Essay, Research Paper
VIRGIL?S INFLUENCE ON AND IN DANTE?S INFERNO
Dante Alighieri was born in Florence, Italy in 1265. In his life, he created two major
books of poetry: Vita Nuova and The Comedy. The Comedy, which was later renamed The
Divine Comedy, is an epic poem broken down into three books in each of which Dante recounts
his travels through Hell, Purgatory, and Heaven. The first installment of The Comedy, Dante’s
Inferno, is an especially magnificent narrative. He narrates his descent and observation of Hell
through the various circles and pouches. An excellent poet in his own right, admired much about
Virgil (also spelt Vergil), revering him to such an extent that he turned him into the guiding
character, the teacher to Dante the pilgrim, in the Purgatory and Inferno. Dante borrowed from
Virgil much of his language, style, and content. While Dante improved upon Virgil’s works in
many respects, his changes in the theological content in particular, reveal the differences between
the conceptions of the afterworld/underworld of the two authors’ respective time periods. As
Erich Auerbach writes, with reference to Dante’s extensively ordered otherworld, “Dante had no
true precursors, except for the sixth book of the Aeneid.”(Auerbach, Erich . p. 88). A large
portion of Dante?s Inferno is merely an expansion of one book (VI -the Underworld) of Virgil?s
Aeneid. Though much of Dante’s Hell is original, he seemed to use the Aeneid as a base and that
which he did extract from the Aeneid, he carefully adapted for his own purposes and beliefs. In
pursuing his Christian vision of the afterlife, Dante created an otherworld theoretically and
doctrinally different from, yet still inescapably reminiscent of Virgil’s Underworld. Dante, of
course, structured his Hell to fit the confines and fundamentals of his Christian ideology, but still
used The Aeneid as his foundation. Thus, in order to portray the Christian universe and to
represent the afterworldly concepts of justice for one?s actions during life, Dante looked to
Virgil’s Aeneid for both, the inspiration to create and the tools to do so. Similarities between
Virgil?s Underworld and Dante?s Hell are quite noticeable to even the untrained eye.
The entrance or gate to Virgil’s Underworld in the Aeneid marks a sharp division, as also
found in The Inferno, between the land of the living and the land of the dead. A foreboding
vestibule precedes the entrance to the Underworld, purposely there not ease any journey toward
the heart of Hades, and help remind them that this is the afterlife they chose. Inhabiting Virgil?s
vestibule are the causes of death, incarnated into spiritual forms as agents of death (Virgil,
274-280), but they are not clearly seen forms, nor are any of the forms in both, Virgil?s and
Dante?s visions of Hell. All the Underworld in Dante?s and Virgil?s interpretations is portrayed in
a shadowy, colorless environment to create the illusion of death and hopelessness.
?I am the way to the doleful city, I am the way into eternal grief, I am the way to a forsaken race.
Justice it was that moved my great Creator; Divine omnipotence created me, and highest wisdom
joined with primal love.
Before me nothing but eternal things were made, and I shall last eternally. Abandon every hope,
all you who enter.?-reading on Vestibule Gate (Dante, 89).
Virgil places high importance on this vestibule to delineate clearly one main difference between
the Underworld and the outside: the former has an unavoidably intangible, bodiless, and abstract
(nothing clearly defined) quality to it, compared to the latter?s concrete, physical reality. The
presence of the agents of death, most notably “Sleep the brother of Death” (Virgil, 278), are here
to symbolize the transition from the world of life outside the vestibule, to a room full of the causes
of death, and finally lead to the land of death itself (Hell itself). The vestibule can be considered
to be a no-man?s-land, your not completely in Hell yet, but there?s nowhere else to go except
down. Dante?s Hell is also preceded by a foreboding vestibule which is home to the souls who
could not decide to do good or evil with their lives. The angels who did not pick a side in the
fight between Michael (God’s general) or with Lucifer (Satan) in the battle of Heaven reside here.
This entrance of Hell begins the world of darkness and unidentifiable shades, colorless in their
symbolization of lifelessness. Dante compares the lifeless shades to ??dead leaves fluttering to the
ground in autumn?, weightless and lifeless, as when falling leaves ?detach themselves? from the
tree of life. All the souls descend ?one-by-one?, like leaves falling ?first one and then the other??
(Dante, pp. 112-117). This simile that Dante uses is almost identical to Virgil?s description of the
souls as ?…a multitude of leaves…?(Virgil, p. 309).
