INFERNO: QUICK REFERENCE

Location
Dark Wood

ST. PAUL COLLEGE, PASIG (ENGLISH IV)

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Characters
Description (Sin and Punishment)
Dante finds himself here at the beginning of the Comedy.
Midway in his life (around the age of 35), Dante tries to leave the Dark Wood to climb the Mount of
Virgil (who says he was sent by Beatrice and two blessed ladies,
Joy, but his way is stopped by three creatures: the leopard (malice and fraud), the lion (violence),
St. Lucia and the Blessed Virgin) comes to his aid. Virgil
and the she-wolf (incontinence). These three creatures who represent the divisions of hell force
(representing Human Reason) will be Dantes guide through Hell
him back into the Dark Wood where Virgil finds him (remember that it is the she-wolf that effectively
and Purgatory, but he says a worthier soul will be the latters guide pushes Dante back into the Wood). Commentators have said the Dark Wood symbolizes a state of
in Paradise (Beatrice, who represents Divine Love).This suggests
sin, even suicidal thoughts (refer to the Wood of the Suicides); others say it only stands for a
that one cannot get to heaven if one relies solely on ones intellect; frightening, unfamiliar place.
more is needed: the grace of God.
The poets enter through the Gate of Hell, upon which are inscribed several lines that suggest that hell is a creation of God for the purpose of justice (Sacred Justice moved my architect.)
The famous last line of this message is: Abandon all hope you who enter here. Note that this message is for the souls destined for Hell, not for living persons like Dante (who is,
moreover, a soul in grace).
Vestibule
The Opportunists or Neutrals
Because they kept no allegiance and switched from one side to the other, so they must eternally
(Ante Hell)
Here are people who in life took no side, who were neither for good pursue a constantly shifting banner as they are stung by wasps and hornets, while maggots and
nor evil (hence neither heaven nor hell wants them); with them are other such insects drink their blood and tears (symbolizing the sting of their conscience and the
the outcasts who took no side in the Rebellion of Angels. Dante
repugnance of sin).
recognizes one of the figures as that of Pope Celestine V who
abdicated his responsibilities as pope.
Charon, the boatman, ferries the eager souls across the River Acheron to Hell Proper (Note Virgils explanation for the eagerness of the souls to cross over to Hell, i.e., this is really where
they want to be. It is, according to him, what their hearts truly desire. This is also the reason sinners are keen to confess their sins when they face Minos). Charon initially refuses Dante
transport, as he saw that Dante was a living man whose soul was in grace (he tells Dante that he is meant to pass by another way), but Virgil prevails by telling him that Dantes passage
through hell has been willed from above. Dante swoons for the first time, and when he wakes, they are already on the other side.
First Circle
The Unbaptized and the Virtuous Pagans
They are not punished in an active sense, but rather grieve only their separation from God and have
(Limbo)
Though not sinful, they did not accept Christ, or, if they lived before no hope of reconciliation. Limbo shares many characteristics with the Elysian Fields (the heaven of
the coming of Christ, they did not pay fitting homage to their deity.
the ancient Greeks), thus the guiltless damned are punished by living in a deficient form of heaven.
This is Virgils place in hell. Here Dante sees, among others, the
Take note of the citadel whose light shines brightly, but only on a certain portion of Hell (the citadel
great thinkers of antiquity. (Note that commentators describe the
represents philosophy or human reason without the light of God), the rest of Hell remaining in
sin of the souls here as having failed to worship God or to
darkness (denoting the limited illumination that human reason, without divine revelation, provides).
consider their relationship with Him as the highest value. Instead,
they relied on their reason or intellect and considered their
philosophy and science as the highest value).
Each sinner comes before Minos to confess; the number of times he wraps his tail around himself designates the Circle to which the sinner belongs (but Dante does not discuss the
mechanics of how a soul proceeds to the assigned Circle. Do they simply fall to the assigned place as one soul in the Wood of the Suicides suggests? Dante does not say.)
Second
The Lustful or the Carnal
The first ones to be truly punished in Hell, the souls of the lustful are blown about by a violent storm,
Circle
Dante speaks with Francesca and Paolo and is overcome by pity
without hope of rest (consider how Francesca thanks Dante for calling out to them, as by doing so he
for them that he swoons or faints. Note that Francesca refuses to
has given them a bit of rest). The whirlwind symbolizes the power of lust to blow one about
take responsibility for her actions, illustrating a characteristic
needlessly and aimlessly as well as how the lustful abandoned reason to passion (Paolo and
common to the souls in hell (she blames a book that she and
Francesca are joined to each other even in hell with Francesca saying, We are one in hell as we
Paolo read one about Lancelot and Guinevere. Note, too, that
were above. Commentators say that there is nothing romantic in this: their inseparableness is part of
Francesca says Caina waits for him who took our lives. Her
the punishment as they continue to remind each other of the sin they committed).
husband, Giovanni, was still alive when Dantes journey through
hell occurred, yet a place has already been reserved for him).

