The Inferno
Canto XVIII
Circle 8: Fraudulent and Malicious
Bolgia 1: Panderers and Seducers
Bolgia 2: Flatterers
Characters
Virgil- guide
Dante- poet
Venedico Caccianemico- panderer; nobleman in Bologna; offered his sister,
Ghisola, to the Marquis Obbizo de Este in order to win favor
Countless Bolognese= implication that there are fewer living Bolognese
than there are Bolognese in the second bolgia
Jason- seducer; leader of the Argonauts who carried off the golden fleece;
seduced Medea in order to gain the golden fleece, than abandoned her;
seduced Hypsipyle (cursed with a horrid odor, along with all other women of
Lemnos, when she failed to worship Aphrodite; these same women murdered
all the men of their for rejecting them), got her pregnant, then abandoned her;
Hypsipyle saved her father from murder by telling the other women of Lemnos
that she had already killed him
Alessio Interminelli da Lucca- flatterer; nothing known of him
Thais- flatterer; when given a slave and then asked if she thanked the giver,
she answered, “Nay, past all believing.” Her response was labeled an
example of immoderate flattery
Symbolism
Malebolge= evil ditch; location of all the bolgias for simple fraud
Sinners’ desire to hide their faces= unlike the sinners in the circles above,
these sinners want only to be forgotten
Punishment of the Panderers and Seducers= each group walks in opposite
direction on opposite sides of the bolgia, though the seducers walk on side
closer to the center of hell (i.e.- their sin was worse); the panderes and seducers
goaded others to do their bidding in life, so in death, they are forever goaded
by demons with whips; demons= guilty conscience;
demons’ horns may be a reference to cuckoldry and adultery (since either would
be used in pandering and seducing)
Bologna reference= indication that Bologna is a city full of panderers and seducers
Punishment of the Flatterers= in life, the flatterers’ were tainted by dishonesty,
so in hell, they are sunk in excrement; excrement is the equal of their false
flattery in life
Dante’s coarse language= an example of Dante’s habit of making his
language and style match his subject
Conflicts
Man vs. society: sinners’ insincerity used to gain the trust of whomever
they dealt with
Man vs. supernatural: seducers, panderers abuse at the hands of the demons
Man vs. nature: flatterers’ immersion in excrement, a substance produced
by nature
The Inferno
Canto XIX
Circle 8, Bolgia 3: Simoniacs
Characters
Virgil- guide
Dante- pilgrim
Pope Nicholas III-accepted money/gifts in exchange for ecclesiastic favors;
Boniface VIII- living Pope; accepted money/gifts in exchange for ecclesiastic
favors; Dante held him responsible for corrupting the church; he will replace
Nicholas III in the font; there will be one good Pope between
Nicholas III and Boniface VIII
Clement V- Boniface VIII’s successor in hell (Boniface’s earthly successor,
Benedictus XI, was a good man; even more corrupt than the two Popes
(Nicholas & Boniface) who came before him; still alive; may have bought the
papal position; he will replace Boniface VIII in the font
Constantine- Emperor credited with buying favor in the Church when he
converted to Catholicism; rumored to have moved his empire to the East,
giving the West to the Church
Symbolism
Punishment= Simoniacs hang upside down in a mockery of a baptismal font
while their feet are licked by eternal flames, which correspond to their guilt;
Simoniacs made a mockery of the holy office, so they are hung in a mockery
of a baptism; since the Simoniacs made a mockery of holy water, they are baptized
by fire; after each successor to Hell arrives, the sinners fall into crevices beneath
the fonts where they remain (perhaps symbolic of the Simoniac’s material trappings or
willingness to trap the Church in unholy negotiation); fire= parody of the oil used
in Last Rites
Virgil’s support of Dante down into Bolgia 3 and back out= Mankind’s inability
to appreciate the magnitude of corruption without the support of Human Reason
and the importance of Human Reason to lift mankind out of the bowels of sinful
behavior (with a little divine intervention)
Pope Nicholas III’s rant= mistakes Dante for Boniface VIII
Dante’s rebuke of Nicholas III= evidence that Dante is learning to shed pity
and condemn sinners for their sins; Virgil commends Dante’s ability to see evil for