In creating the environment for his Hell, Dante time and again borrowed from Virgil?s
writings, but for more extensive ends. While Virgil used the inferences of pallor and shade to
indicate a lack of hope and the completeness of death, Dante’s use of similar themes was used in a
more Christian interest, how the lost souls would manifest into their tortured spiritual nature.
Dante?s sinners would represent the sins they committed; those who were choked with rage in
life, are choked by a boiling pitch. Virgil?s shades were lost on the banks of the Styx to represent
the utter despair and indefinite unreality of death, whereas Dante?s lost souls represented not only
the utter despair of death, but also the void that is Hell; those who left a void in their lives where
morals and good should have been now get to live in the void they created. Dante?s Hell and
Virgil?s Underworld are alike in their general auras and atmosphere, but their structural
organizational differences show how Dante digressed more in the interest of a Christian
conception of the underworld. The prime differences in both poems is caused by the age at which
theses poems were written; Virgil?s and Dante?s interpretation of Hell were arranged to fit how
the societies of their time viewed the afterlife.
Dante did, however, improve upon Virgil?s Underworld. In his Underworld, Virgil
divided Hell into three regions: Tartarus, Elysium, and Lugentes Campi, and nine sections ?…and
nine times the river Styx, poured between, confines? (Virgil, 439). The damned souls in the
Underworld are all suffering in a disorganized society. All the souls are punished for their sins in
life, but none are placed in organized sections where all sinners of the same vice suffer together.
Rather, in Dante?s Hell retribution for sins are organized in an orderly afterlife. All sinners of the
same immoral act are tortured together in the same circle of Hell, and as one moves deeper into
the depths of Hell, the acts against God grow malicious as do the soul?s punishments. Like the
eternal crossroads in the Underworld, Dante?s Circles of Hell each provide a permanent image of
justice, specifically divine Christian justice. Hell’s overall physical structure reflects this idea of
justice. Dante conveys a sense of excruciatingly precise justice with each new Circle of Hell: if
you were fraudulent, you are punished likewise, and if you had been violent, you would have been
punished accordingly. This precision is a reflection of Dante’s Catholic conception of divine
justice. The punishments of Hell, being created by God, would only be exactly fair, as well as
reflective of His relative displeasure with the sin that was executed in life.
Virgil was also a major character in Dante?s Inferno. For the first part of his journey,
Dante needed a guide who knew about Hell, Virgil was the perfect guide. Virgil had navigated
through Hell before and, therefore, knew the territory. According to Brother Etienne, ?Virgil
becomes in the Inferno the symbol of human reason? Early in the poem, Virgil tells Dante that he
is there because Heaven wanted him there and that he can take Dante only part of the way.
(Virgil can’t enter Heaven or see God because he lacked a faith in God) Someone “more worthy”
will take Dante to God. Most critics interpret this as saying that man’s reason is finite, while God
is infinite. Man’s reason and philosophy will get him started on the right way, but the ultimate
way to God is guided by a higher power. (Glen, Chris. English 12 notebook) Virgil is Dante?s
only friend and guardian spirit in his journey through Hell. With the help of Virgil?s wisdom and
guidance, Dante safely passed through the land of the dead, and can continue on in his expedition
to Heaven.
In borrowing the dark, pale environment so thoroughly explored by Virgil?s Aeneid, Dante
on the one hand shows off his ability to incorporate classical themes into a Christian
framework of ideas. Dante’s in-depth description of the layout of Hell shows his deep faith in
representing the Christian ideas of the Last Judgement, such as justice. Dante desired to
transform the vital elements in the Underworld of Vergil’s classic work Aeneid into the Hell of the
Christian universe.
Works Sited
Alighieri, Dante. The Divine Comedy: Inferno. Trans. Allen Mandelbaum. New York: U of
California P. 1980.
Auerbach, Erich. Dante: Poet of the Secular World. Trans. Ralph Manheim. Chicago: U of
Chicago P. 1961.
Vergil. Vergil’s Aeneid: Books I – Vl. Ed. Clyde Pharr. Lexington, MA: D.C. Heath and Co.,
1964.
Interview with Brother Ethienne 12/3/98
Glen, Christopher. English 12 Notebook. New York. 1998
Bibliography
Alighieri, Dante. The Divine Comedy: Inferno. Trans. Allen Mandelbaum. New York: U of
California P. 1980.
