Dante's Inferno - A Summary of the Divine Comedy Pt. 1

there are many pieces of literature that tell the story of one's journey in the afterlife for some dante's inferno may be the first of these classical pieces that comes to mind even if it's not something you've read you may still be familiar with the name what some people may not know is that it's just one part of a three-part work written by dante known as divinia comadia the divine comedy a narrative poem that follows the concept of the journey one must take after death as thought of by many during the middle ages we as the audience travel alongside dante through hell purgatory and heaven which are the three segments of this narrative inferno purgatorio and paradiso it's a story that certainly gives you an interesting insight into the social conditions and expectations during the middle ages and if you also happen to be a fan of greek and roman mythology dante does not shy away from showing its influence on his own work there are references upon references upon references but as we are talking about a piece of work that was written in the 14th century some of the language used means it's not the easiest or most fun read however at its core i believe it's a story well worth sharing and so in today's video we will explore and summarize the first part of dante's journey the nine circles of hell before we delve any deeper today's video has been made possible by the great courses plus the goal of this channel has always been to share interesting stories whether it's myths and legends or more traditional fiction my primary focus has always been to entertain and to shed light on forgotten tales if these videos intrigue you enough to go and do additional research and learn new things then my job here is mostly done the only question left is where can i continue this learning and that is where i can strongly recommend the great courses plus an on-demand subscription-based learning service that you can access on your phone tablet and computer i'm sure given the current situation many of us have exhausted the streaming services of everything worth watching so rather than sifting through hours of terrible television you should head over to the great courses plus where they have over 11 000 courses lectures and documentaries on pretty much everything from history science and philosophy to food travel and finance it's all there presented by ivy league professors who are far more intelligent and eloquent than myself you're free to learn at your own pace in the comfort of your home without the stress of deadlines and exams for those of you still looking for your mythology fix i've recently started the great mythologies of the world a 60 part series which covers all sorts of myths from all around the globe i've only just got into egypt and there's still so much left to cover if you're interested in learning about some of the lesser-known mythologies then this is a course for you if you'd like to try the great courses plus for yourself you can use my link over at www.thegreatcoursesplus.com mythology or you can click on the link in the description of this video and start your free trial today it's a great way to support the channel while still learning new things and being productive the story is set in the year 1300 dante wakes up on the evening of good friday in a dark wood with no recollection of how he got there in the distance he can see a foothill a mountain where the sun shines bright he decides it must be safer than the wood and so he starts his ascent but as he climbs he encounters a leopard and then a lion and then a she-wolf overwhelmed by these animals he has no choice but to turn back to the forest here he comes across a spirit known as virgil a once famous poet or bard he tells dante that he can guide him to paradise but first they must journey through hell dante himself also a storyteller immediately feels this connection to virgil and so he trusts him as a guide together they pass through the gates of hell and begin their journey as one would imagine this is not a pleasant place a place where all hope is abandoned a city of eternal woe and pain the sky was pitch black but not a single star could be seen the air was thick with the moans of grief and sorrow dante recounts seeing a flag whirling through the air being followed by a train of naked spirits these unfortunate souls were cursed to chase this unattainable flag while being stung by wasps and hornets the tears they wept and the blood from their wounds dripped onto their feet and the ground was covered in maggots and worms the only way to escape this torment is to journey deeper into hell and the only way to do that is to cross the river acheron when they reach the riverbank there are countless souls waiting for caron the ferryman of the dead we can immediately see the influence of greek mythology on dante here the river acheron running through the underworld and karon being the ferryman of the dead are taken straight out of greek myth caron eventually agrees to take them across the river in his boat when they arrive on the other side virgil explains to dante that this is the first circle of hell known as limbo the souls who reside here were not necessarily bad people in terms of sins committed but they did not possess the necessary faith many of them rejected christianity the unbaptized and virtuous pagans is how they described they may not have been sinful but they were still sentenced to an eternity of damnation and denied entry into paradise in the distance there is a large citadel which houses many of the great philosophers plato socrates aristotle and many more