Lit201 Dante's Inferno

Lit201, Week 2, Lect1.

Dante's Inferno Canto I

Sun = God

Shewolf of lust represents the most dangerous desire.

virgil personifies human reason - and represents the importance of Roman influence on thought and theology.

Page 31 - stanza 9 - important point: Virgil can not go beyond a certain point (human reason can only take us so far, reason can know that there is a God, but reason cannot know through it's own strength the nature of God is the trinity, that only comes through faith. So reason has limits, and perhaps by realizing these limits, counter intuitively, we recognize its power.

Virgil is coming to lead Dante because Dante is in a state of ignorance, and yet Dante calls on God to guide them, and Virgil can never see this God.


Dante appeals to the muses - this is a convention that he subscribes to.

Dante's descends to the inferno whereas Oddyseus descends to the shades.

There are extended metaphors... especially for the ascetical life... making progress... falling back... trying again.

There is fear in heaven over the immortal destiny of Dante's soul - our lady fears for where Dante is, therefore she brings in Saint Lucy and Saint lucy brings in Beatrice, after getting permission to leave Heaven and she meets Dante in limbo.

Just as the God's schemed to bring about things on Earth - so do the Saints here conspire to facilitate Dante.

The number 3 is important - there are 3 saint here. The use of the triple rhyme reinforces the importance of number 3, 33 cantos in each book and there are 3 books, it's trinitarian.

Canto III The Gate of Hell. It isn't hell itself yet, it's almost there, and in some ways this is worse.

The Damned fear good, and yearn for him. They yearn for Hell. They yearn for what they fear, this is where there heart was at the moment of their death - it's the idea of divine retribution simply giving people what they want - they want this more then they want God. Whatever sin that has damned them to this place - they wanted that more than they wanted God at a particular moment. They yearn for what they fear in that double aspect.

Rhyming words are not accidents, they reinforce meanings in subtle ways, content and form are inextricably linked.

1st Circle of Hell - Canto IV - line 13, the Poet himself, has become pale and deathlike.

Limbo is in hell, it's not purgatory, and it's not heaven, it's full of virtuous pagans.

Some souls have left limbo, they are the souls of prophets, and awaiting for Christs act - the "harrowing of hell".

In honouring Dante (who honours them) they are honouring themselves (these poets).

Canto V - Circle 2 - Even the demons fall under the power of Heaven and must obey the commands from up high.

PARADOX: The love that drives and damns them.