Dante's
Monday, March 23: Introduce Dante. Take notes on his life. Start reading
Dante’s The Inferno. Introduce the project packet, and reading strategies,
especially for footnotes. Read Canto 1 for homework.
Tuesday, March 24: Complete introduction. Pass out this packet and explain
its parts. Read Cantos 2-3. Complete discussion questions for Cantos 1-3.
Wednesday, March 25: Read Cantos 4-7. Complete Discussion questions.
Thursday, March 26: In class: Canto 8. Intro. the layers of Hell diagram.
Read Cantos 9-13 for Homework. Complete Discussion Questions.
Friday, March 27: Work on your research proposal over the weekend.
Monday, March 30: Assign a canto (between 21-30, excluding 26) for each
student to design a discussion question about that canto. Read Cantos 14-20.
Tuesday, March 31: Read Canto 21 in class. Read 22-26 for homework.
Complete discussion questions for each section.
Wednesday, April 1: Discuss Canto 26 specifically (use handout from the
Prentice Hall teaching materials). Write practice questions for Canto 26 as
models. Read Cantos 27-30.
Thursday, April 2: Discuss APA formatting.
Spring Break: Work on your Research Papers!!!!
Monday, April 13: Each student presents his/her discussion question to the
class. Read Cantos 31-34. Organize notes.
Tuesday, April 14: Review Day. Finish reading Cantos 31-34.
Wednesday, April 15: QUIZ on Cantos 1-30. Introduce Open Choice Essay
Topics (there will be two essays to complete on Thursday, April 16, one blind,
timed writing and one open choice).
Discussion Questions: Please complete to the best of your knowledge. Use
examples from the text when needed. All answers should be completed on a
separate piece of paper so that they may be submitted for a grade.
Cantos I-III
1. What did you notice at the beginning of Canto II?
2. Do you believe in the existence of Hell? Why or why not?
Canto IV
1. Why is Virgil’s face pale after he tells Dante they must go onward down
into Hell?
2. Who is the Mighty One mentioned by Virgil who descended into Hell
and was the first to bring human souls to salvation?
3. Virgil, and those like him, can get no closer to Heaven than then this
first circle of Hell (called Limbo). Do you think that is fair? How far do
you think Human Reason can take you in life and beyond?
Canto V
1. Virgil and Dante are entering the first level of Hell, dedicated to the
sins of incontinence. What is the definition of incontinence?
2. Dante talks to a couple swept up in their punishment in the second
circle of Hell. What explanation does she give for the temptation that
caused them to commit their sin (adultery( in the first place?
Canto VI
1. At the end of the Canto, Virgil and Dante discuss a Second Coming,
when each one in Hell will be judged and hear “the edict of Eternity”.
Canto VII
1. Who are the unexpected types of people that Dante finds among the
greedy sinners (hoaders)? Why do you think it surprises him to see
such people guilty of such a sin?
2. Prior to reading this, had you ever thought of Dame Fortune (Lady
Luck) as someone associated with God to be “officially” in charge of
change? How do you view the idea of luck as it touches on your life?
3. What does sullen mean? Why are the sullen people considered sinful?
What is their punishment for their sin?
Canto VIII
1. Up to this time Virgil has always been able to talk his way through
obstacles and gatekeepers (i.e. Charon, Minos, Phlegyas). Since he
represents Human Reason, his “voice of reason” appears to persuade
the three to let him continue on with Dante. Why do you think Human
Reason cannot talk his way past the gates of the City of Dis?
Canto IX
1. How do Virgil and Dante get through the gates of the City of Dis?
Canto X
1. Why can the heretic see the future, but not see the present?
Canto XI
1. Of the two sins of malice, why does God loathe fraud more than
violence?
2. If we took the sin of usury and put it in modern terms, what type of
people from our society might we find being punished in the third part
of Circle 7 of Dante’s Hell? Give a few examples and explain why you
think they would be there.
Canto XII
1. What is a centaur?
2. Who is Chiron?
Canto XIII
1. Describe in detail how the suicides are punished.
Canto XIV
1. Describe a symbol used in this Canto by Dante (ie. The burning plain,
the giant Old Man of Crete, the wood, the river, or one that you found
on your own).
2. In what three ways were the naked souls located in relation to the
burning sands? (You can quote the exact lines from the text of the
poem if you an locate them).
Canto XV
1. Ser Brunetto Latino is one of the sinners on the burning plain doomed
to roam without pause. Dante wants him to sit and chat for a while.
Why does Ser Brunetto refuse to stop?
2.
What is the dictionary definition of sodomy?
Canto XVI
1. What do you think of the various sinners who talk to Dante and
demand to be remembered in the world above? Why do you think this
is a repeated request by the sinners in the Hell that Dante created?
2. What does Dante write about truth and lies just before he describes the
monster that is flying up towards them? Why does he mention truth
and lies?
Canto XVII
1. In this Canto, Dante uses several similies. Select two or more of the
similies in this Canto and rewrite them in the following format using
the example as a model:
(1)The actual action/thing in The Inferno is like (2) the action/thing taken from
the educated Italian reader’s experience (3) what the two have in common.
EXAMPLE: (1) Life is like (2) a box of chocolates (3) you never know what you’re
going to get.
Canto XVIII
1. What is the punishment for pimps?
2. Towards the end of the Canto, Dante uses very explicit language toward
a sinner. Why do you think he changes his writing style at this point?
Canto XIX
1. Write the dictionary definition of simony and avarice.
2. Why do you think Dante is so angry and appalled that even a Pope is
guilty of such a sin?
Canto XX
1. Why is Tiresias in this bolgia in Circle 8 of Dante’s Hell?
Discussion Questions for Dante’s Inferno, Cantos XXI-XXX
Assigned Canto #___________
Question:
Answer: