Dante’s Inferno
Level
Dark Wood of Error
Vestibule
I: Limbo
II: Lust
III: Gluttony
IV: Avarice (Greed)
The Hoarders
The Wasters
V: Anger
The Wrathful
The Sullen
VI: Heretics
The City of Dis
VII: Violence
Towards People
Towards Themselves
Towards Art & Nature
VIII: Malebolge (Evil Pits)
1 – Seducers and Panderers
2 – Flatterers
3 – Simoniacs
4 – Fortune Tellers
5 – Con Artists
6 – Hypocrites
7 – Thieves
8 – Evil Rulers
9 – Sowers of Discord
10 - Alchemists
Description
Dante is confronted by three animals representing the nature of human sin.
The Wolf represents the sins of incontinence (urges). The Lion represents the
sins of violence and ambition (emotions). The Leopard represents the sins of
malice.
This is the area outside the gateway of Hell. This is where the Opportunists
are condemned to live for eternity. They were not good enough to go to
Heaven, nor bad enough to go to Hell. They are stuck in-between worlds with
the Neutral Angels. These souls are pursued by stinging insects for eternity.
Limbo is the first layer of Hell. This layer is reserved for those who were good
people, but did not believe in God. Their only punishment is that they will
never go to Heaven. Furthermore, Limbo is a pseudo-Heaven, as Paradise is
lit up by the light of God, Limbo is illuminated by the Tower of Human
Reason. (Notable people: Julius Caesar, Saladin, Socrates, Aristotle)
This is the second layer of Hell, but the first layer which punishes sin. Those
who are punished here indulged in the pleasures of the flesh. As a counter to
their sins, their bodies are immaterial, and they cannot touch anything. They
are blown about the layer by fierce winds. (Notable people: Antony &
Cleopatra, Achilles, Paris, and Tristan) Overseer: Minos
On this layer of Hell, those who over-indulged in food and drink are punished
by being submerged into a pit of garbage.
On this layer, those who amassed wealth beyond reason are punished by
being forced to carry huge rocks, there are two groups of these people. The
Hoarders are those who were stingy with their wealth while the Wasters spent
their money in an extravagant fashion. Both groups move in opposite
directions, and they constantly collide into one another.
This layer punishes those who hated their fellow humans and either took out
their anger on others (the wrathful) or withdrew from society to avoid people
(the sullen). The wrathful spend eternity tearing each other apart, while the
sullen lie in the muck underneath them and are constantly trampled.
This layer is where those who perverted the doctrines of Christianity and God.
This place is different than the others in that it is an actual city. The city of Dis
is where the fallen angels live. The city appears similar to Islamic cities, which
illustrate Dante’s views on that religion. Heretics are punished by being
entombed in stone coffins and are roasted by fires.
This level of Hell has the sub-sections, each dealing with a particular type of
Violence. The first contains those who butchered other people. Alexander the
Great is in boiling blood up to his eyeballs while Attila is completely
submerged. In the Wood of Suicides, those who killed themselves are chased
by dogs through thorn bushes. Those who are violent against the rules of
nature are seared by fire from the sky.
Malebolge is the largest level of Hell. Those who are consigned to this level are guilty of
malicious sins. They benefitted (often financially) from their sins and they are cold-hearted.
Seducers manipulate people into having sex with them while Panderers used sex to
acquire power, money or influence.
Flatterers are people who try to manipulate people in power into sharing it with them.
Simoniacs are clergy who abused their power and influence.
Fortune Tellers/Diviners are those who used supernatural power not derived form
God.
Con Artists are punished by being immersed into excrement.
Hypocrites are specifically religious people who ignored the very teachings that they
themselves preached.
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IX: Cocytus (Treachery)
Caina (against Family)
Antenora (against Country)
Ptolemea (against Guests)
Judecca (against Leaders)
Thieves are punished in a unique way. Their body parts contort and transform into
snakes. These snakes bite themselves and each other.