what it is, without pity or empathy
Dante’s reference to the child= a child was drowning in a baptismal font
(San Giovanni) and could not be removed; fearing the child’s death, Dante
broke the font and was subsequently rumored to have committed sacrilege by
doing so; Dante wants the incident cleared up- he had broken the font to save
the child’s life
Conflicts
Man vs. man: Dante’s harsh words toward Nicholas III
Man vs. society: Simoniacs corrupted the Church, thus corrupting society; Dante’s
desire to set the record straight regarding his breaking the baptismal font
Man vs. nature: Dante’s real life struggle to prevent a boy from drowning
The Inferno
Canto XX
Circle 8, Bolgia 4: Fortune Tellers and Diviners
Characters
Virgil- guide
Dante- pilgrim
Amphiareus- foresaw his own death in a war, and attempted to run from it;
an earthquake split the earth as he fled, and he fell through a fissure to his death
Tiresias- diviner & magician; at one point changed himself into a woman,
then changed himself back by striking two intertwined serpents with his stick
Aruns- fortune teller; foretold the war between Julius Caesar and Pompey, and
also predicted that the war would end with Caesar’s victory
Manto- Tiresias’s daughter; sorceress who retired from the world with others
who sought to learn the craft; founded Mantua
Eurypylus- Greek auger who chose when the Greeks departed for Troy
(but wasn’t actually present); Dante mistakenly states that Eurypylus was present
in Aulis and chose the moment of departure for Agamemnon’s departure from
Aulis to Troy
Michael Scott- Irish scholar who studied the occult
Guido Bonatti- astrologer who counseled Guido da Montefeltro about his wars
Asdente- shoemaker turned diviner who won fame in the latter part of the 13th century
Albert, Count of Casoldi- reference to a Count who allowed himself to be persuaded
by Pinamonte de Buonaccorsi to banish all the noblemen from Mantua;
once the noblemen were gone, Pinamonte led a rebellion against Albert
Symbolism
Punishment= Diviners and Fortune tellers sought to tell the future, so in Hell,
their heads are twisted backward so that they are not allowed to even see
what comes immediately before them; since sorcery is a distortion of God’s law,
the body is distorted in hell; vision is blocked by tears
Canticle 1 reference= The Inferno; the first of three canticles in The Divine Comedy
Virgil’s lengthy discourse about the founding of Mantua= link to the background
of all civilization as Dante knew it; Mantua relates to the history of Troy, Rome, Virgil,
Florence
Tears running down the cleft of the sinners’ buttocks= debasement of sorrow
Virgil’s scolding= Virgil now points out that Dante should not feel pity for the
sinners; his lack of scolding earlier in the book may be a a sign that Human Reason
is fallible or simply an acknowledgement that earlier in the story, Dante wasn’t
ready to recognize the base nature of evil
Conflicts
Man vs. nature: sinners’ deformed bodies
Man vs. self: Dante’s struggle against pity for the sinners
Man vs. man: Virgil’s rebuke of Dante’s pity for the fortune tellers
The Inferno
Canto XXI
Circle 8, Bolgia 5: Grafters
Characters
Virgil- guide
Dante- pilgrim
Senator from Lucca- grafter; possibly Martino Bottaio
Bonturo Dati- notorious grafter in Lucca
Malacoda- demon; "bad tail;" leader of the demons
Demons- Grizzly, Hellken, Deaddog, Curlybeard, Grafter, Dragontooth,
Pigtusk, Catclaw, Cramper, Crazyred; sent as escorts for Dante and Virgil;
names indicate their physical characteristics
Symbolism
Punishment= in life, these folks secretly accepted bribes for political favors;
in death, the bodies of the grafters are secretly stashed in the boiling tar, just
as the sinners eagerly hid money or other advantageous trades; sticky pitch
(tar)= sticky fingers like those of the sinners; demons guard the grafters,
ready to rip and tear them if they rise above the surface of the tar;
demons= willingness to rend, tear, destroy, corrupt everything for their own
satisfaction, just as the demons willingly destroy the sinners
Virgil's warning to Dante= Dante was falsely charged as a grafter before being
exiled from Florence, so Virgil worries that he may be in physical danger in
bolgia 5; this is the only time that Dante feels physically threatened
Language/Style= coarsest language in the book; Catholics do not find
