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Analysis of inferno by dante
Analysis of inferno by dante
Analysis of inferno by dante
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According to Dante Alighieri, if one were to commit suicide, one would end up in the seventh circle of Hell. If someone does not believe in God, they would probably be in circle six. These are part of the nine circles of Hell, which are described in The Inferno, by Dante Alighieri. He believed that anyone who did unacceptable deeds would be punished eternally in the nine circles of Hell. Undoubtedly, people such as Cleopatra, Alexander the Great, and Achilles went to these circles. More specifically, Achilles was in the second circle of Hell. The qualifications for the second circle of Hell are being incredibly selfish, the lack of self control, raging passions, and in some cases, betraying your country. Unfortunately, Achilles possesses all of these qualities, and so does Romeo Montague.
It is with the second circle that the real tortures of Hell begin. There lie the most heavy-hearted criminals in all of Hell, those who died for true love. Here, those who could not control their sexual passion, are buffeted and whirled endlessly through the murky air by a great windstorm. This symbolizes their confusing of their reason by passion and lust. According to Dante, ?SEMIRAMIS is there, and DIDO, CLEOPATRA, HELLEN, ACHILLES, PARIS, and TRISTAN? (Alighieri 57).
Achilles Thetis was in Dante?s second circle for obvious reasons. His lack of self-control, pride in his country and out of control passions led him to the events that would wind him up in The Inferno. It all began when he first caught a glimpse of Polyxena, daughter of the king of Troy. Initially, he was there to kill his enemy and brother of Polyxena, Troilus, but ended up falling in love at first sight. Blinded by love, Achilles agreed to desert his people, the Greeks...
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...uld assume that Romeo is claiming that with her, his last name and family does not matter and he is willing to give it all up for Juliet. This puts Romeo and Achilles in a very similar situation. Therefore, Romeo Montague could represent a modern day Achilles.
In John Ciardi?s words, ?In the second circle are punished those who sinned by excess of sexual passion.? (Alighieri 63). ?Excess of sexual passion? sounds like an odd reason for punishment, although in Dante?s The Inferno, there is a whole circle for them. Therefore, Achilles residing there is no surprise. His betrayal for his country and people makes him a perfect candidate for the second circle. Seeing as how Achilles fits the requirements, it could be assumed that Romeo Montague would also be sent to the second circle. It could even be said that Montague is a somewhat modern version of Achilles.
himself that since Romeo is a Montague he will cause trouble. A few quotes from the
The geography for each circle of Hell's misery is distinctly arranged to coincide with the sin of the sinners contained within. In Canto V, we are taken to the prison of those souls who were unable to master their own desires. These are those who "betrayed reason to their appetite" (1033), allowing the lust of flesh and carnal things overcome their God-given human reasoning. It is here that we see a dark and deafening Hell, full with the roar of the anguish of the condemned dead. Dante sees a great whirling storm of souls that are forever tossed and battered on their "hellish flight of storm and counterstorm" (1033). It is conveyed to us that each soul's path in the whirling cyclone is all but steady, blown about in a constantly changing torment with no direction or destination...
, the placement of the Treacherous to Their Masters, circle nine, in The Inferno demonstrates how man’s selfishness, abolishes communal bonds and lead to moral depravity. It also shows the punishments they must endure as a consequence of the breaking the most sacred of bonds: the bond to master. Betrayal is a crime Dante experienced fist hand, it was Pope Boniface VIII who exiles Dante, and he remains angry.
“Abandon All Hope Ye Who Enter Here.”(Alighieri 18) this statement is viewed while entering through The Gates of Hell. The Inferno by Dante Alighieri is one perspective of Hell that has been written. According to the Cambridge University Library, Hell is set up like a funnel that extends from the surface of the Earth located near Jerusalem; it expands down to the center of the Earth (Cambridge 2006). In this cone-like structure, there are circles that divide sins by the severity of the sin committed. Each circle is on a different ledge or level that separates them from each other (Alighieri 25). Dante and his guide Virgil travel through all the circles of Hell during the Lent season. Through their travels they inspect and comment on the variations
In the beginning of Achilles’ life, the Greek goddess, Themis, prophesized that he would either die young and famous in battle or live a long nonexistent life without battle. His mother, Thetis, took this as a death omen and placed Achilles in the magical waters of the Styx River. She did this to help him be immortal but did not account for the area that she held, his ankle, to be left vulnerable (Claybourne). This beginning to his life leads him to believe that he was better than anyone else because the gods protected him. It is him believing that he is superior that leads to his fatal flaw of being egotistical.
