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Inferno Levels Guide

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Inferno Levels Guide Dante’s Inferno Level Description Dark Wood of Error 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. Vestibule 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. I: Limbo 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) II: Lust 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 III: Gluttony On this layer of Hell, those who over-indulged in food and drink are punished by being submerged into a pit of garbage. IV: Avarice (Greed) 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 The Hoarders Hoarders are those who were stingy with their wealth while the Wasters The Wasters spent their money in an extravagant fashion. Both groups move in opposite directions, and they constantly collide into one another. V: Anger 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 The Wrathful people (the sullen). The wrathful spend eternity tearing each other apart, The Sullen while the sullen lie in the muck underneath them and are constantly trampled. VI: Heretics 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 The City of Dis 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. VII: Violence 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 Towards People the Great is in boiling blood up to his eyeballs while Attila is completely Towards Themselves submerged. In the Wood of Suicides, those who killed themselves are Towards Art & Nature chased by dogs through thorn bushes. Those who are violent against the rules of nature are seared by fire from the sky. VIII: Malebolge (Evil Pits) Malebolge is the largest level of Hell. Those who are consigned to this level are guilty of 1 – Seducers and Panderers malicious sins. They benefitted (often financially) from their sins and they are cold-hearted. 2 – Flatterers - Seducers manipulate people into having sex with them while Panderers used sex to 3 – Simoniacs acquire power, money or influence. 4 – Fortune Tellers - Flatterers are people who try to manipulate people in power into sharing it with 5 – Con Artists them. 6 – Hypocrites - Simoniacs are clergy who abused their power and influence. 7 – Thieves 8 – Evil Rulers - Fortune Tellers/Diviners are those who used supernatural power not derived form 9 – Sowers of Discord God. 10 - Alchemists - Con Artists are punished by being immersed into excrement. - Hypocrites are specifically religious people who ignored the very teachings that they themselves preached. - 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. IX: Cocytus (Treachery) The final layer of Hell is freezing. The souls on this level are punished by being trapped in ice. Caina (against Family) - Caina is where those who betrayed their family are punished. The layer is named Antenora (against Country) after Cain who murdered his brother Abel. Ptolemea (against Guests) - Antenora is named for Antenor, who betrayed the Trojans by abandoning them Judecca (against Leaders) 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. .
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