before becoming dante's guide this was also the home of virgil and dante does also come across other great poets such as homer ovid and horace there are also many great greek and roman musicians statesmen generals and physicians eventually they depart and make their way onwards to the second circle of hell lust the first circle was undoubtedly a punishment but those who resided there still had some freedom the second circle onwards is where the real punishment began there to greet souls as they entered the second circle was minos a giant serpentine figure in greek myth minos was the son of zeus and the first king of crete after his death he would become one of the three judges of hades in dante's interpretation he certainly has a much more monstrous form minos would examine the crimes of those born before him and give them a sentence that he felt was fitting he would wrap his tail around himself a certain amount of times and that number would determine which circle they were sentenced to the second circle of hell was intended for those who had succumbed to lust and many of these were kings queens and rulers such as cleopatra helen of troy paris and achilles dante views lust as a mutual indulgence and therefore sees it as the least heinous of sins the punishment is also the most lenient inside of hell itself with help from virgil dante is allowed past minos and they enter the third circle of hell gluttony here there is an icy rain that never stops as punishment for their insatiable appetites the gluttonous are left to wallow and squirm around in the vile and putrid mud like worms gelatinous masses unable to stand or even crawl guarding them is the three-headed hound cerberus who patrols up and down this filthy mire flaying and mauling the gluttonous with his claws tearing their spirits as they helplessly scream luckily virgil manages to calm cerberus and they are able to pass safely through they come across a few spirits who have suffered in this circle for some time these unfortunate souls no longer have bodies and resemble not much more than foul-smelling liquid dante then meets a spirit that he doesn't recognize called chiako chiako however recognizes dante from back home in florence he also gives him the first of many political prophecies or predictions he inquires about the state of civil conflict within florence and then tells dante that the party he aligns with will be expelled with aid from rome in the fourth circle of hell dante encounters a figure known as pluto a deity of wealth we soon discover that this is the circle of greed where those who cared too much for material goods would be punished they are divided into two separate groups the first consisted of those who would hoard their possessions and money the second consisted of those who spent their money freely neglected the value of their possessions and squandered everything they had these two groups were cursed to push enormous weights up a hill only to meet each other in the middle where they would argue why do you hoard one group would ask why do you waste the other would respond when they clashed in the middle they would knock each other and the weights down to the bottom only to repeat the process again and again the hoarders and wasters are housed together as a punishment forever arguing and screaming never listening or trying to understand the other's perspective a pretty accurate description of today's society sadly as they descend deeper they reach the river styx and the fifth circle of hell wrath the river is more of a swampy mire where the wrathful fight and battle the boatman known as flyligus arrives and after a short disagreement with virgil he agrees to ferry them to the other side as they journey across the marsh a soul jumps up and grabs the boat filippo argenti a bitter political rival of dante back in florence the two exchanged some rather harsh words and dante wishes for felipo to suffer more punishment ironically dante's behavior here is not too different from the souls that reside in this circle in the far distance dante notices fiery towers and burning wars virgil explains that they are approaching the city of dis in the lower portion of hell where the heretics are housed when they arrive they are denied entry by the fallen angels who guard the gates they grant virgil passage with only one condition that he may never return to his own circle it's at this point dante begins to worry that he may never leave hell himself virgil agrees to enter alone and open the gates from the inside for dante but in this task he is unsuccessful he returns to dante with the angel slamming the gate shut behind him but he vows to dante that he will not abandon him despite both poets being terrified virgil is adamant that their journey shall continue for the first time dante starts to doubt his guide having seen virgil fail it's also apparent that he has no real plan and things can only get worse he asks virgil if he's ever been this deep into hell before and virgil replies that he has ventured this deep into hell once before when the sorceress erikso sent him to retrieve a soul for one of her necrotic rituals all of a sudden out of nowhere appeared the furies three female figures stained in blood with serpents entwined around their bodies electo meguera and tisiphony they were far from pleased to see dante and decided to summon medusa to turn him into stone virgil warns dante of medusa's gaze and covers his eyes to ensure he isn't turned into stone and trapped in hell forever from the river styx emerges a figure that virgil recognizes and he tells dante to bow and remain quiet as the angelic figure approaches it