Dante’s Divine Comedy is a trilogy of poems describing three realms of the afterlife. Each of the three books in “The Divine Comedy” symbolize an afterlife station, “Inferno” representing hell, “Purgatorio” representing purgatory and “Parasido” representing paradise. The story is told in the first person, and is originally written in Italian, the language of the masses. This was unusual as most literary works of the time were written in Latin, a language not easily read by the common person. “The Divine Comedy” is not a comedy.
In this case, the word “comedy” implies it as a story with a prosperous ending after a difficult beginning. In Dante’s trilogy we learn of a man’s trip through the depths of hell, through redeeming purgatory and finally to paradise and reunion with God. Dante’s first book in the trilogy “Inferno” is a story of a man’s journey through hell. The traveler, Dante, must embark on this ominous journey for the sake of his own soul. He has lost his way in life by straying from the path of righteousness. Dante is fortunate that he has a guide to lead him by encouragement, knowledge and care.
Summary of Dante’s Divine Comedy
The guide is Virgil, a great Roman poet Dante recognizes from mortal life and a person whom he admires. Dante is fearful, he doesn’t think he will survive a trip through hell but knows that he must do this in order to get back on the straight path to God. As the guide and the lost Dante traverse the levels of hell, they learn that each level is its own kind of hell and is divided by types of sin. The eviler the sin, worse are the consequences each soul has to face. As Dante and his guide descend deeper into hell, they see suffering and punishments worsening as fitting to the crimes against humanity and God.
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