Dante’s Inferno is the most famous of a trilogy of epic poems continuing with the Purgatorio and ending with the Paradiso. In it, a poet meets the famous Roman poet Virgil and goes on a journey of the heavens, beginning with the world of sin. In writing Inferno, Dante changed how most Christians understand evil. His version of Hell is the one we carry with us even today.
As much political and historical commentary as religious, Dante’s sinners are guilty both of living lives of wickedness and even mere ignorance and thoughtlessness. Both, for Dante were nearly equally bad. Along the way we read of historical figures (some who you will recognize) being eternally tortured for misunderstanding God’s relationship with man. Some of these figures are guilty of the seven deadly sins, though Dante decides what other of man’s behaviors are intolerable as well.
Each group of sins is given a Level of Hell, and the farther we descend, the worse the sin. Each punishment is designed uniquely to the type of sin as well.
The book is divided into Cantos, chapters of verse, and most of the Cantos are of individual levels. Each Canto opens with an Argument (though it’s not identified that way in the Ciardi translation—a weakness). The Argument is a summary of what the Canto you are about to read says. To cheat, you could just read the Arguments and understand the plot—and the plot is worth knowing. However, I challenge you to look at and struggle with the poetry as well, the images, the ideas, the scenes.
Mostly, recognize that our hero’s journey through hell is a journey seeking Truth, toward understanding who we are as mankind and how we should live (and clearly how and why we suffer!). In that sense, try to answer these questions through Dante’s text.
“I saw and recognized the shade of him who had made . . . the great refusal.”