INFERNO: QUICK REFERENCE

Location
Third Circle

ST. PAUL COLLEGE, PASIG (ENGLISH IV)

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Characters
Description (Sin and Punishment)
The Gluttons
Cerberus guards (sometimes chews on) the gluttons who are forced to lie in the mud under continual
Ciacco (which means hog or pig) recognizes Dante, as a fellow
cold rain and hail. They are bloated beyond recognition. The contrapasso is explained thus: in life
Florentine. He illustrates two of the qualities most sinners in Hell
they did nothing productive, limiting themselves to senselessly consuming food and drink and
possess: [1] they can see the future (but not the present and the
producing waste, so in death, they wallow in filth.
past); and [2] they want to be remembered by the living. On
Judgment Day when there will no longer be any past, present,
and future this power to see the future will be rendered useless.
Fourth
The Hoarders and the Wasters (The Avaricious and the Prodigal)
Guarded by Plutus (recall that Hades, god of the Greek underworld, was alternatively called Pluto or
Circle
The hoarders accumulated wealth, while the wasters spent it.
Dis, to represent the wealth of the earth), each group pushes a great weight against that of the other
Dante sees many tonsured ones, i.e., members of the clergy in
group. As they do, they scream, Why do you hoard? and Why do you waste? After they crash the
whom, according to Virgil, the seed of avarice grows especially
weights against each together, the process starts over again (Commentators say this represents the
strong.
weight of the worldly goods that they clung to in life.)
Fifth Circle
The Wrathful and the Sullen
In the swamp-like water of the River Styx (Phlegyas, who in myth burned down Apollos temple after
The wrathful gave vent to or expressed their anger, while the
the god raped his daughter, takes the poets across), the wrathful fight each other on the surface
sullen repressed theirs. Dante sees the shade of Filippo Argenti,
(they kick, bite, and butt each other) and the sullen lie beneath the water, gurgling a song in their
his bitter political rival, and his reaction (he curses Argenti) pleases throats.
Virgil as it means Dante is hardening his heart against sin
(commentators suggest that Dante also participates in the sin).
The City of Dis (recall that Dis is one of the names associated with Hades) is surrounded by high walls guarded by the Fallen Angels (they also resisted Christ at the Gate of Hell when
he went to Limbo during the Harrowing of Hell, when He descended to Limbo and took with Him the souls of Abraham, Moses, etc. Virgil tells Dante that this was the only time souls in
hell attained salvation). They bar the way into the city, and Virgil cannot persuade them to let them through (recall that the two were stopped by others before, but Virgil always prevailed).
Noticing that Virgil seems nervous and uncertain, Dante asks him whether anyone has ever made the journey to the depths of hell before, and Virgil assures him that he has done so
before. The Furies appear, threatening to call Medusa to turn Dante into stone. Then a Divine Messenger (an Angel) comes to the poets aid, and the doors of Dis open.
Sixth Circle
The Heretics
Inside the City of Dis is an entire landscape filled with open, flaming tombs in which the heretics are
They denied the immortality of the human soul. According to
trapped. Each tomb contains many souls (some even thousands) and is heated by unseen fires
commentators, this in essence means they denied the existence of depending on the souls degree of sinfulness (note that like the sin of the virtuous pagans, heresy
God. Here Dante speaks with Farinata (who explains that the
has to do with the intellect, unlike the other sins that have to do with the will). On Judgment Day, the
ability of the souls to see the future but not the present is actually
tombs will be sealed shut thus the sinners, who denied that there is a soul, will suffer this torment
part of their punishment: on Judgment Day, when time ends, the
for eternity.
souls will know nothing at all) and Cavalcante (who
misunderstands Dante and thinks his son Guido Dantes old
friend is no longer living).
The Minotaur guards the entry to the Seventh Circle. Take note that this circle has a concentration of hybrid creatures: the Minotaur, the Centaurs, and the Harpies. Even Geryon makes
an appearance in the end, as the poets prepare to journey on to the Eighth Circle. Commentators explain that these creatures half-human and half-beast hint at the doubleness of
man, i.e., man has a dual nature and he can easily switch from one to the other.
Seventh
The Violent
It is divided into three concentric rings.
Circle