Achilles, the greatest of the Greek warriors, is portrayed as a hero in some ways but, on the other hand, performs some controversial acts in the Iliad. Throughout the entire Trojan war, Achilles spent most of his time pouting in his tent after Agamemnon kidnapped his prized maiden, Chryseis.
4Romeo- Romeo is the most famous Montague there is. At first he loves Rosaline, but later falls in love with Juliet. Romeo is very fickle when it comes to love and falls quickly in and out of it.
...ector. Afterwards Hector has been killed and have been dragged around the Trojan Walls, His second nemesis occurs when Paris gets back at him for killing one of the Trojan’s best warriors and leaders by killing Achilles with arrow right into his heel, the only place where Achilles can be killed. Achilles being killed is the end of Achilles’ two behavior cycles.
Inferno, the first part of Divina Commedia, or the Divine Comedy, by Dante Alighieri, is the story of a man's journey through Hell and the observance of punishments incurred as a result of the committance of sin. In all cases the severity of the punishment, and the punishment itself, has a direct correlation to the sin committed. The punishments are fitting in that they are symbolic of the actual sin; in other words, "They got what they wanted." (Literature of the Western World, p.1409) According to Dante, Hell has two divisions: Upper Hell, devoted to those who perpetrated sins of incontinence, and Lower Hell, devoted to those who perpetrated sins of malice. The divisions of Hell are likewise split into levels corresponding to sin. Each of the levels and the divisions within levels 7,8, and 9 have an analogous historical or mythological figure used to illustrate and exemplify the sin.
Dante’s Inferno presents the reader with many questions and thought provoking dialogue to interpret. These crossroads provide points of contemplation and thought. Dante’s graphic depiction of hell and its eternal punishment is filled with imagery and allegorical meanings. Examining one of these cruxes of why there is a rift in the pits of hell, can lead the reader to interpret why Dante used the language he did to relate the Idea of a Just and perfect punishment by God.
Romeo is the only son of Lord Montague, the head of a reputed and rich
The first requirement of Aristotle's tragic hero is that they are more admirable than the average character. Achilles meets this requirement because of his ability on the battlefield. In The Iliad, the background to the story is the war between the Greeks and the Trojans. This background is not only the basis for the story overall, but is also the basis for Achilles' own story. This begins when Achilles refuses to join the battle because he is insulted by Agamemnon. This decision results in the action that drives the remainder of the story. Later in the story when Achilles becomes angered and goes to the other extreme, launching into battle and killing ferociously. The significance of this is that it places battle as central to both Achilles' story and to what is important in the setting of the story. Importantly, the aspect that makes Achilles greater than most is his ability o...
Achilles is introduced into The Iliad getting into a debacle with the leader of the Greek army, Agamemnon, during the last year of the Trojan War. Achilles starts a quarrel with Agamemnon because he has demanded possession of Achilles’ woman, Briseis, in consolation for having to give up his woman, Chryseis, so that the gods will end their plague upon the Greek soldiers. Achilles does all he can to get his loved one back, but he knows that nothing will waver Agamemnon’s decision. This is when Achil...
The text contains many pieces of evidence that support the idea that the Montague and Capulet families are metaphors for Italy and England, respectively. In the following quote you can see that the play opens with an obvious reference to the English defense apparatuses used by the house of Capulet. "Enter Sampson and Gregory, with swords and bucklers, of the house of Capulet.”(Crowther 4) They most likely would have carried short broad swords along with bucklers, which are small shields. Lord Capulet speaks of Romeo’s dagger being not in Romeo’s sheath but in his daughter’s chest:
In the Greek society, Achilles has the role of the aggressive soldier. From the very first lines of the epic, we are introduced to Achilles’ murderous rage: