In AP literature, we are currently finishing the last cantos (chapters) of Dante’s Inferno, a famous piece of literature showing the sins, punishments, and overview of hell through the eyes of Dante. He is traveling with a poet spirit named Vigil, who helps him get to the top of a mountain by traveling through Hell. The Stages of Hero’s Journey are extremely difficult to find in this piece and almost completely inapplicable. The best stage I could find is the Crossing the Threshold, shown by Dante and Virgil entering Hell. “Then he moved on, and I behind him kept.” This is the last line of the first Canto, basically telling the audience that Dante and Virgil are making their way to the Gates of Hell.
Dante’s depiction of hell is very complex, making the chart in the back of the packet very beneficial. There are a total of nine circles, with many different complicated sub categories, most of which I personally find either unnecessary or prominent enough to be its own circle. For instance, the eighth circle has quite a long list of sins, ranging from flattery to theft to even sorcery! Also, I find little difference between the lustful and the seducers, let alone why they each deserve their own circle. Regardless, Dante manages to adequately cover all sins mentioned in the Ten Commandments, so I no right to judge/complain.
The message of the story isn’t entirely clear, but I believe that it has something to do with scaring people into behaving properly. I also think that the tale of Santa Claus has an analogous relationship with Dante’s Inferno, in that they both have the same message, but deliver it in a very different way. While Santa Claus rewards good behavior, Dante’s Inferno condemns bad behavior. Dante’s text is littered with poetic justices; for example, the flatterers are submerged in poop, because in life everything they said was bull crap. Although in the end, both Dante and the creator of Santa Claus are mainly trying to encourage admirable actions. AP Lit is a class that I like for its difficult work, as well as the amount of help received for it. I hope this class continues in this manner.
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2 comments:
I agree that some of the sins weren't orginized as well as they could have been. Nice catch with the Ten Commandments, I've never even realised that dante covers all of them.
I love how you relate Dante to Santa claus. Santa Claus is used by parents to persuade children to behave better like Dante used his tale to scare people by showing the consequences of their sins. Although unlike Dante, Santa doesn't have a specific list of actions that a person would be rewarded for. It's more of a generalization rather than having a specific reward for each action.
Asel K.
I thought it was interesting that you made a connection (of sorts)between Dante and Santa Claus. It was one I didn't make and probably wouldn't have. In a way they are somewhat similar: Dante relates the horrible punishment that comes from particular sins and Santa warns that if one is not good they'll end up with coal instead of presents. They both scare others into making the right choices, Dante's punishments just happen to be a little harsher and more specific.
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