vulgarity or obscenity offensive, but do take offense at blasphemy and
profanity
Grafter from Lucca= indication that Lucca is a city full of grafters
Bridges to Bolgia 6= completely destroyed, though Malacoda lies and tells
the poets that the demons will lead them to the second bridge, which is
supposedly still standing; earthquake that shook hell when Christ died is
responsible for all the destruction
Dante's fear= mankind's difficulty in putting all of his trust into Human
Reason and Divine intervention
Exchange between Malacoda & other demons= the demons stick their
tongues out at Malacoda like a salute, which Malacoda answers with loud
flatulence; mockery of military conduct/tradition
Conflicts
Man vs. supernatural: senator's victimization at the hands of the demons
Man vs. nature: Dante and Virgil's difficulty passing through to bolgia 6
because of the damage done by an earthquake
Man vs. society: sinners' actions in life
Man vs. self: Dante's fear at having to go along with the demons
The Inferno
Canto XXII
Circle 8, Bolgia 5: Grafters
Characters
Virgil-guide
Dante- pilgrim
Demon escorts- Grizzly, Hellken, Deaddog, Curlybeard, Grafter,
Dragontooth, Pigtusk, Catclaw, Cramper, Crazyred; Hellken and
Grizzly start fighting and fall into the pitch
Anonymous Navarrese grafter- servant to King Thebault II of Navarre;
he escapes the demons after Dante spoke with him, causing the brawl that
ensued between Grizzly and Hellken
Friar Gomita- grafter; accepted money in exchange for allowing prisoners
to go free; eventually hung for grafting
Michel Zanche- Vicar of Logodoro; when the King of Sardinia was captured
during a war, Zanche arranged a divorce between the King and Queen, then
married the Queen; murdered by his son-in-law, Branca d'Oria
Symbolism
Dante's description of the oddity of the demons' signaling= evidence that Dante
probably had some military experience, most likely with the Tuscan army
Grafter's offer= grafter's offer to lure other sinners to the surface so that he might
go free fits the sin- he will give favors in exchange for something that benefits
himself
Demon difficulties= Grizzly and Hellken's wings became soaked with tar as
they struggled in the pitch; they began to burn, so Curlybeard organized a
rescue party
Virgil & Dante's decision to flee= fear that the demons will now be agitated
because of the loss of the sinner and the plight of Grizzly and Hellken, and
may take out their frustrations on Dante and Virgil
Conflicts
Man vs. self: Dante and Virgil both battle fear after they witness the difficulties
of the demons
Man vs. society: sins of the grafters
Man vs. man: the anonymous Navarrese's willingness to sacrifice other sinners
so that he might go free
Man vs. supernatural: demons' clawing of the Navarrese
The Inferno
Canto XXIII
Circle 8, Bolgia 6: Hypocrites
Characters
Virgil- guide
Dante- pilgrim
Jovial Friars-monks assigned to enforce order, protect the weak, and
keep the peace; they failed to follow their own laws and rather than protect
the weak, they simply protected their own affairs; they were disbanded by the Pope
Catalano dei Malavoti- hypocrite; Guelph; Jovial Friar of Florence in 1266;
jointly served as chief officer with Loderingo, an administration more violent
than any other; later, it was discovered that Catalano was working for Clement IV
to destroy the Ghibellines under the guise of an impartial peacemaker
Loderingo degli Andolo- hypocrite; Ghibelline; Jovial Friar of Florence in 1266;
jointly served as chief officer with Catalano, an administration more violent than
any other; later, it was discovered that Loderingo was working for Clement IV to
destroy the Ghibellines under the guise of an impartial peacemaker
Caiaphas- Jewish elder who advised that it was better for one Jew to be sacrificed
to the Romans rather than all; hypocrite
Annas- Caiaphas's father-in-law; had Jesus delivered to Caiaphas; hypocrite
Demons- all those surviving the rescue of Grizzly and Hellken
Symbolism
Virgil & Dante's descent into Bolgia 6= mankind's inability to navigate
through some kinds of terrain; Human Reason is necessary to carry man
through difficult paths in life
Punishment= sinners walk around in what appear to be beautifully elaborate
robes of holy office, but which in reality are weighted; in life, hypocrites appeared
