that leads through Hell and Purgatory.
How many levels of Hell did Dante and Virgil cross?
Dante and Virgil then cross a river into the first of nine "circles," or levels, of Hell. These circles extend downward in a funnel shape, each one smaller and lower than the last. In each level a different kind of sin is punished, and the punishments differ depending on the type and severity of the sin.
What are the elements of Dante's Inferno?
Dante’s Inferno Literary Elements. Major Thematic Elements: The perfection of God’s justice; evil juxtaposed to God’s grace; storytelling as a vehicle for immortality. Motifs: Political arguments; allusions to classical literature; cities; fame and prestige in human life.
What is the conflict in Dante's poem?
Conflict: Dante attempts to find his way to God, to Heaven, to Beatrice, but obstacles in Hell hinder his journey. Plot: The story is told in Cantos—sections of the poem. Mostly, the Cantos align with where the characters are in their journey through Hell. Major Symbols: The entire poem is allegorical, so every aspect serves as a symbol.
Why are Dante and Virgil in this circle together?
They are in this Circle together because of their imprudence with Fortune. At the end of Canto VII, Dante and Virgil descend to the Fifth Circle of Hell and see the River Styx. Covered in mud, these souls residing here fight and bite one another relentlessly. These are the souls of the wrathful.
Why does Virgil cover Dante's eyes?
Virgil covers Dante’s eyes in time to prevent this . An angelic messenger arrives to force open the gates and allow Dante entry to the Sixth Circle of Hell, home of the heretics. Here, as Canto X begins, Dante encounters a political rival, Farinata.
What does Dante feel about Hell?
Dante feels great feelings of pity and is overwhelmed at first, however he seems to come to a deeper understanding of Hell and how it functions as a spiritual realm, so by the end he possesses a certain acceptance and wisdom about Hell and its purpose.
Where do Dante and Virgil meet Minos?
In Canto V , Virgil and Dante descend to the Second Circle of Hell where they meet the monster Minos. His job is to assign punishments to the condemned souls who enter. The Second Circle of Hell is where the lustful wind up. Overcome with pity, Dante faints for the second time since he’s arrived in Hell.
What is the first poem in the Divine Comedy?
Inferno is the first poem in a three-part series called The Divine Comedy. Inferno is an allegorical journey through Hell. In part, Inferno is a political allegory, and in part it is a religious allegory. It is also a story following the classic elements of a comedy—it starts in the depths of Hell but ends with the joys of Heaven.
What is the meaning of Dante's Inferno?
Dante ’s Inferno is the story of his (imagined) voyage through Hell, guided by the poet Virgil, with the purpose of comprehending and rejecting human vice in order to draw closer to God. The story is highly symbolic.
What is the beginning point of the Inferno?
The inciting moment, or starting point, of the Inferno occurs when the Roman poet Virgil arrives to rescue Dante from the dark woods where he is lost.
What happened to Ruggieri and Ugolino?
Encountering Ugolino and Ruggieri frozen together in the ice, with Ugolino gnawing on the back of Ruggieri’s neck, Dante learns that while both men were political traitors, Ruggieri tricked Ugolino and his sons into a tower and left them there to starve.
Why did Beatrice send Virgil to Dante?
Dante is thus utterly unable to help himself. Then, Virgil shows up. Because the Roman poet is known for his virtue, he was sent by Beatrice to guide Dante through Hell.
Why was Dante sent to Hell?
Because the Roman poet is known for his virtue, he was sent by Beatrice to guide Dante through Hell. The planned trip is not afterlife tourism but a spiritual rescue mission. Only by going through Hell, as Virgil explains, will Dante arrive at the entryway to Purgatory. Dante readily accepts Virgil’s offer of guidance, setting the plot in motion.
What is the dread of Lucifer?
Lucifer is both the archetypal sinner and the cause of all other sins, and the existential dread Dante feels upon seeing Lucifer causes Dante to realize the horror of sin as a rejection of divine goodness and as an action which unmakes, or destroys, the self. Fully knowing the terror of sin, Dante flees from it.
Does Dante see sins as serious?
The fact that Dante does not initially see these sin s as serious, with far-reaching effects on human identity and well-being, recalls his spiritual confusion at the beginning of the Inferno. Clearly in need of spiritual maturity, Dante at this point relies heavily on Virgil to correct his errors and point out the consequences of sin.
Plot Overview
Inferno opens on the evening of Good Friday in the year 1300. Traveling through a dark wood, Dante Alighieri has lost his path and now wanders fearfully through the forest. The sun shines down on a mountain above him, and he attempts to climb up to it but finds his way blocked by three beasts—a leopard, a lion, and a she-wolf.
Character List
The author and protagonist of Inferno; the focus of all action and interaction with other characters. Because Dante chose to present his fictional poem as a record of events that actually happened to him, a wide gulf between Dante the poet and Dante the character pervades the poem.
Analysis of Major Characters
Thirty-five years old at the beginning of the story, Dante—the character as opposed to the poet—has lost his way on the “true path” of life; in other words, sin has obstructed his path to God.
Canto Summaries
Dante finds himself lost in a dark wood, the path he was following lost. He does not remember how he lost his way. Above, he sees a great hill that seems to offer protection from the shadowed glen.
Canto Analyses
From a structural point of view, the first two cantos of Inferno function as an introduction, presenting the main dramatic situation and maneuvering Dante and Virgil to the entrance of Hell, the journey through which will constitute the main plot of the poem.
Metaphor Analysis
Dante fills The Divine Comedy with hundreds of metaphors. Only a close reading of the poems' "Notes" will give readers fair insight into the elaborate and complex metaphors, and metaphorical systems, employed by Dante. Additionally, Dante scholars still disagree on many points related to the symbolism and true meaning of specific details in Comedy.
Top Ten Quotes
1) "'And are you Virgil, you the fountain that freely pours so rich a stream of speech?' I answered him with shame upon my brow. 'O light and honor of all other poets, may my long study and the intense love that made me search your volume serve me now.
Overview
Inferno is the first part of Italian writer Dante Alighieri's 14th-century epic poem Divine Comedy. It is followed by Purgatorio and Paradiso. The Inferno describes Dante's journey through Hell, guided by the ancient Roman poet Virgil. In the poem, Hell is depicted as nine concentric circles of torment located within the Earth; it is the "realm ... of those who have rejected spiritual values by yielding t…
Prelude to Hell
The poem begins on the night of Maundy Thursday on March 24 (or April 7), 1300, shortly before dawn of Good Friday. The narrator, Dante himself, is thirty-five years old, and thus "midway in the journey of our life" (Nel mezzo del cammin di nostra vita ) – half of the biblical lifespan of seventy (Psalm 89:10, Vulgate; Psalm 90:10, KJV). The poet finds himself lost in a dark wood (selva os…
Nine circles of Hell
Virgil proceeds to guide Dante through the nine circles of Hell. The circles are concentric, representing a gradual increase in wickedness, and culminating at the centre of the earth, where Satan is held in bondage. The sinners of each circle are punished for eternity in a fashion fitting their crimes: each punishment is a contrapasso, a symbolic instance of poetic justice. For example, later in the po…
See also
• Allegory in the Middle Ages
• Dante Alighieri and the Divine Comedy in popular culture
• Great refusal
• List of cultural references in the Divine Comedy
Notes
1. ^ There are many English translations of this famous line. Some examples include Verbatim, the line translates as "Leave (lasciate) every (ogne) hope (speranza), ye [Modern English: you] (voi) that (ch') enter (intrate)."
2. ^ Mandelbaum, note to his translation, p. 357 of the Bantam Dell edition, 2004, says that Dante may simply be preserving an ancient conflation of the two deities; Peter Bondanella in his note to the translation of Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, The Inferno: Dante Alig…
External links
• Dante Dartmouth Project: Full text of more than 70 Italian, Latin, and English commentaries on the Commedia, ranging in date from 1322 (Iacopo Alighieri) to the 2000s (Robert Hollander)
• World of Dante Multimedia website that offers Italian text of Divine Comedy, Allen Mandelbaum's translation, gallery, interactive maps, timeline, musical recordings, and searchable database for students and teachers by Deborah Parker and IATH (Institute for Advanced Technologies in the …