Inferno Literary Analysis
Matt Eden
Mrs. Brown
W-3
1/26/11
Inferno Literary Analysis If given the opportunity to view Hell and its inhabitants, would you feel sympathy towards those you have known while they were alive, or would you feel as though they deserve the punishment they have been given? One such man who wrote a book about such an encounter is Dante Alighieri. Dante opened up The Inferno with a tone of sympathy and grief; however, his attitude toward the souls he encountered became increasingly opposite to that, as if he felt the souls deserved this. Some souls he encountered he had known, and some he had merely heard of. Dante did not pass judgment upon all of them, but many he did. Dante felt sympathy towards many characters in the first few rings of hell, including a couple, Francesca and Paolo, and his own guide, Virgil. The couple was sent to Hell for an affair, however Dante felt quite sorry for them: “When I had heard those grief-stricken souls I bowed my head and held it bowed down low.” Dante remains reticent about being entirely sympathetic, but it is not hard to observe his actions. Virgil was a Classical Roman poet well known for many works. Virgil was put in Hell not necessarily for any reprehensible works or specific sins, but actually because he simply did not believe in God. It is implied, but remains ambiguous, that Dante thought people like this may not have been introduced to God, and should perhaps be put into the first level of Purgatory. Many souls that Dante and his tour guide meet in the first few rings of Hell he feels sympathetic towards. At the beginning of Canto VIII, Dante encounters a man by the name of Filippo Argenti. In all Cantos prior to this moment, Dante showed feelings of sympathy towards the sinners, and this is the first sign of Dante’s anti-sympathy. Virgil tells Dante “Before the future shore comes into view, you shall be satisfied.” Dante was at the time on a boat, and as the boat pulled away, Dante enjoys watching
Mrs. Brown
W-3
1/26/11
Inferno Literary Analysis If given the opportunity to view Hell and its inhabitants, would you feel sympathy towards those you have known while they were alive, or would you feel as though they deserve the punishment they have been given? One such man who wrote a book about such an encounter is Dante Alighieri. Dante opened up The Inferno with a tone of sympathy and grief; however, his attitude toward the souls he encountered became increasingly opposite to that, as if he felt the souls deserved this. Some souls he encountered he had known, and some he had merely heard of. Dante did not pass judgment upon all of them, but many he did. Dante felt sympathy towards many characters in the first few rings of hell, including a couple, Francesca and Paolo, and his own guide, Virgil. The couple was sent to Hell for an affair, however Dante felt quite sorry for them: “When I had heard those grief-stricken souls I bowed my head and held it bowed down low.” Dante remains reticent about being entirely sympathetic, but it is not hard to observe his actions. Virgil was a Classical Roman poet well known for many works. Virgil was put in Hell not necessarily for any reprehensible works or specific sins, but actually because he simply did not believe in God. It is implied, but remains ambiguous, that Dante thought people like this may not have been introduced to God, and should perhaps be put into the first level of Purgatory. Many souls that Dante and his tour guide meet in the first few rings of Hell he feels sympathetic towards. At the beginning of Canto VIII, Dante encounters a man by the name of Filippo Argenti. In all Cantos prior to this moment, Dante showed feelings of sympathy towards the sinners, and this is the first sign of Dante’s anti-sympathy. Virgil tells Dante “Before the future shore comes into view, you shall be satisfied.” Dante was at the time on a boat, and as the boat pulled away, Dante enjoys watching
Bibliography: "Inferno Tone." Shmoop: Study Guides & Teacher Resources. Web. 31 Jan. 2011. <http://www.shmoop.com/inferno/tone.html>. "SparkNotes: Inferno: Cantos VII-IX." SparkNotes: Today 's Most Popular Study Guides. Web. 31 Jan. 2011. <http://www.sparknotes.com/poetry/inferno/section4.rhtml>.