to believe one thing while doing another, so in death, they appear to be in beautiful
robes which are actually serving to torture them
Punishment of Caiaphas and Annas= crucified the same way Jesus was crucified,
as their advice is what may have led to his death; the track the other sinners must
walk is very narrow, and each must walk over them as they lay crucified on the
floor; these men must suffer the weight of all the sinners' hypocrisy the way
Jesus had to suffer the burden (according to Christians) of all the world's sin
Demons' limitations= the demons were supposed to torture those in the 5th bolgia,
so they are not allowed to proceed into the other bolgias
Virgil's anger= the Friars tell him that all the bridges to and from Bolgia 6 lay
in rubble and Virgil realizes that Malacoda tricked him; may indicate Human Reason's
danger of being duped by Evil; no matter how worldly mankind may be, all men are
still naïve when compared to the Father of Lies or his minions
(as pointed out by the Friar)
Conflicts
Man vs. supernatural: Dante and Virgil's flight from the demons
Man vs. society: Caiaphas did what he thought was best for his people, but some
feel he actually caused mankind to suffer more
Man vs. nature: the struggle down the slope of Bolgia 6, and the coming
challenge of climbing out of the bolgia
The Inferno
Canto XXIV
Circle 8, Bolgia 7: Thieves
Characters
Virgil-guide
Dante- pilgrim
Various Thieves
Serpents- chelydri: trails smoke and burns, jaculi: fly through the air before
piercing their targets, pharese: plow the ground with their tails,
cenchri: waver from side to side, amphisboenae: have a head at each end of
its body
Vanni Fucci- son of a Black nobleman; thief; he stole the treasures of San Jacomo
along with two accomplices; other men were accused of the crime, and one
even spent a year in prison before it was discovered who had really committed the crime;
Fucci's accomplices were arrested, but Fucci fled
Symbolism
Virgil's anger at Dante= Virgil tells Dante that it is much too soon to tire, as the
climb ahead is much greater; Virgil may be telling Dante that the ascent to Purgatory
and Paradise will be a much longer climb, that Dante cannot allow himself to tire from
merely climbing away from hypocrisy (renouncing hypocrisy), or that the descent
into Hell to recognize/renounce will be much easier than the remainder of the
journey, purification of sin
Punishment= thieves are in a huge pit filled with serpents; since their hands were
The instruments used to commit their sins, their hands are bound behind their backs
by serpents; since thieves destroy other men by stealing their substance, their bodies
are stolen repeatedly in hell and then painfully reformed; reptiles= secrecy
The height of the walls= hell is on a downward slant, so the wall of each bolgia that
points to the deeper sections of hell is lower than the walls facing the other direction
Fucci's prophecy= Whites will be driven out of Florence by the Blacks and the Blacks
will capture a White stronghold in Serravalle; Fucci only told Dante the prophecy in
order to make Dante suffer
Conflicts
Man vs. nature: sinners plight with the serpents
Man vs. man: Virgil's anger at Dante
Man vs. self: Dante's attempt to not show discomfort through the
difficult climb up (though it's really down) to bolgia 7
Man vs. society: sins of the thieves
The Inferno
Canto XXV
Circle 8, Bolgia 7: Thieves
Characters
Virgil- guide
Dante-pilgrim
Vanni Fucci- thief; uttered prophecy in Canto XXIV;
Cacus- Centaur in The Inferno, but in Roman mythology, he was a giant; thief;
stole Geryon's cattle while it was being guarded by Hercules, so Hercules beat him
to death; found in The Aenid, though Virgil never claimed Cacus was a centaur,
he just said he was "half-human"
Agnello Brunellesci-thief; first appears as human
Cianfa-thief; first appears as a lizard, then merges with Agnello
Buoso degli Abati-thief; first appears as human, then changes forms
with Buoso
Francesco dei Cavalcanti-thief; killed by the people of Gaville, and his family
avenged his death by killing several townsmen; first appears as a tiny reptile,
then changes forms with Buoso
Puccio Sciancato-thief; appears as human
Symbolism
Last stage of Punishment= in life, thieves stole the belongings of others and
made it their own, so in death, they are forced to steal forms and make them their
