Serpents And Sins: Punishment, Piety, And Vigilance In Dante’s “Inferno”




What is the true nature of punishment? How do we contend with the reality of evil? Can humanity find redemption amidst its horrors?Dante Alighieri's “Inferno” is the first part of the epic poem “The Divine Comedy,” written in the early 14th century.Dante was one of the most influential literary minds in history, and his epic poem is a masterpiece of psychoanalytic insight.The story begins with Dante lost in a dark woods. In his despair, he is visited by the ancient Roman poet, Virgil. Virgil explains that Dante has been chosen to undertake a divine journey, where he will gain insight into his own life and the nature of sin and salvation.In order to complete his spiritual quest to reach paradise, he will first have to venture through Hell.We accompany Dante as Virgil guides him through the 9 circles of the Inferno. Along the way, Dante meets various historical and mythical figures of the past and provides commentary on their moral failings.The poem is a symbolic and psychological exploration of sin, punishment, and redemption. Each circle represents a different sin and its contrapasso, or counter-punishment.Below I explore 3 important lessons from the poem that are developed further in “The Great Courses — Why Evil Exists” by Professor Charles Mathewes.In Dante’s Inferno, there are nine circles of Hell. Each circle is progressively deeper and more sinister than the last. Dante and Virgil go through each of these circles, encountering the various punishments of the damned and reflecting on the nature of the sin committed.One of the most perplexing aspects of Dante’s Inferno is the idea of contrapasso, or “counter-punishment”. This is the way in which each person’s punishment perfectly fits the individual’s defining crime.