becomes clear that it was sent from heaven the furies immediately flee in terror and the angels who denied entry are reprimanded the angel then does what virgil could not and opens the gates allowing the two poets to enter the city of dis or the city of dieter contains circles six through nine with circle six being located just within its walls and the rest closer to the center in the circle of heresy dante and virgil come across a group of heretics who have been locked inside burning tombs as punishment these were known as the epicureans a sex of people who believed when the body died so did the soul and so they valued pleasure above all else as it allowed them to enter a state of tranquility so they lived their lives believing pleasure allowed them to escape all sorts of pain and discomfort which makes their punishment in hell all the more ironic dante comes across two of the tortured souls one of which is from florence but once again is on the opposite side of dante before leaving this region the poets experienced the most vile smell imaginable permeating from the lower regions a smell so bad they had to stop and rest virgil takes this time to explain what they will encounter next the next three circles contain smaller circles inside themselves the circle of violence for example is divided into three sections in the first you have those who commit an acts of violence against others and their property in the second you have those who committed acts of violence against themselves such as suicide and lastly you have those who committed acts of violence against god or nature as their time shortens they must descend into circle seven the circle of violence before entering the circle they must pass a narrow passage of broken rocks here they encounter the minotaur who blocks their path virgil begins to mock the creature asking if its murderer can also be found in the circle of violence sending it into a blind rage the minotaur charges and ends up severely wounded rendering itself unable to continue giving chase to the poets the first section of circle seven is reserved for those who committed acts of violence against their fellow man there is a river of boiling blood that these souls must wade through every day the level of blood one is submerged in is dependent on the severity of the crime those who committed murder would be fully submerged whereas someone who committed assault may only be submerged partially as they approach the river they see it's guarded by a group of centaurs who immediately point their bows at dante and virgil demanding to know what business they have here virgil then tells them he will only speak to their leader these centaurs guard the river not to stop individuals like dante and virgil from entering but to stop the souls of this circle from escaping the river itself when chiron notices that dante is not actually dead he draws his bow and demands virgil explains their story he agrees for the centaurs to take the poets to a shallow point in the river and allow them to cross on one of these centaur's backs the centaur chosen for this task is nessus which is very ironic in itself because in greek myth nessus was a centaur who agreed to take heracles and his wife across a river when he crossed the river with heracles wife he then forced himself upon her and left heracles no choice but to kill him in dante's story there is no betrayal from nessus he does as he was instructed and ferries the two poets across the river after crossing the river of blood they walk through a wood the trees in this wood are gnarled and twisted with no leaf in sight all around him dante his moans and shrieks but other than the two poets there is no one else in this word weary that there may be terrors hiding dante urges virgil to tread quietly but virgil knows where these noises are coming from virgil breaks a branch off the tree and to dante's surprise blood pours from the branch and the tree cries out in pain oh why have you come to cause me pain i was once a man just like you the second part of this circle is reserved for those who committed suicide as they did not value their bodies in life that in hell those bodies would be taken away every day harpies would swoop down to claw and feed off the trees only when they were broken and bleeding were they permitted to speak virgil explains that he meant the tree no harm but witnessing it firsthand was the only way dante would believe him he asked the tree to tell dante his story he was once a man named pietro de la vina a diplomat under the service of frederick the second king of sicily he was a reputable man with status until he was accused of treason and locked away watching as his good fortune turned to grief was too much for pietro and so he took his own life dante determines that this man must have been wrongfully accused and convicted otherwise he would have been in the circle for traitors but the fact that he is here with others who committed suicide means he must have been an honest man led down a dark path by others and so he returns the twigs and branches broken by virgil and they move on the third part of this circle is a desolate barren plain where flakes of fire fell from the sky it housed those who committed violence against art nature and god the souls found here were subjected to a burning heat the blasphemers who committed crimes against god were laid out onto the burning sand while fire rained down on them unable to move the sodomites who harm nature were left to run around the desert through the lava-like sand those who committed crimes against art were left huddled together all three of these groups were perpetually