INFERNO: QUICK REFERENCE

Location

ST. PAUL COLLEGE, PASIG (ENGLISH IV)

Characters
Outer ring: Violent against others (murderers and bandits)
Dante and Virgil are met by the Centaurs led by Chiron (teacher of
Achilles). Virgil asks him to help them cross this ring and move on
to the next, and Chiron assigns Nessus to do so. As they move
through the ring, the poets see the likes of Alexander the Great
and Attila the Hun, but they do not stop to speak to any of them.
Middle ring: Violent against self (suicides and squanderers)
Of note here is the conversation that Dante has with Pier della
Vigna, one of the suicides. Dante learns that the same act that
gives the souls pain his breaking off a branch also provides
them with the only outlet for their pain (so the only means to
express pain is by experiencing more pain).

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Description (Sin and Punishment)

They are immersed in the River Phlegethon, a river of boiling blood, to a level commensurate with
their sins. The Centaurs (known in myth for their coarse, violent behavior, and as such seem
appropriate wardens) patrol the ring, making sure the sinners remain submerged by shooting at
those who try to rise above their designated level.

The suicides are transformed into gnarled, thorny bushes and trees. Their leaves are torn at by the
Harpies (creatures with the head of a woman and the body of a bird). The squanderers, who
destroyed their lives by destroying the means by which life is sustained, i.e., money and property (the
sin of the squanderers seems similar to those of the wasters in Circle 4, but there is a difference: the
souls here waste their resources to such an extent that they are left without anything to support them;
also, there is a sense that their extravagance is willful or deliberate, unlike those of the wasters who
simply lack self-control) are perpetually chased by ferocious dogs through the thorny undergrowth
(Remember that on Judgment Day only the suicides will not be reunited with their bodies, which will
hang instead from their branches).
Inner ring: Violent against God (blasphemers), nature (sodomites), They are all in a desert of flaming sand with fiery flakes raining from the sky (the entire setting
and art (usurers)
suggests sterility or barrenness, in the same way that the actions that these sinners engage in can
Among the blasphemers Dante sees Capaneus, a figure from
bear no fruit: Sodomy is sexuality without the possibility of reproduction. Usury is an act in which
mythology who challenged Jove (Zeus), who then struck him dead money (...) reproduces itself unnaturally, as opposed to the natural earning of money through labor.
with a thunderbolt. Dante speaks with his old teacher, Brunetto
Blasphemy, the sin most directly against God, is equally fruitless (...) The omnipotent God will
Latino (or Latini), and other sodomites (he, in fact, shows them
squelch any such defiance before it takes root [Jay Ruud]). The blasphemers lie supine on the sand,
great respect, as instructed by Virgil. Yet it should be noted that
the usurers sit or crouch with heavy money bags weighing down their necks, and the sodomites
Dante asked about Farinata, Jacopo, and others when he spoke to wander about in groups (In Dantes reckoning, Art meaning Industry and Economy is the child of
Ciacco, and he was told They lie below in a blacker lair. This
Nature, and Nature is the child of God. Note, too, that insofar as the sodomites mentioned are
reminds the reader that Dante the pilgrim and Dante the author are concerned Latini et al. we only have Dantes word that they are sodomites, as no other account
not one and the same).
labels them as such.)
Virgil summons a winged monster, Geryon (the representation of fraud: with the face of an honest man, a spotted reptilian body, and massive furry paws), to fly them down to the Eighth
Circle. He uses a cord that Dante wears on his waist to call the creature (It is interesting to note that Dante says he tried to catch the leopard earlier with this same cord, although there is
no mention of it until now.)
Eighth
The Fraudulent
They are punished in Malebolge or Evil Pockets, of which there are ten in all. The bolgias are
Circle
Both the Eighth and the Ninth Circles deal with fraud. The
connected by bridges, some of which have collapsed as a result of the massive earthquake that
difference between the two can be seen in the relationship
happened at the time of the Harrowing of Hell.
between the offender and his victim. In Circle Nine, there exists a
special bond of trust between them (thus the sins of treachery are
also called compound fraud), while in Circle Eight, there exists no
bond apart from the natural bond common to all men (thus,
simple fraud). Most of the souls here no longer wish to be known
and remembered (some in fact hide their identity from Dante).

