Term Paper

I. INTRODUCTION
Today, faith, doubt, and prayer the afterlife and other religious are topics that is truly significant. How does one find faith? Rediscovering faith after the grieving process so whether starting from background of having practiced a religion and then fallen away, or whether pursuing the search for faith for the first time. The question becomes why should a person take time to read and learn about God? Dante’s epic masterpiece, The Divine Comedy, was probably begun about 1307; it was completed shortly before his death. The work is an allegorical narrative, in verse of great precision and dramatic force, of the poet’s imaginary journey through hell, purgatory, and heaven. It is divided into three sections, correspondingly named the Inferno (Hell), the Purgatorio (Purgatory), and the Paradiso (Paradise). In each of these three realms the poet meets with mythological, historical, and contemporary personages. Each character is symbolic of a particular fault or virtue, either religious or political; and the punishment or rewards meted out to the characters further illustrate the larger meaning of their actions in the universal scheme. Dante is guided through hell and purgatory by Virgil, who is, to Dante, the symbol of reason. The woman Dante loved, Beatrice, whom he regards as both a manifestation and an instrument of the divine will, is his guide through paradise.

II. SOURCES AND INFLUENCE OF THE PLAY
The work, which provides a summary of the political, scientific, and philosophical thought of the time, may be interpreted on four levels: the literal, allegorical, moral, and mystical. Indeed, part of the majesty of this work rests on its multiplicity of meaning even more than on its masterfully poetic and dramatic qualities.
It is supreme as a dramatization of medieval Christian theology, but even beyond that framework, Dante’s imaginary voyage can be understood as an allegory of the purification of one’s soul and of the achievement of inner peace through the guidance of reason and love.

III. CHARACTERS
Dante: The main character, or protagonist, of the poem is the author himself. No other epic poets before him–including Homer and Vergil–had made themselves the main characters of their poems. Dante 's Guides through the afterlife are as follows:
Vergil (Virgil): The Roman poet Publius Vergilius Maro, or Vergil, escorts Dante through Hell and Purgatory. He symbolizes human reason. Vergil (70-19 B.C.), a poet Dante admired, wrote the great Latin epic The Aeneid, which chronicled the exploits of the legendary Trojan hero Aeneas, who escaped Troy after the Trojan War and settled in Italy. There, his descendants founded Rome.
Beatrice: Beatrice Portinari (1265-1290), believed to be the daughter of banker Folco Portinari, guides Dante into the celestial realm. Beatrice, who represents faith and grace, was Dante 's first love, and he never forgot her even after he married Gemma Donati and Beatrice married Simon de Bardi.
St. Bernard: A French Cistercian monk and abbot, St. Bernard of Clairvaux (1090-1153) guides and instructs Dante when the poet reaches the highest region of heaven. Bernard supported the ascendancy of Pope Innocent II against Anacletus II, an antipope. He preached in favor of the Second Crusade, strongly opposed heresy, and wrote many hymns that remain popular today.
Mythological Personages and Creatures: Examples of the mythological figures in The Divine Comedy are the following: Minos, King of Crete and later judge of the Underworld
Paris and Helen, lovers who caused the Trojan War
Achilles, the proud Greek warrior who offended the gods in various ways
Cerberus, the three-headed dog at the entrance to the Underworld and, in the Inferno, symbol of appetite and gluttony with his three mouths
Geryon, a monster with a stinger who is a symbol of fraud
Ulysses, wily Greek who devised the Trojan horse, enabling Greece to defeat Troy in the Trojan War; he is in hell as a deceiver
Arachne, a maiden turned into a spider after angering Minerva (Athena), goddess of wisdom and war;
The Furies, avengers of crimes
The Harpies, hideous monsters Chiron, a wise centaur (creature that was part horse and part human) Jason, famed retriever of the Golden Fleece who abandoned his wife, Medea, for another woman IV. SUMMARY * Dante Pilgrim has not been a good boy. * His dead love Beatrice asks the Virgin Mary to help him see the error of his ways. * Mary accepts and Dante is sent on a three-day trip through Hell, and on up Mount Purgatory on the other side of the world, and finally to Heaven in the sky. * He is spiritually lost at the beginning of the story, so he needs guides to help him along the path. * His first guide, through Hell and Purgatory is Virgil (author of the Aeneid). * They encounter many interesting sinners on the way. Dante learns to hate sin. * His second guide is Beatrice, the woman he adored while he lived. * His final guide is Saint Bernard (namesake of the loyal dog), who takes him to see God.

V. PLOT STRUCTURE A. Exposition B. Incentive Moment C. Rising Action D. Climax E. Falling Action F. Conclusion VI. CHARACTERIZATION
Beatrice – summons Virgil from Limbo (Inferno 2) to lead Dante through hell, up the mount of Purgatory to the Garden of Eden. She sits with the blessed in the heavenly rose, where she replaces Virgil as the pilgrims guide (Purgatory 30). Beatrice “bringer of blessedness” is therefore largely responsible for the pilgrim’s (and the poet’s) salvation. The historical Beatrice Portinari (1266-90) was the daughter of Folco Portinari, a wealthy Florentine. VII. SETTING, ATMOSPHERE, PERIOD INVOLVED VIII. THEME, VALUES AND RELEVANCE OF TODAY
The Divine Comedy recounts the travels of Dante Alighieri 's Pilgrim, his alter ego and the reader 's Everyman (a figure with whom every reader can relate), through three regions: Hell, Purgatory, and Paradise. His goal is to reach spiritual maturity and an understanding of God 's love. Having achieved his goal, the Pilgrim has the ultimate vision, a face-to-face encounter with God. IX. BIBLIOGRAPHY

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