screaming out in pain as the ashy flakes fell to the ground and caught fire leaving these sinners to experience an eternal burning the two poets traveled through the desert waving away flakes of fire whenever they fell near them trying their best and not to catch fire dante stops when he sees a man who isn't crying out in pain the fire doesn't seem to bother him at all as he lays in the sand this man is kaepernius during the siege of thebes he stood on a ladder over the walls and screamed that not even zeus himself could stop him entering and laying waste to the city of course arrogance and hubris of this kind would not be tolerated by zeus who then killed kaepernius of a thunderbolt proving that he could indeed stop him from entering the city in dante's story kaepanis is in this circle of hell for blasphemy against jupiter or jove the equivalent to zeus who also struck him down with a bolt of thunder he chose no remorse for his sin as he lay there in the burning sand cursing the name of the god who struck him down as they continue on they come across a stream covered in a thick mist which offers them protection from the fire above along this stream dante is recognized by a man who is completely covered in burns this man is brunetto latini dante's mentor and guardian when his father passed away he asked dante if he may walk with him and dante eagerly accepts suggesting that maybe they should sit down so they can catch up brunetto however tells dante that he cannot because of his sins he must never stop wandering the desert so far we've only really seen political enemies of dante in hell but brunetto is one of the first spirits he meets from back in florence who shares his political beliefs he even warns him that he faces exile if he somehow escapes hell and returns to florence they would eventually come to the end of the stream and in front of them was the edge of a cliff and a roaring waterfall below dante sees three men in front of him that he recognizes from florence they ask him not to judge them based on their burnt and scarred appearance for they were once famous and esteemed to men as they were guilty of sodomy they could not stop walking and so they formed a circle around dante asking him of the current political situation in florence a question that leaves dante with an expression of grief he then tells them the story of his journey and they wish him luck if he ever escapes hell they ask only that he speaks of them favorably as they look down into the abyss below virgil asked dante to throw the belt he wore around his waist over the edge and weight they are now approaching the eighth circle of hell a strange shape that dante can't quite make out rises from below and stops before them behold the beast with a pointed tail that crosses mountains leaves walls and weapons broken and makes the stench of which the world is full the creature answers virgil's call and makes itself visible a creature with human bestial and reptilian elements all combined into one its name is garyon a winged monster with the face of a man a scorpion stinger and a body that is part beast part reptile its general shape can be compared to that of a wyvern with some elements of a chimera or manticore in greek myth garyon is a three-headed giant but here dante's garyon is an amalgamation of three separate beings and is a visual representation of the next circle the friendly human face makes him seem trustworthy but his grotesque body and stinger present us with the idea of a trickster or fraudster behind the pleasant face is a cold-blooded monster virgil explains the only way down this waterfall is on the creature's back but he makes sure that he sits behind dante and warns him to be wary of gary on stinger those who are not wary of his true nature never make it to the bottom of this abyss the eighth circle of hell is fraud for those who committed fraudulent and malicious crimes this circle is also known as the malibulger meaning the ditches of evil this also refers to the layout of the circle as it's divided into ten narrow ditches each one punishing a different act of fraud the first ditch contains seducers and panderers a fancy name for a pimp or someone who owns a brothel these two groups lined the walls of this ditch walking in opposite directions being whipped by horned demons at first this may not seem like a harsh punishment but these demons can be seen as symbolic of slave drivers just as these men chose to treat women like objects that could be disposed of and sold in the afterlife they would be nothing more than a commodity themselves to these demonic slave drivers dante recognizes one man as venedicio who he recalls arranged the sale of his own sister to a nobleman on the other side virgil points out a man named jason jason of argo the once famous hero jason is there for the seduction of the sorceress madea which to be fair had more to do with athena and hera trying to help him but he did also seduce the queen of lemnos and then sail away after she had two of his children so for that douchebaggery jason is condemned to an eternity in hell next to this trench are those considered guilty of false flattery exploiting others fears and desires by twisting and corrupting language to manipulate them these individuals are covered in their own feces which represent the falsehoods they told whilst alive they do nothing but writhe around and howl at each other not a sight dante and virgil were keen on observing for very long in the third ditch dante finds those guilty of simony gaining position in the christian church due to monetary means or through other favors this term comes from simon magnus a