Auerbach, Erich. Dante: Poet of the Secular World. Trans. Ralph Manheim. Chicago: U of
Chicago P. 1961.
Auerbach. Mimesis: The Representation of Reality in Western Literature. Trans. Willard R. Trask.
Princeton: Princeton U P. 1953.
Austin, R.G. Aeneid VI: Commentary. Oxford: Oxford U P. 1979.
Burckhardt, Jacob. The Civilization of the Renaissance in Italy. Trans. S. G. C. Middlemore. vol.
l. New York: Harper & Row, 1958.
Commager, Steele, ed. Virgil: A Collection of Critical Essays. Englewood Cliffs: Prentice-Hall,
Inc., 1966.
Comparetti, Domenico. Vergil in the Middle Ages. Trans. E. F. M. Benecke. London: George
Allen & Unwin, Ltd. 1966.
Curtius, Ernst Robert. European Literature and the Latin Middle Aaes. Trans. Willard R. Trask.
New York: Harper & Row, 1953.
F[letcher], A. S. “Fable, Parable, and Allegory.” Encyclopaedia Britannica: Macropedia. 1985.
Freccero, John, ed. Dante: A Collection ofritical Essays. Englewood Cliffs: Prentice-Hall, Inc.,
1965.
Kline, Morris. Mathematics in Western Culture. New York: Oxford U P. 1953.
Otis, Brooks. Virgil: A Study in Civilized Poetry. Oxford: Clarendon P. 1964.
Quinn, Kenneth. Virgil’s Aeneid: A Critical Description. Ann Arbor: U of Michigan P. 1969.
Vergil. Vergil’s Aeneid: Books I – Vl. Ed. Clyde Pharr. Lexington, MA: D.C. Heath and Co.,
1964.
360
Другие работы по теме:
Monte Cristo Essay Research Paper In The
Monte Cristo Essay, Research Paper In The Count of Monte Cristo, Alexander Dumas places Edmond Dantes in the position to act as God around those whom he is associated with. It is common knowledge, that God is a kind, loving, all knowing, and wrathful. Dantes is shown to have all of these characteristics. Dantes first shows his kindness as the Abbe Busoni and Lord Wilmore as he rewards those who were once kind to him.
Gayism Essay Research Paper literary scholars have
Gayism Essay, Research Paper literary scholars have argued the fact that Dante had homoerotic tendencies. This poin Many t has been justified with the help of Dante s own work of art, the Inferno, a divine comedy where Dante goes down to visit the nine circles of hell. The sin of sodomy is seen in the seventh circle of hell, where sodomites, blasphemers and usurers are punished in three independent rings.
MCM Essay Research Paper The Count of
MCM Essay, Research Paper The Count of Monte Cristo Theme: The Count of Monte Cristo is a very powerful book. So powerful in fact, that was controversial when it was
God Vs Minos Essay Research Paper God
God Vs Minos Essay, Research Paper God Versus Minos The journey that life takes one on is sometimes long and difficult. There are many obstacles to overcome and decisions to make. Occasionally, one makes a bad judgement and, in consequence, commits a malevolent act. Although this act is resentful, one’s entire life is not based on this single action.
HomerS Odyssey And VirgilS Aeneid Essay Research
Paper Virgil was a creative genius fromhis time, but it can be understandable that many of his works may have been influenced fromprevious works of literature. The Aeneid is not only a personal epic aboutn Aeneas, ut also exaltation and beautification of ROme and the future of the people. There is a greater emphasis placed upon the founding of ROme rather than the actual adventure of Aeneas.
The Count Of Monte Cristo Revenge Essay
, Research Paper The Count of Monte Cristo: Revenge The Story of Edmond Dant?s, the Sailor, who Becomes the Rich & Powerful Count of Monte Cristo and Takes Revenge on all his Enemies.
The Count Of Monte Cristo 2 Essay
, Research Paper The Count of Monte Cristo The Count of Monte Cristo, written by Alexandre Dumas, tells the story of a man, Edmond Dantes, a sailor who goes through being betrayed by his enemies and thrown in to a dark prison cell to planning revenge on his enemies. His behavior and personality changes after spending 14 years in jail for a crime that he didn t commit.