INFERNO: QUICK REFERENCE

Location

ST. PAUL COLLEGE, PASIG (ENGLISH IV)

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Characters
Bolgia 1: Panderers (or pimps) and seducers
Dante sees Jason, the leader of the Argonauts, among the
seducers, placed here for his habit of loving and leaving women.
He seduced Medea whose magic helped him obtain the Golden
Fleece. Later he left her to marry another.
Bolgia 2: Flatterers
Dante recognizes one of the sinners, whom he says he knew
when [his] hair was dry.

Description (Sin and Punishment)

They are forced to walk in separate lines in opposite directions, whipped by horned demons (in life,
they manipulated others to do their bidding; now they are forced to walk in the direction the demons
will).

Bolgia 3: Simoniacs
They abused power within the church by selling ecclesiastical
favors and offices. Dante speaks with Pope Nicholas III, who
mistakes him for Pope Boniface VIII.
Bolgia 4: Fortune tellers and diviners
Dante is moved to pity by the sight of the souls here, but Virgil
scolds him and says there is no room for pity in this place.
Bolgia 5: Grafters or barrators
These are the corrupt politicians and employees (Dante himself
was falsely accused of graft). Virgil asks Dante to hide while he
speaks with the devils, which may indicate that Dante was in some
form of danger.
Bolgia 6: Hypocrites
Caiaphas (high priest during Jesus time), together with the other
members of the council of Jerusalem, is crucified on the floor of
this bolgia.
Bolgia 7: Thieves
The use of reptiles suggests the nature in which thieves work: in
secret. One centaur is here, Cacus, who is not in Circle Seven
because of the fraud he used in order to steal Hercules cattle.
Bolgia 8: Evil counselors
Included here are Odysseus (Ulysses) and Diomedes (encased in
a double-headed flame) partly because of the Trojan Horse.
Bolgia 9: Sowers of Discord
Among them are sowers of religious discord, sowers of political
discord, and sowers of discord among kinsmen. Very graphic is the
image of Bertrand de Born, who carries his severed head and
swings it as though it were a lantern.

They are placed head-first in holes in the rock (to simulate the baptismal fonts common in churches
during Dantes time), with flames burning the soles of their feet.

These are those whose words were the verbal equivalent of the waste in which they spend eternity.
As such, they are steeped in human excrement (Dante it was a river of excrement that seemed the
overflow of the worlds latrines).

They have their heads twisted around on their bodies: the heads face backward so that their tears
flow down their backs (since they tried to look into the future, now they cannot even see what is in
front of them).
They are immersed in a lake of boiling pitch (which is like tar, a sticky substance), guarded by devils
that Dante calls Malebranche (evil claws). They are armed with long hooks which they use to keep
the souls in the sticky pitch.
They listlessly walk along wearing gold or gilded cloaks that are lined with lead. Some hypocrites are
nailed to the floor and the others walk all over them (Remember Jesus description of the Pharisees
as being like whitewashed tombs that look clean and beautiful on the outside, but hold the bones of
the dead within).
Some sinners are pursued by snakes, which bind each their hands behind their back and knot
themselves through their loins. Others are bitten by the snakes that leap through the air; they then
burst into flames and burn until only ashes are left. Then they are resurrected. Others mutate into
new creatures, and still others exchange natures with the snakes, becoming snakes themselves.
They are encased in flames shaped like tongues to represent how they used their gift of persuasion
to hurt others. They worked in hidden ways, so they are hidden from sight.
A sword-wielding devil hacks at the sowers of discord. The wounds then heal as the bodies knit
themselves back together, only to be torn apart again (as they tore families and countries apart, so
they themselves are hacked into pieces).

