... Beatrice, rescues Dante. In order to give Dante a better view of what will happen if he does not change his way of life, Virgil guides Dante down into Hell and proceeds to give him a tour. Hell, as well as Purgatory and Heaven, is divided into nine circles starting with the ... have their heads turned backwards. Thieves have venomous snakes bite at them. Counterfeiters are afflicted with various diseases while the air stinks of pus (Masterpieces of World Literature, 196). Next is the ninth and final circle. Satan himself oversees this circle. Satan is described as a three-headed beast tr...

• Word Count: 1843
• Approx Pages: 7
• Grade Level: High School

... part of Dante Alighieri's epic poem Divine Comedy, also known as Inferno, tells about the spiritual pilgrimage of Dante from Hell to Purgatory (Fiero 148). The Roman poet Virgil, who guides Dante through hell, acts as the symbol of reason and studies the varieties of human sin (Sayre 441). As a matter of fact, the Inferno serves as criticism of his Italian ... contemporaries, some from history and legend from his era, marred by the severity of their sin (Sayre 441). Alighieri opted to write Inferno as vernacular literature in order to address and apply its message of conflicting moralit...

• Word Count: 1365
• Approx Pages: 5
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School