own; since sinners change bodies so frequently, no one really knows what to call
his own
The merging of Agnello with Cianfa= in life, these two may have divided up the
stolen goods, so in death, they attempt to divide up the pains of hell
Fig= obscene gesture, similar to "the finger" in terms of meaning; even in hell,
blaspheming God wins abuse from others
Reference to Lucan (line 91) & Ovid (line 94)= Dante bragging that his skill in
relating the transformation of the physical forms will be better than the tales woven
by Lucan and Ovid; no time for modesty… heh
Conflicts
Man vs. man: Agnello's attack on Buoso in order to gain his human form
Man vs. nature: sinners' losing battle with serpents who wind through the
most sensitive regions of their bodies
Man vs. supernatural: Fucci giving the figs to God
The Inferno
Canto XXVI
Circle 8, Bolgia 8: Evil Counselors
Characters
Virgil- guide
Dante- pilgrim
Ulysses- evil counselor; planned the Trojan Horse scheme; convinced
Achilles to leave Deidamia and child, after which she died of grief;
stole the bust of Pallas, which strengthened the fate of Troy- Troy fell shortly after;
convinced his loyal crew to continue on a journey that ended with their deaths
Diomede- evil counselor; planned the Trojan Horse scheme
Symbolism
Punishment= Evil Counselors stole gifts from God and worked through hidden
means, so in hell their bodies are stolen from sight and hidden inside flames,
signifying their guilty conscience; since this sin was usually committed through
verbal pursuasion, the flames resemble tongues
Dante's sorrow= Dante is saddened by the future that awaits Florence, as outlined
by the prophecies he's heard in hell; he wants to speak more harshly of the thieves
and evil counselors, whom he blames for Florence's woes, but he controls himself;
Dante recognizes that he cannot use this work as a means to debase others- that would
be too much like the actions of those in hell;
Dante also felt betrayed and persecuted by men he thought to be evil counselors and
thieves, i.e.-those who banished him
Virgil's conversation with Ulysses= Virgil felt that Ulysses and Diomede would respond
better to him, since he had celebrated their earthly victories; may also symbolize that
the only direct link to between Greek poetry and Roman poetry came through Latin
intermediates (thus, Virgil was the link between Dante and Homer)
Dante's placement of Ulysses and Diomede in this bolgia= Dante was very pro-Trojan,
as they were the ancestors of Italy; tactics used by Diomede and Ulysses in the Trojan
War would not be seen as evil counseling by those who were not so anti-Greek
Conflicts
Man vs. nature: sinners' punishment
Man vs. society: sins of the evil counselors
Man vs. man: the entrapment of Ulysses and Diomede in the same flame
(see punishment of Paola & Francesca)
The Inferno
Canto XXVII
Circle 8, Bolgia 8: Evil Counselors
Characters
Virgil- guide
Dante- pilgrim
Count Guido da Montefeltro- head of the Ghibellines of Romagna; had been a
warrior but retired in order to save his soul; he became a monk, and was summoned
by Pope Boniface VIII; Boniface had a long standing battle with the Colonna family,
and he asked Montefeltro for his advice on how to destroy them; Guido hesitated,
and Boniface said that he would absolve him of all guilt before Montefeltro uttered
a word; believing his soul to be safe, Montefeltro told Boniface to convince the Colonnas
that he was offering amnesty, and once they accepted, destroy their castle so they had
nowhere to hide- Boniface followed the advice, and Montefeltro went to hell for it
Symbolism
Guido's approach= Montefeltro recognized Dante's speech, and knew he was
from Italy; he wanted to know the state of affairs in his home country
Guido's explanation of his sin= Montefeltro offered his story only because he
believed that Dante would never be able to return to earth; like all the other sinners
in Lower Hell, Montefeltro does not wish to be remembered
Conflicts
Man vs. nature: Montefeltro's immersion in flames
Man vs. self: Montefeltro's realization that he had to mend his ways,
and his struggle to live a just life; he lost the battle
Man vs. supernatural: the dispute between St. Francis and the demons over
Montefeltro's soul- since Montefeltro thought Boniface VIII had absolved him
of guilt, he had not repented the advice; the demon got him
The Inferno