INFERNO: QUICK REFERENCE

Location

ST. PAUL COLLEGE, PASIG (ENGLISH IV)

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Characters
Description (Sin and Punishment)
Bolgia 10: Falsifiers (Alchemists, Counterfeiters, Perjurers or False They are punished with afflictions of every sense: darkness, stench, thirst, filth, loathsome diseases,
Witnesses, and Impersonators)
and a shrieking din. Some run around wildly, tearing others to pieces (because in life they corrupted
Among the false witnesses is the Greek warrior Sinon, for his role
society with their falsifications, so in Hell they suffer from all sorts of physical corruption).
during the Trojan War (As part of the ploy to destroy the city, he
was left behind to weave a fantastic tale that compelled the
Trojans to bring the Wooden Horse into their city).
Giants stand at the entrance to the well-pit that is the Ninth Circle; one of them takes the poets and sets them down on the ice of the last Circle. Commentators say they represent the
archetype of the defiant rebel (Nimrod built the tower of Babel that tried to reach the heavens). Dante uses the giants to represent the disastrous consequences of pride (these giants
rebelled against Zeus), and they prefigure the appearance of Lucifer, who is frozen in the center of Cocytus.
Ninth Circle The Traitors
They are frozen in a lake of ice known as Cocytus. The circle is divided into four concentric zones
(Cocytus)
They are distinguished from the merely fraudulent in that their acts
involve betraying one who has a special relationship to them. They
are frozen in ice because they are the farthest from the warmth of
Gods love (note that for Dante, fire which is the common
depiction of hell denotes warmth, life, and love. So the deepest
part of hell must be frozen, as there is no life and no love).
Zone 1: Cana (from Cain, who killed his brother Abel): Traitors to
The souls here are immersed in the ice up to their necks, but they can bend their necks and so have
their kindred
some protection from the freezing wind. Also, their tears can fall from their eyes without freezing their
eyes shut.
Zone 2: Antenora (From Antenor of Troy, who according to
The souls here are immersed at almost the same level as those in Cana, except they are unable to
medieval tradition betrayed his city to the Greeks): Traitors to
bend their necks as these are gripped by the ice.
country
Dante accidentally kicks the head of Bocca degli Abbati. Dante
then treats him with savagery when he refuses to reveal his name.
He only learns Boccas name when another sinner calls out to him.
Dante also sees Count Ugolino gnawing on the head of
Archbishop Ruggieri (in life the bishop left him to starve to death.)
Zone 3: Ptolomea (From Ptolemy, captain of Jericho, who invited
The souls here lie supine, but are encased in ice so that only half of their faces are visible. As they
Simon Maccabaeus and his sons to a banquet and there killed
cry, their tears freeze and seal their eyes shut, so they are denied even the comfort of tears. Note the
them): Traitors to guests
special case of the souls in this zone: the moment they commit their treachery, their souls descend to
Dante is asked by a Friar Alberigo to remove some of the ice that
hell, but their bodies remain alive on earth and are possessed by demons.
has formed in his eyes so he can cry. Dante says he will do it if the
sinner reveals his identity. The friar does, but Dante does not keep
his promise.
Zone 4: Judecca (From Judas the Iscariot, Biblical betrayer of
All of the sinners are completely encapsulated in ice, distorted in all conceivable positions.
Christ): Traitors to their lords and benefactors
Condemned to the very center of hell for committing the ultimate sin (Treachery against God) is
Dante sees Satan, who is much bigger than the Giants he and
Satan, who has three faces (the central one red, the ones on the side black and pale yellow), each
Virgil encountered earlier, his angelic beauty perverted to hideous having a mouth that chews on a prominent traitor: Brutus and Cassius are in the left and right
grossness.
mouths, and Judas Iscariot (headfirst) in the central, most vicious mouth.
The poets exit hell by climbing down, then up, Satan. They exit on the other side of the world, on Easter morn, with Dante saying, And we walked out once more beneath the Stars.