Dantes Cacus Essay Research Paper Character review
Dantes? Cacus Essay, Research Paper Character review: Of Cacus in Dantes? Divine Comedy Dantes? Cacus While on his famed excursion into the depths of Hell, Dante and his guide Virgil, have an encounter with the vile half-human Cacus. Whom is this one they call Cacus and what abominable thing did he have to do, to earn himself a place as one of the tormentors in the Inferno? Little is know about Cacus even in 1300s? because Dante had to have Virgil retell the legend of Cacus so people would understand how Cacus fit into this place of Hell.(Canto XXV line 25) Virgil himself had had this same legend retold in his work The Aeneid.
Literature Essay Research Paper Overtime peoples opinions
Literature Essay, Research Paper Overtime peoples opinions tend to change, as well as their views on situations. The waythat we view sins today and the way that sins were viewed around Dantes time hascompletely changed. My beliefs are that something is a sin if it is against God s will, or breaking theten commandments.
The Nature Of Humanity
– Dantes Inferno Essay, Research Paper The Nature of Humanity There are many differences between modern society and Dante s perception Florence, Italy. These differences are caused by the passage of time. The society depicted in Dante s Inferno is almost completely different than modern society, when taken at face value.
Paolo And Francesca
– Dante’s Inferno Canto V Essay, Research Paper Icee@itookmyprozac A Daughter of Eve As Eve was to Adam, Delilah to Samson and Cleopatra to Anthony, so was Francesca da Rimini to Paolo Malatesta.
The Count Of Monte Cristo 3 Essay
, Research Paper The Count of Monte Cristo By: Alexandre Dumas Type of Literary Work: Historical Novel This book is an example of a historical Novel. It is historically accurate, and consists of characters that could have existed in the nineteenth century.
Count Of Monte Cristo- Character Review On
Fernand Essay, Research Paper THE COUNT OF MONTE CRISTO By Alexandre Dumas Fernand Mondego was a simple fisherman who led a dull, monotonous life and was not very important in the social status. If he had just been content in all of his circumstances, his life might have been better. However, from the very beginning of the book, Fernand’s goal in life was to obtain things he could not obtain.
The Count Of Monte Cristo By Alexandre
Dumas Essay, Research Paper The Count Of Monte Cristo by Alexandre Dumas is a story which begins in 19th centuryFrance. The Main character, Edmond Dantes begins the story as a happy man. He haseverything going for him. ?you?re a lucky man, Edmond, and you have a very prettymistress, sir? ?she?s not my mistress, sir ? ? she?s my fiancee.? This changes quickly whenDantes is imprisoned.
Influences Essay Research Paper InfluencesNo matter what
Influences Essay, Research Paper Influences No matter what stage in life people are they are subjected to influences. But never before has my generation been under so much influence. We are under influence from our friends, teachers, parents and new information technologies. The influence one person has on another is great.
Dante Essay Research Paper Edmund Dantes a
Dante Essay, Research Paper Edmund Dantes, a strapping young sailor, was the prime years of his life during the nineteenth century. He was a good person, was well mannered and frankly had a lot of things going for him. He was affianced to the lovely Mercedes, he captained a good ship, the Pharon, and had whom he thought been good friends.
Dantes Inferno Essay Research Paper Johnson Brad
Dantes Inferno Essay, Research Paper Johnson, Brad# CRUEL PUNISHMENTS OF SINNERS IN THE RAGING INFERNO Dante Alighieri was born in Florence, Italy in 1265. In his life, he composed two major books of poetry: Vita Nuova and The Divine Comedy. The Vita Nuova is composed of love poems, sonnets, and lyrics. The Divine Comedy, is an epic poem segmented into three books, each of which recounts Dante s travels through hell, purgatory, and heaven.
DanteS Inferno Second Circle Of Hell Essay
, Research Paper Canto V In Dante’s Inferno, part of The Divine Comedy, Canto V introduces the torments of Hell in the Second Circle. Here Minos tells the damned where they will spend eternity by wrapping his tail around himself. The Second Circle of Hell holds the lustful; those who sinned with the flesh. They are punished in the darkness by an unending tempest, which batters them with winds and rain.
Inferno Versus Paradise Lost Essay Research Paper
Inferno vs. Paradise Lost The two stories Inferno by Dante and Paradise Lost by Milton were written about the biblical hell and its keeper; Satan. Both of these authors had different views about hell and Satan.
Dante S Inferno Essay Research Paper In
Dante S Inferno Essay, Research Paper In Dante s Inferno, hell is described as a place full of torture and hopelessness. Within the circular body of hell, each level contained unique punishments for various types of sin. The further Dante descended into hell, the worse the punishments became. Due to the time period in which Dante wrote the Inferno, only the individuals of that time, along with their respective sins, are addressed.