Evil Rulers. Those who abused their authority are burnt by flames so bright that the
sinners cannot be seen. Odysseus is one of those being punished this way.
Sowers of Discord are those who have caused chaos in the world. The main prisoner on
this level is Mohammed. (For creating the religion of Islam)
Alchemists are punished because they attempt to alter the rules of the universe. They
go against the rule of God.
The final layer of Hell is freezing. The souls on this level are punished by being trapped in ice.
Caina is where those who betrayed their family are punished. The layer is named after
Cain who murdered his brother Abel.
Antenora is named for Antenor, who betrayed the Trojans by abandoning them during
their war against the Greeks.
Ptolemea is named after the Ptolemy who murdered his guests.
Judecca is named for Judas Iscariot, who betrayed Jesus to the Romans.
At the very center of Hell, Satan is trapped in the ice. As he aspired to replace God, his ambition
dooms him to his prison. He constantly flaps his wings in an attempt to escape, but the flapping
of his wings causes the ice to freeze. Essentially he keeps himself prisoner.
Satan has three faces, and in each one, he chews on a great betrayer. Those betrayers are Judas,
Cassius and Brutus.
Notes
Divine Comedy – The Divine Comedy was written over the course of about 10 years. Probably from
1310 to 1320. Dante died shortly after finishing the work. The Story consists of three separate chapters,
Inferno, Purgatorio, and Paradiso.
Easter – The story begins on Good Friday and concludes on Easter. In a sense Dante is recreating the
journey of Jesus that occurred after his crucifixion. He will visit Hell and then enter Heaven on the third
day.
Everlasting Grace – In Christianity, God is forgiving. In order to go to Heaven, a person must repent for
their sins. (Feel genuine remorse for the bad things they have done.) Afterwards, they must atone for
their sins. (Find a way to repair/make up for the damage done.) Repentance must take place while the
person is alive, but atonement can be made up for in the afterlife. (Purgatory is where all standing sins
are purged from a person).
Beatrice – This was a woman whom Dante loved. They were never married, and we do not know how
close they actually were, but Dante uses her in the Divine Comedy to represent true love. She died in
childbirth. She does not appear until Paradiso, but it is explained early on that she is the one sponsoring
Dante’s journey through the afterlife.
Virgil – Dante’s guide in the afterlife. He was a Roman poet from before the time of Christ, therefore, he
is stuck in Limbo. He will guide Dante through Hell and Purgatory, but is not allowed to enter Heaven.
In real life his most famous work was called the Aeneid, the story of a survivor of the Trojan War who
founded Rome. This is very important, and Dante felt the Romans were actual descendents of the
Trojans.
Dante is Living – Throughout the Divine Comedy, all the souls recognize that he is still living. This is
because he casts a shadow. As the souls have no real material form, they do not block light.
The War In Heaven – According to legend, Satan turned against God when he was told to serve
humanity. He refused and tried to overthrow God. One third of the Angels followed Satan and they
were condemned to Hell with him when the war was lost. Another third waited to see who would win,
and that group was banished from Heaven for their indecisiveness. One third fought with God and
remain in his grace.
“Abandon All Hope Ye Who Enter” – This is the phrase carved into a stone outside the gate of Hell.
Hell exists out of time – In other words, Hell ‘is’. It exists in the past, present, and the future. This
causes some misunderstandings when Dante visits, because the souls in Hell are aware of the past and
the future, but they are unsure of what the present moment is.
Charon – The legendary ferryman of Greek Mythology. Dante borrows extensively from Greek myth.
When he travels across the river of the dead to enter Hell, he is taken across by Charon. (Although
Charon is reluctant to do so because Dante is still alive.)
Harrowing of Hell – One element of Christianity suggests that Jesus went to Hell after he was crucified
and freed the Jews from Limbo. When he did this, it caused an earthquake that (according to Dante)
actually damaged Hell. The premise is that no one went into Heaven until Jesus forgave humanity.