Canto XXVIII
Circle 8, Bolgia 9: Sowers of Discord
Characters
Virgil- guide
Dante- pilgrim
Sowers of Religious Discord
Mahomet- split from his chin to his anus with all of his organs hanging out;
founder of the Islamic faith
Ali- split from the top of his head to his chin; Mahomet's son-in-law;
eventually succeeded Mahomet to the Caliphate
Fra Dolcino- still alive; started a rebel order of monks that preached community
property and community women; Clement V labeled them heretics, so they retreated
to the mountains with their women; Mahomet warns that they will be starved out of
their hiding place; this does indeed occur, and Dolcino and his woman, Margaret of
Trent, were burned at the stake
Sowers of Political Discord
Pier da Medicina- throat slit, nose cut off, ear chopped off; spoke to Dante
through his slit throat; offers prophecy
Curio-tongue cut off; advised Caesar to cross the Rubicon, which started the
Roman Civil War
Mosca dei Lamberti-both arms chopped off; inadvertently started the
Guelph/Ghibelline war
Sowers of Discord Between Kinsmen
Bertrand de Born-head chopped off, he swings it in front of him like a lantern;
knight; instigated a war between Henry II and his son
Symbolism
Punishment= in life, these sinners separated what God intended to be joined, so in
hell, their bodies are torn apart; the bodies are split by a demon according to their
level of guilt, then as the sinners walk around a track, their bodies heal- thus, they are
whole by the time they get back to the sword
Mahomet & Ali's wounds= together, the wounds would split a human completely
in half; Dante symbolizes that between the two o them, the followers of Mahomet and the
followers of Christ were completely divided
Pier da Medicina's prophecy= Malatestino da Rimini will invite Guido del Cassero
and Angioletto da Carignano to a conference at La Cattolica; on their way to the
conference, the two will be thrown overboard so that Malatestino will be able to have
the city of Fano (Guido and Angioletto were Fano leaders)
Mosca dei Lomberti's presence= though Dante had inquired of this man while
talking to Ciacco, thinking him a noble man, he now learns of his sins;
Buondelmonte dei Buondelmonti had insulted the honor of the Amidei clan by
breaking off his engagement to a Buondelmonti girl in favor of a girl of the Donati line;
when the Buondelmonte clan met, Mosca dei Lomberti advised them to kill
Buondelmonte, which the Amidiei did, thus starting what became the
Guelph-Ghibelline War
Wish to be remembered= sinners in this round wish to be remembered, unlike the
rest of the sinners in Lower Hell; could indicate that the discord that these sinners
reaped is remembered/remaining long after their lives ended
Conflicts
Man vs. society: discord
Man vs. supernatural: sinners repeated bouts with the demon & sword
The Inferno
Canto XXIX
Circle 8, Bolgia 10- Falsifiers (Alchemists)
Characters
Virgil- guide
Dante- pilgrim
Geri del Bello- Dante’s cousin; sower of discord; murdered by the Sacchetti family,
and had not yet been avenged
Capocchio- alchemist; speaks to Dante; Florentine friend of Dante’s; burned at the
stake for practicing alchemy
Griffolino D’arezzo- alchemist; created fake silver and gold; took money from
Alberto da Siena with the promise of teaching him to fly; when the idiot finally
figured out that Griffolino had been toying with him, he had the Bishop of Siena burn
Griffolino at the stake; spoke to Virgil and Dante
Symbolism
Punishment of Falsifiers= in life, falsifiers deceived the senses and corrupted society;
in death, these people are subjected to the sum of ALL falsifications of the senses:
darkness, stench, thirst, filth, disease, noise- this chaotic state would be a reflection of
the world had the falsifiers’ lies been accepted; in this bolgia, the senses are an affliction
rather than a guide; just as all the falsifiers used different degrees of falsification with
different goals, so they are all punished differently, depending upon their “class” of
falsification
Alchemy= medieval chemical science and philosophy aiming to achieve a universal
cure for disease, a means for indefinitely prolonging life, and the conversion of base
metals into gold
Scabby guys= alchemists tried to falsify nature, so now nature punishes their natural
bodies with natural plagues (scabs, tearing of flesh by fingernails, etc.)
Conflicts
Man vs. nature: punishment of the alchemists
Man vs. self: the falsifiers’ tearing of their own skin/scabs
Man vs. society: sins of the falsifiers
The Inferno
Canto XXX
Circle 8, Bolgia 10- Falsifiers (Evil Impersonators, Counterfeiters, False Witnesses)
Characters
Virgil- guide
Dante- pilgrim
Capocchio- alchemist; speaks to Dante; Florentine friend of Dante’s; burned at
the stake for practicing alchemy; dragged away by Gianni Schicchi
Griffolino D’arezzo- alchemist; created fake silver and gold; took money from Alberto
da Siena with the promise of teaching him to fly; when the idiot finally figured out
that Griffolino had been toying with him, he had the Bishop of Siena burn Griffolino
at the stake; spoke to Virgil and Dante
Gianni Schicchi- evil impersonator; at the request of Simone di Donati, Gianni
impersonated the dead Buoso di Donati and changed Buoso’s will in favor of Simone;
in the guise of the newly dead Buoso, Gianni also bequeathed up on himself, including
a prized mare
Myrrha- evil impersonator; daughter of the King of Cyprus; lusted after her father,
and dressed up as another woman and had sex with him; when the King discovered who
the girl was, he threatened to kill her; she ran away and was changed into a MyrtleAdonis
was born from her trunk
Master Adam- counterfeiter; the Counts Guidi of Romena ordered him to counterfeit
Florentine florins of twenty-one carat gold (the usual was 24-carat); Master Adam created
so many coins that a currency crisis arose, and Master Adam was burned at the stake
Guido, Alessandro, their filthy brother- counterfeiting Counts Guidi; Guido died before
1300, and is the one Master Adam says is in the Bolgia
Potiphar’s wife- false witness; Joseph (son of Jacob) would not return her affections,
so the wife falsely accused him of attempted rape, thus landing him in jail
Sinon the Greek- false witness; convinced the Trojans to take the Trojan Horse into
the city, claiming it was a gift
Symbolism
Cappachio’s suffering the teeth of Gianni= literal reality check for a falsifier; though
he had tried to create unnatural substances out of nature, he is now the victim of a natural
instinct
Gianni and Myrrha’s ravenous cravings (punishment of the evil impersonators)= just
as
these impersonators desired the appearance/bodies of other people in life, in death they
literally crave the flesh of others; in life they usurped human characteristics, so in death,
they may only reap animalistic imitations
Master Adam’s suffering (punishment of the counterfeiters)= counterfeiters created
money from plentiful sources, but craved more than what they’d created; thus, in death,
though swollen and waterlogged, the counterfeiter suffers from intense thirst- they still
long for something they have enough of already
Potiphar’s wife and Sinon’s suffering (punishment of false witnesses)= in life, these
false witnesses created fake stories, so in death, they suffer from intense fever which is
known for confusing the mind; the accusations and stories created by these people greatly
fevered all those around them, just as they themselves now are fevered (literally so hot
that their bodies smoke)
Fight between Sinon and Master Adam= comical; demonstrates the base behavior of the
sinners in this lower area of hell; the catty behavior and petty arguments, along with the
physical lashes with the arms, demonstrates their inability to behave on a more civilized
level; designed to show the ridiculous nature of all petty arguments
Virgil’s warning= Virgil needs to be sure that Dante understands that his fascination
with the base argument between Sinon and Adam is, in itself, base; Virgil warns that the
desire to witness base behavior/commentary is degrading; Dante is ashamed, and Virgil
forgives him
Conflicts
Man vs. man: Gianni’s tearing of Cappochio; the slapping frenzy between
Master Adam and Sinon
Man vs. self: Dante’s struggle not to be amused or interested in the baser elements
of human behavior
Man vs. nature: punishment of the counterfeiters and false witnesses
Man vs. society: sins of the falsifiers