Nine Circles Of Hell In Dante's Inferno

Throughout history there have been many religions. Each of these religions has had an idea of what the afterlife consists of. Many artists and authors have portrayed their versions in their works. One of the best known authors is Dante Alighieri who wrote “The Divine Comedy”. In “Volume I: Inferno” Dante describes his version of hell in detail. There are nine circles of hell according to Dante; some even have multiple levels within themselves. Each level is centered on a specific kind of sinner that has to spend eternity in hell and they suffer a punishment that they have to endure for eternity. In the beginning of civilization in the Mediterranean and what is now Europe there were people of all faiths who sinned. As this history is learned there are five who could find their eternal fate within Dante’s Inferno. These include Peter Abelard, Justinian, Etienne Marcel, Marcus Porcius Cato, and Alcibiades. What these people did that can be
Justinian was an emperor of the Byzantine state. “Strong-willed, restless, and ambitious, Justinian is remembered as ‘the emperor who never slept.’” (Kishlansky, p.190) He wanted to rebuild the glory found in the old Roman empire. He spent almost everything within his empire to reclaim land and build the empire up. His efforts, while amazing, were so expensive that he left the empire in dire need of finances. (Kishlansky, p.190-191) For this Justinian is placed within the fourth circle of Dante’s hell. Here the souls of the miserly and the prodigal are damned for all eternity. Justinian wasted his finances to create an empire that was soon invaded and taken over. His punishment is a heavy weight that he must push against the miserly because how they felt about money on earth is opposite. When they make contact with each other, they have to push to turn the other way while the miserly scream “Why waste?” and the prodigal scream “Why hoard?” for all eternity. (Dante/Musa,