magician or sorcerer who tried to pay saint peter to bestow the power of the holy spirit upon him the simonix as they are referred to were placed headfirst into holes with flames burning the soles of their feet dante notices one pair of feet squirming more than the others because the flames are much higher this soul was pope nicholas iii who mistakes dante for the then pope bonifacio he explains to dante that because he tried to abuse his position in the church he must serve a lifetime in this hall and below him are all the other popes guilty of the same crime when the next pope dies he will take his place at the very top pushing pope nicholas further down the hole like all those before him the corruption of the church by the simon axe is something dante makes very clear he despises which is why we see it so deep into hell in the fourth hole were the sorcerers who dabbled in divination fortune telling and astrology arts that were associated with a false prophet the punishment for being a sorcerer was having their head twisted backwards leaving them to slowly walk forward and only being able to look back at the other hideous distorted sorcerers in the fifth hole were the berettas also known as grifters these souls are immersed in a lake of boiling tar a visual representation of their shady dealings and sticky fingers they are also guarded by winged demons known as the malibrange when a grifter tries to emerge from the surface they claw at them and attack them with hooks until they are once again fully submerged for some reason dante ends up insulting these demons which results in them being pursued they eventually escape down a slope where they encounter hole number six these men are dressed in what appear to be regular robes but judging by how slowly they're moving and the discomfort in their face this isn't true these robes are weighed down by lead on the outside everything looks fine these robes appear just as you would expect from any holy man but the weight inside is symbolic of the weight one carries with them in lies and deceit dante and virgil climb across a ruined bridge and stand above pit number seven this hole is full of naked people being chased by snakes and lizards their hands are bound behind their backs with snakes these souls are the thieves those who stole in life will now have everything stolen from them their possessions their identity and their humanity dante finds one man willing to tell him his story vani fucci a man who stole holy items from a cathedral who committed violent crimes and murder as they talk a viper bites his neck and kills vanny only for him to burst into flames and resurrect from the ashes like a phoenix vani shares a prophecy with dante that all those dante aligns with back in florence shall die including dante as the snake attacks him again vani curses the gods and flees from dante after this a centaur arrives with a fire breathing dragon on his shoulder and he asks where the bitter one has gone implying that he is there to punish vani dante wonders why the other centaurs in hell watch over the river of blood but this one known as cassis finds himself with the other thieves virgil explains that this is because cassis was killed by heracles when he tried to steal his cattle so although centaurs by nature are violent this one was also a thief they also observe quite a disturbing process where a snake with feet bites a man and then the two begin to merge together and mutate into one creature with body parts from both another snake bites a man and smoke paws from his wound and the snake's mouth this time the two swap places and mutate into each other the man's body shrinks and distorts until he becomes a snake and the snake subsequently becomes a man giving us the impression that everything in this hole may be a thief even these snakes and lizards we thought existed in the whole to punish the thieves in hole 8 dante sees the fraudulent counsellors who are literally burning in a pit of flames for their sins these are individuals who use their positions to convince and manipulate others to engage in fraud here we notice two heroes in particular odysseus and diomedes who were held accountable for the idea of the trojan horse as well as numerous other failings that led to the fall of troy the ninth hole was dedicated to the sowers of discord those who tried to create divisions between people when dante looks down into the pit he struggles to find words to describe what he sees those guilty of creating these divisions were being hacked away by a demon wielding a large blood-stained sword their bodies were torn into pieces entrails were dragged along the floor and most bodies no longer even resembled a human shape just as they sought to tear others apart in life in death their bodies are physically torn apart and mutilated dante eventually describes this by saying if you gathered all the people who were injured in the bloodiest and most grotesque battles their wounds and injuries could still not match the mutilation that took place in the ninth hull when their bodies were torn apart they would drag themselves around this hull regenerating once a full circuit was complete the demon would then tear them apart again and this cycle would repeat for eternity dante unable to shake what he saw from his mind approached the tenth and final hull from this hole came a horrendous stench bodies were scattered around laying on top of each other disease ridden and writhing these bodies belonged to the falsifiers the alchemists the counterfeiters and the imposters just as they were a plague on humanity in life they experienced every plague and disease possible dante