Political Context Of Dante
’s Inferno Essay, Research Paper The political context of Dante’s Inferno Dante’s “Inferno” was a great epic poem of the early Renaissance. It was known for its astute commentary on political and religious levels, both deeply woven into the work through allegory. Dante wrote his Divine Comedy in a specific historical and political context.
Dantes Inferno Essay Research Paper Dante the
Dantes Inferno Essay, Research Paper Dante the Pilgrim was once a spiritual and holy man, but as of recently he had felt less than holy. Yet, he still wants to remain spiritual. To do this, Dante must recognize the true nature of his sin(s), renounce them, and pay penance for them by travelling though the nine levels of hell.
Dantes Inferno Essay Research Paper Canto XThe
Dantes Inferno Essay, Research Paper Canto X: The Perils of Pride In The Inferno, Dante describes his journey through hell. Throughout his pilgrimage, Dante learns from the sinners that he meets along the way. One influential group of sinners is those in Canto X. In this Canto, Dante is warned that those filled with pride suffer eternally.
Dante AlighieriS Inferno Essay Research Paper Dante
Dante Alighieri`S Inferno Essay, Research Paper Dante Alighieri was born in Florence in May, 1265, of an old family, of noble origin but no longer wealthy. He studied the triviun and quadrivium, he spent a year of so at the University of Bologna, and while there he came under the influence of some of the learned men of his day.
Dante And Homer Essay Research Paper Dante
Dante And Homer Essay, Research Paper Dante makes many references to Homer and the Iliad throughout the Inferno. The fates of favorite characters are described during the course of Dante?s
Inferno By Dante Essay Research Paper Although
Inferno By Dante Essay, Research Paper Although it is hard to read Dante’s triple rhyme, I am thrilled by the Inferno’s ambiguity and allegoric power. It is really “a three-dimensional art.” Just like Picasso in his paintings, Dante makes me think about the meaning of the situations and their implications.
Spiritual Journeys Essay Research Paper The Tale
Spiritual Journeys Essay, Research Paper The Tale of Saigyo and The Inferno both trace the unique journeys of two interesting figures, Saigyo and Dante. The two journeys are differing in that one is a journey through the life of a Buddhist monk, and the other is a journey through the different circles of hell.
Vietnam Essay Research Paper Against the celebrated
Vietnam Essay, Research Paper -Against the celebrated and glorious backdrop of American history, the Vietnam War stands ghastly out of place. The war was an exercise in economic, military, and political futility. The greatest tragedy of the Vietnam War, however, stems from the unnecessary deaths of 58 000 young American boys and the installment of terror, mistrust, and sorrow in those who found a way to survive in an inferno where the laws of man were obsolete.
Christianity In The Inferno Essay Research Paper
Shannon Burger Literature of the Western World Christianity in The Inferno In The Inferno, Dante Alighieri gives his audience a clear vivid presentation of what he as a follower of the Christian religion perceives to be hell. Dante shows that human sin is punishable in various degrees of severity and that this is dependent on the nature of one^+s sinful actions.
The Inferno Essay Essay Research Paper The
The Inferno Essay Essay, Research Paper The Inferno Essay The Inferno, translated by John Ciardi, is a poem of Dante s immortal drama of a journey through Hell. Sensory imagery is established throughout the poem in the course of Virgil s attempt to aid Dante through the different symbolic retributions that make up the structure of Hell.
The Inferno Essay Research Paper The Inferno
The Inferno Essay, Research Paper The Inferno The Inferno, written by Dante, is a poem that deals with the afterlife. It deals with the ideas that actions and practices taken up in this life will determine the
Dante Essay Research Paper Dante s InfernoDeath
Dante Essay, Research Paper Dante s Inferno Death and what comes after has always been a topic of great interest and uncertainty. Many have tried to depict their own vision of the afterlife, be it heaven or hell, paradiso or inferno. The inferno is more than just a fictional story about someone traveling through the universe; it s more like an autobiographical journey of life through its author, Dante.
Dante Essay Research Paper In Dantes Inferno
Dante Essay, Research Paper In Dante?s Inferno, Dante narrates his descent and observation of hell through the various circles and pouches. One part of this depiction is his descriptions of the various punishments that each of the different sinners has received.