An Introduction to Dante’s Inferno

Dante Alighieri Born in Florence, Italy -Died in Ravenna at the age of 56 after complications due to Malaria Considered one of the greatest poets of Western Civilization Was exiled from Florence in 1302 –Spent the rest of his life wandering around Italy

Dante Alighieri Beatrice (Dante’s muse) Met her once at age 9, then again at age 18. –She died in 1290 She was the subject of some of his love poetry. She is a character in The Divine Comedy –Serves as Dante’s guide through heaven

Historical context Guelphs and Ghibellines Guelphs –sided with the pope in the city’s political tensions Guelphs split –Black Guelphs and White Guelphs Pope Bonifact VIII sided with the Blacks, Dante sided with the Whites –Led to his exile from Florence He wrote The Divine Comedy while in exile

Format Commedia –A challenging journey made to arrive at peace The Divine Comedy –Inferno –Purgatorio –Paradiso

Allegory Definitions: A story that has a deeper meaning beyond the surface level of the story. A story that uses characters, events, or objects as symbols to convey its deeper meaning. Examples:Inferno: Dante represents a flawed human soul Virgil represents reason Animal Farm: Allegory for Stalinist totalitarianism Napoleon the Pig represents Joseph Stalin Inception: Allegory for film making Cobb (Leo Dicaprio) represents the a film director Fisher (target of inception) represents the audience “Inception” is the central idea/purpose of the movie

The Number 3 Principle of the Trinity –Number 3 represents the Christian concept of the trinity 100 Cantos in the whole text –33 for each of 3 parts –Introductory first canto for Inferno Journey through Hell takes 3 days –Good Friday to Easter Sunday Terza rima Rhyme scheme that consists of 3-line stanzas More info on next slide!

Format Terza rima –Italian form of iambic poetry –First and third lines rhyme with each other –Second lines rhyme with the first and third lines of the next tercet –Aba bcb cdc … wxw xyx yzy The rhyming scheme is only in the Italian, not in the English

Components The language it is written in is highly important –Used the Tuscan dialect of Italian, NOT Latin –Established this dialect as the literary dialect of Italy

Components Dante’s law of symbolic retribution –There are countless ways of being dead –How you live is intimately connected with when you die –There are multiple ways of living and dying

Components A 35-year old man is having a midlife crisis A pagan poet, Virgil, guides him on a journey through hell –Virgil wrote the Aeneid to create a national epic for Rome –Greece had the Iliad and the Odyssey; Rome had no equivalent Dante’s choice of Virgil as the guide through hell is deliberate –Virgil is a guide. He is protective, gently explanatory, alert, cautious, savvy, and trustworthy. –Virgil in the Divine Comedy is based almost completely on Virgil as a poet. –To Dante, Virgil is a mentor. Dante held Virgil’s poetry up as an example for himself, thus it is important Virgil has the character of a mentor in the Divine Comedy.

Components Allusion –There are allusions all over this text! –While many of the allusions in this text refer to Greek mythology, it is also important to note the many Biblical and historical allusions. Adam and Eve Troy Fortune’s Wheel –AND MANY MORE!

Components Some sins Avarice –Excessive desire for wealth Prodigality –Extravagant wastefulness Gluttony –Consuming immoderate amounts of food/drink Sloth –Aversion to exertion or work; laziness Wrath –Violent, resentful anger; rage

More Sins, con’t. Heresy –An opinion or doctrine in conflict with established religious beliefs Blasphemy –A contemptuous or profane act, utterance, or writing concerning God Usury –Lending money at an exorbitant or illegal rate of interest Incontinence –Being unrestrained; uncontrolled Malice –A desire to harm others or see others suffer

The 9 Levels of Hell 1-Limbo –people waiting to see if they enter heaven or descend to hell 2-Lustful, 3-Gluttonous, 4- Avaricious— –These are the sins of weakness, the worst thing we can do to ourselves 5-Wrathful, 6-Heretics (Those who betrayed others) and 7- Violent. –These represent sins of malice—premeditated, usually actions towards other people.

The Last Levels of Hell.. The 8-Fraudulent and the 9- Treacherous –These last two represent sins of betrayal and pride—considered the worst of all the sins. Satan, who betrayed God, represents the epitome of all evil.

Essential questions FOR OUR UNIT: -What is the historical significance of a work of literature? SPECIFIC TO THE INFERNO: Why would Dante write a work such as the Inferno? What is his purpose? What is an allegory, and how does it work? What, ultimately, does this allegorical epic teach us? How are Dante’s life and history woven into his narrative? What does this work tell us about 14 th century Italy and the human condition in general?