noticed some of them were covered in leperous scabs furiously scratching until there was no flesh remaining after everything dante has seen and been through he finally approaches a giant well the entrance to the final circle of hell the circle of treachery outside they see numerous giants one blowing on a horn was nimrod who built the tower of babel in hell however he is incapable of coherent speech next to him is a much larger giant in chains effie eltes who was punished for his uprising against jove this is referring to the gigantomachy where the giants tried to storm olympus leading this army against zeus was ephelte's another giant who isn't in chains is antaeus and it's this giant who places both poets in the palm of his hand and carries them down to the ninth circle and so the last part of dante's journey through hell begins in a circle he describes as the bottom of the universe full of treachery and betrayal at the very bottom they come across another lake but there is no blood or tar this lake has frozen over it spans almost the entirety of the circle and is divided into four sections with the sinners being trapped in the ice itself these are known as the betrayers of family community the guests and lords dante then describes two immediate regions the first is known as kana which is referring to the biblical figure kane who kills his own brother no surprise this area houses those who betrayed their family these sinners are not fully submerged in the ice they can still move their heads but nothing else dante sees two bodies frozen so close together that their foreheads are almost glued by the cold and he recognizes them as two brothers who murdered each other over a dispute involving family inheritance the second area is known as antenora named after the trojan soldier antenor who betrayed his people to the greeks this area housed those who committed treason and betrayed their country and community as dante continues across this lake he accidentally kicks someone in the head and they shout back asking why do you trample me the bodies in this area are submerged in a similar way to the previous the main difference being they can't move their neck the man who dante kicked was someone who betrayed florence and dante gives this man no apology or sympathy the third region in this icy wasteland is ptolemy named after a man who invited his father-in-law to dinner only to kill him dante stumbles upon a man who asked him if he can remove the ice from his eyes the man then explains that after murdering a guest the soul falls into ptolemy long before the body dies the empty body is then inhabited by a demon until a natural death occurs so their suffering begins long before they actually die the fourth area of this lake is known as judeka of course being named after judas and those who betrayed the lord those in judeka are fully encased in the ice and as a result not a sound is made as there is no one to speak to the poets move quickly on to the center of hell virgil tells dante that the banner of the king of hell draws closer meaning there is only one soul left to observe when they reach the very center dante is frozen to the spot and no words can be formed in the very center of hell satan is condemned for the worst act of all treachery against god himself it's explained here that his name was once lucifer the fairest of the angels in heaven but his rebellion against god led to him being cast from heaven and frozen in ice from the waist down dante struggles to comprehend how big lucifer's body really is only being able to see the upper half which is free from ice what's more stunning than his size is the fact that he has three heads one that is fiery red one that is pale yellow and one that is black underneath each head are a pair of bat-like wings which have been flapping and causing the icy winds dante and virgil experienced while crossing the lake these wings are also to ensure the lake stays frozen so satan and everybody else can never leave this prison satan himself cannot speak but only cry and blubber into his mouth each mouth is also constantly chewing on a treacherous man marcus junius brutus and gaius cassius longinus two men responsible for the assassination of julius caesar hang from the left and right mouths in the center mouth hangs judas punished for his betrayal of jesus christ judah suffered the worst punishment as he represented treason against the divine whereas the others were guilty of treason against man virgil tells dante that now is when they escape hell by climbing down lucifer himself which makes no sense to dante as surely that would only take them deeper into hell virgil assures him that this is the only way and so they climb down satan's legs once they reach his genitalia they pass through the center of the universe virgil turns his body around and then starts climbing back up which again makes no sense to dante as that's the way they just came from as dante follows virgil he's amazed to see everything is essentially upside down and they are now climbing up lucifer's legs virgil explains that they are essentially climbing up through the crater left by lucifer when he crashed into the earth they eventually climb out of hell on the morning of easter sunday and before them is the river lethe which flows from the mountain of purgatory i'm sure you've gathered where dante's journey will take him next unfortunately that is a journey for another time i hope you've enjoyed dante's inferno if you'd like to see part two in purgatory then leave the video a like and let me know in the comment section as always i've been your host mythology and fiction explained you