The Inferno, by Dante Alighieri, begins in the Dark Woods of Error. Dante was guided to the Dark woods by the mistakes in his life. He stays there with the only company of his fear and hopelessness. It was then a light appeared from within the trees, "the shining strengthened me against the fright whose agony had wracked the lake of my heart though all the terrors of that piteous night."(60) He discovered an unknown feeling since being the the Dark Woods, hope. He let this feeling guide him to a hill surrounded by light. When he encountered the three beasts while attempting to go up the hill, he was overwhelmed with terror. When the She-Wolf beast crossed his path,he exclaimed, "I died from every hope of that high summit."(60) It was after he backed down the hill, feeling hopeless and abandon, that he cried for help. Virgil,his guide,lifted Dante's spirits by promising Dante a journey. Although it was not to be a pleasant journey, Dante was just looking for a way out of the forest. This created new hope and happiness for a new beginning.
The Journey through Hell had not been what Dante had expected. The Circles of Hell left him with different emotions. The strongest of the emotions were sympathy,and empathy. Dante had pity for every soul in hell, but showed a certain passion towards each one. By taking this Journey, Dantes sorrow transfers from being sorry for himself to sorry for others.
Sympathy was the most common emotion shown by Dante. When he enters circle one, he encounters some of his biggest influences. He is pleased with the way the group of famous writers welcome him into their group. Circle one gives Dante the impression Hhat ell isn't as bad as he had thought,"This is the highest state man can achieve without God, and the glory of it dazzles Dante,"(49)Dante felt hope for these souls, until he discovered they could never reach salvation,"I thought about how many worthy souls there were suspended in that Limbo and a weight closed on my heart for what the noblest suffer."(51)Although Dante feels great remorse for the souls, it is no more than sympathy compared to the other levels of sorrow in different circles.
So far, Circle 2 seems to effect Dante the most. As soon as Dante enters he immediately is overwhelmed with pity, "Now the choir of anguish,like a wound, strikes through the tortured air."(58)Dante swoons from his empathetic feelings towards Paolo and Francesca's story. I think he is effected by the lustful the most because he would be placed in this level. He not only has pity for everyone else, but fears what is to come for himself,"and i fell,as a corpse might fall, to the dead floor of Hell."(62) This quote leads me to believe he is picturing himself dead on the floor of Circle 2.
A solid first post Lindsay - thoughtful exploration of topic. Main issues : make sure you are integrating quotes smoothly - you struggle some with jumpiness here. Also - in 2nd paragraph you say Dante has pity for every soul - is this true in Circle 5? You end abruptly in your final paragraph in your most interesting section -- focus more on the image of the corpse and how that reflects D's state of mind.
ReplyDeleteDid you choose the music in the Amazon gadget or is it random? I assume random b/c I could not see a connection. I like your background.