An Analysis Of Dante's Inferno (Nine Circles)

Dante Alighieri's The Inferno is a  poem that tells the story of Dante's journey through the nine circles of hell. Each circle of Hell contains sinners who have committed sins throughout their lives and are punished according to the severity of their sins. When considering real life and the complex issues and circumstances people face, some of these punishments appear unfair and extreme.

The sinners in hell do not deserve mercy, a line pushed throughout the poem. However, a key example against this, or an exception is Limbo. While technically considered a part of the Circles of Hell, Vigil tells Dante they are essentially blameless "they did not sin..they have merit [but] it can't suffice without Baptism"(Pinsky, Canto IV, Line 25-27). The only fault of these people is not being Christian. However, for only this, they are condemned to living a hopeless life, longing to be saved. Dante is put in grief as he learns "how many worthy souls endured Suspension in that Limbo (Pinsky, Canto IV, Line 34-35). Furthermore, some of these souls were born before the year zero and thus could not be baptized. Virgil further tells him that even those that were born before Christ, even if they were good people, are sentenced here for being unable to worship God in the "right" way. Thus, out of no fault of their own, many souls are punished in this manner forever.

In the seventh circle of round two of the Inferno, some were violent towards themselves or, to a greater extent, took their own lives. Victims convicted of such crimes are buried in trees that the Harpies feed on. When one of the Harpies plucks a leaf or a branch from the tree, it suffers excruciating pain and bleeds. Dante's guide, Virgil, instructs him to a branch off a tree. Pier Delle Vigne is buried in the tree, and he begs Dante, "Why do you break me?" (Pinsky, Canto XIII, Line 32). It is clear from this that Delle Vigne suffers greatly from the Harpies' wounds. The Wood of Suicides appears to be an insensitive punishment for those who committed suicide, in the sense that if those souls were tortured and pushed to self-destruction in life, they should not have to deal with the endless torture in hell. The action of Dante breaking the branch serves as a wake-up call for the traveler. It is at this point that he realizes Delle Vigne is losing his sense of self while still experiencing agonies as harsh as those he experienced in the mortal world. What's more, Virgil asks Dante to break a branch, which causes him to feel guilt and sorrow at such a drastic level, that he is almost unable to speak. It is unjust that the people, who were betrayed by their minds, people, or circumstances, face a most agonizing punishment indefinitely in the afterlife. In the third round of the seventh circle are those who committed violence against God. Here they are broken into three groups, blasphemers, sodomites, and Usurers. While the users are immoral for preying on others' weaknesses to make an unreasonable prophet, the others are not guilty of harming others. The first are the blasphemers, whose crime was speaking ill of God or religion. Virgil seems to also see them with disdain. "He[...]bore- still seems to bear -Disdain for God. But[...]his revilings Earn his [punishment/pain]"(Plinsky, Canto 14, Line 56-59). In short, the reason for the blasphemers to suffer and be punished is because they chose to question God or religion. As his other sins were not mentioned, and since he was sent to this circle, we can assume he was not an immoral man. For such a person to be sent to hell solely for their disdain of a "higher power" is disproportionate and entirely unjust.

Throughout the scenarios in these circles of hell, it is clear that their punishments are not reflective of the whole story and/or are disproportionate compared to the sin. However, when considering all of the punishments in Hell, and the way the poem as a whole is written, it seems clear to understand it as a story rather than a guideline for modern sin and judgment.