Inferno - Paraphrase - Theme Analysis Study Guide
Inferno section 1: Dante's journey through Hell (Inferno), Purgatory (Purgatorio), and Heaven (Paradiso) takes place in 1300, at the midpoint of his life. Dante sets himself as the narrator and main character of this epic poem. His flight through Hell begins in a dark and unknown forest. As Dante wanders through the woods he comes to a hill above which shines the first sunlight that he has encountered in the forest. But as Dante begins to climb the hill a leopard blocks his path. As Dante retreats, a lion and a she-wolf join the leopard in driving Dante back into the dark valley. Rushing terrified down the hill Dante encounters a shadowy figure. The figure reveals itself to be the spirit of Virgil, the master poet from Mantua who lived during the reign of Julius Caesar, before the coming of Christ. Directing Dante to take a path around the beasts on the hillside, Virgil becomes Dante's teacher and guide through Hell and parts of Purgatory.
Inferno section 2: Night begins to fall on Virgil and Dante as they begin their journey. Invoking the Muses with, "O Muses, o high genius, help me now," Dante wonders whether or not he is worthy to take such a momentous trip. Comparing himself to others-Aeneas and St. Paul-- who have journeyed into the underworld, Dante does not feel he is up to the task. Virgil comforts Dante and quells his misgivings by telling him that Beatrice, sent by the Virgin Mary, asked Virgil to rescue Dante from his wanderings and to be his guide for her sake. After Virgil asks Dante, "Why do you resist? Why does your heart host so much cowardice? Where are your daring and your openness," Dante gathers his resolve and the pair move on.
Inferno section 3: Dante's first encounter with Hell is the inscription over its gates, "Through me the way into the suffering city, through me the way to the eternal pain, through me the way that runs among the lost.Abandon every hope, who enter here." Virgil reminds Dante to have courage and leads him into Hell, a dark and starless abyss filled with terrible noise. Virgil explains that the cries that Dante hears are those of the uncommitted, souls who were neither rebellious against God nor faithful to Satan. These souls occupy the Vestibule, a portion of Hell outside the formal First Circle. Neither Heaven nor Hell would take these souls so their punishment is to spend eternity running through the Vestibule behind a banner while wasps and horseflies sting them and worms at their feet feed on their blood and tears.
Dante and Virgil continue to the river Acheron, the border between the Vestibule and the First Circle. Many souls wait on the shores of the river for the boatman, Charon to carry them across. Charon does not want to help Dante because he is still alive but Virgil, as he will often do during this journey, commands the underworld guardian to let Dante pass because his mission was willed in Heaven. As they cross the river, Virgil tells Dante that the sinners on the shores are compelled by "celestial justice" to cross the river into Hell. As the poet finishes his discussion of Charon and the river, violent winds and fires from the ground accompany the tremors of a giant earthquake. Terrified by the chaotic rumblings, Dante faints away.
Inferno section 4: Loud thunder stirs Dante from his sleep. Dante finds himself in a new place, on the edge of an abyss the bottom of which he cannot see. As Virgil and Dante descend into the First Circle, Limbo, they hear quiet sighs and moans of sadness. Virgil explains that the souls that make these pitiful sounds belong to humans who led blameless lives but were never baptized. Virgil, who died before Christianity, lives in Limbo where his punishment is to never be able to see God. Dante expresses sorrow because the souls he meets in Limbo belong to great men. As Virgil and Dante walk, Dante sees a fire around which the most honored souls rest. As they approach the fire, Dante recognizes the shades (spirits) as Homer, Horace, Lucan, and Ovid, great classical poets. The group salutes Dante as one of them as the stroll toward a castle with seven walls surrounded by a stream. Upon entering the enclosed area, Dante finds more masters of ancient philosophy and mathematics-Plato, Cicero, Socrates, Ptolemy, Hippocrates, and "the master of the men who know" (Aristotle). Dante and Virgil move from this hallowed, calm place to a place "where no thing gleams."
Inferno section 5: As Dante and Virgil descend in the Second Circle they meet Minos whose job it is to judge condemned souls. Minos wraps his tail around his body to indicate the number of the circle in Hell to which the soul must fall. Again, Virgil commands Minos to let Dante pass because his journey was commanded in Heaven (although Virgil does not use the word "Heaven" because to do so in Hell would be blasphemous). Once Minos lets the poets pass they encounter a pit filled with shrieking and moaning spirits that flail about in the winds of an eternal storm. The Second Circle houses the souls that were lustful on Earth. Dante pities these souls and asks to speak with one of them. Meet Francesca, a woman whose husband kills her and her beloved Paolo for succumbing to one lustful kiss. Paolo stands by as Francesca tells their story. Moved by pity and sadness, Dante faints.
Inferno section 6: Dante awakens to find himself in the Third Circle where rain, snow, and hail fall endlessly to the stinking ground. Here, the Gluttons run around the pit eternally trying to avoid the sharp claws of the three-headed guardian of this Circle, Cerberus. As Virgil throws dirt into the monster's mouth to silence him, Dante notices a shade that, unlike the other spirits, does not lie on the ground. This spirit belongs to Ciacco, a citizen of Florence who Dante knew in life. Ciacco, well known for his gluttony, prophesies that war will occur and one party will be expelled from the city. The two Florentines commiserate over the plight of their city and discuss the fates of other citizens who, Ciacco says, were banished to lower parts of Hell for their heinous crimes. As Virgil and Dante move away, Virgil explains to Dante that Ciacco will stay as he is in this Circle until Last Judgement. Although these souls will never reach Heaven, they will be nearer to it and feel more pleasure and more pain after Last Judgement.
Inferno section 7: Plutus, who has swelled to an enormous size, blocks the poets' path as they try to descend into the Fourth Circle. But when Virgil explains that their journey is willed in Heaven, Plutus falls weakly to the ground and the Virgil and Dante pass unharmed. In the Fourth Circle, two groups of shades roll giant weights in opposite directions. At the end of their semi-circular paths the two groups crash into each other and continue their torment again in the opposite direction. Every time the two groups crash, one yells, "Why do you hoard?" While the other group yells, "Why do you squander?" These two groups, the avaricious and the prodigal, continue this sorry task for all eternity. Virgil explains that most of the spirits in this realm belong to popes, priests, and cardinals who mismanaged worldly goods whether with avarice or with prodigality. Virgil also warns Dante against being greedy for the goods of Fortune. Dante asks him to explain Fortune and Virgil responds, "She is the one so frequently maligned even by those who should give praise to her-they blame her wrongfully with words of scorn. But she is blessed and does not hear these things; for with the other primal beings, happy, she turns her sphere and glories in her bliss."
With that, Virgil beckons Dante to follow him into the next Circle. As they descend, they approach the river Styx and find the souls of the Wrathful and Sullen bobbing in the slimy murk. The Fifth Circle of Hell belongs to the Wrathful shades who lash out at each other, tearing "each other piecemeal with their teeth." Alongside the Wrathful live the Sullen shades who, because they "had been sullen in the sweet air that's gladdened by the sun," must spend eternity stuck below the dark, festering mud of Styx. Virgil and Dante continue their trek around the river until they come to the base of a tower.
Inferno section 8: Dante and Virgil spy two flames in the distance as they near the tower. These flames signal the approach of Phlegyas, the oarsman who takes the poets across the river. As the three cross Styx, a shade rises from the mud and tries to attack Dante. At first Dante does not recognize the shade but when he finally realizes that the spirit is that of Filippo Argenti, Dante curses the shade and sends him flailing back into the water. Virgil praises Dante for his actions and explains that the city of Dis lies ahead of them. Dis stands as the entrance to the lower part of Hell, reserved for the worst violent and fraudulent sinners. Fallen angels angrily block the path into Dis. They refuse to speak with Dante so Virgil proceeds alone to convince the fallen angels to let them pass.
Inferno section 9: The fallen angels refuse to let Virgil and Dante pass through the gates so Virgil returns to Dante and explains that help has been promised to them so they must wait for that help to arrive. Frightened by their situation, Dante tries to gather courage by asking Virgil about other mortals who had taken the journey through Hell. Virgil reveals that he himself was sent to summon a spirit in a Circle far below the one in which they now stand. Dante has little time to comfort himself as three bloody and terrifying Furies appear before the poets. Their heads covered in snakes, the Furies, Erinyes, Megaera, and Allecto summon Medusa to turn Dante into stone. Dante and Virgil cover Dante's eyes but do not cower long because a great noise announces the arrival of a spirit who crosses Styx without touching the water. The heavenly messenger arrives at the gates of Dis and admonishes the fallen angels for not allowing the poets passage. The messenger opens the gates and abruptly turns to leave. Dante and Virgil enter Dis and see a field covered with flaming sepulchers. Dante hears mournful cries emanating from the coffins and Virgil explains that the cries belong to the arch-heretics whose tombs lie here.
Inferno section 10: Dante asks to speak to one of the spirits lying in its tomb. Virgil allows him to speak to Farinata, a former Ghibelline who fought against Dante's ancestors. A spirit in a nearby tomb interrupts Dante's conversation with Farinata to inquire about his son, Guido. Dante uses the past tense to describe Guido so, thinking his son is dead, the shade crashes back into his tomb before Dante can finish his sentence. Farinata resumes his discussion with Dante, telling him that he will have difficulty returning to Florence from his exile and asking him why their two political parties hate each other so much. In turn, Dante asks Farinata to explain why spirits can see into the past and into the future but they cannot see the present. Farinata explains, "We see, even as men who are farsighted, those things.that are remote from us; the Highest Lord allots us that much light. But when events draw near or are, our minds are useless; were we not informed by others, we should know nothing of our human state." As Dante moves away, he asks Farinata to tell Guido's father that his son is not dead. Hearing Virgil call, Dante returns to his master and the two poets move into a new, accursed valley.
Inferno section 11: Still in the Sixth Circle, Dante and Virgil pause behind the tomb of Pope Anastasius to acclimate to the vile stench that now surrounds them. To pass the time, Virgil instructs Dante on what lies ahead. Virgil explains that the next Circle (Seven) holds sinners who were violent against their neighbors, against themselves, and against God and Nature. Sinners who committed ten different types of "ordinary" fraud live in Circle Eight while traitors who committed treacherous fraud-against kindred, country, guests, and masters-live in Circle Nine closest to Satan. Dante wonders why the sinners guilty of incontinence (Circles Two through Five) live outside the walls of Dis. Virgil reminds Dante of Aristotle's Ethicsin which the author explains why incontinence is less offensive to God than fraud because people commit acts of incontinence without malice. The poets' discussion then moves to the subject of usury. When a man tries to evade the labors necessary to live by nature and by his own art, he commits usury, an act that violates God's plan. Virgil closes the discussion by asking Dante to follow him down the cliff into the next Circle.
Inferno section 12: Upon descending the rocky cliff, Dante and Virgil come to an opening that is guarded by the Minotaur. In a great rage, the Minotaur can do nothing to stop this journey. The poets descend through the opening quickly. As they climb down, Virgil instructs Dante to look below to view the river of boiling blood where the violent sinners live. Dante sees that centaurs stand at the banks of this river, launching arrows at the shades in the river who act out of order. The centaurs spy the poets and send three of their own-Nessus, Chiron, and Pholus-to meet them. Chiron speaks first, noting that the rocks move under Dante's feet indicating that Dante is still alive. Chiron sends Nessus to carry Dante across the river of blood. As they glide across the river, Nessus explains that the sinners sunk deepest were tyrants and murderers on Earth. Once they reach the ford over the river, Nessus leaves Dante and explains that the river grows deeper on the other side of the ford where major tyrants like Attila reside.
Inferno section 13: Still in the Seventh Circle, Dante and Virgil enter a dark and foreboding forest. Dante notices that the trees in this wood have strange black leaves on misshapen branches and poison sticks rather than fruit. Harpies nest in the barren branches. Virgil explains that this second round of the Seventh Circle houses people who committed suicide. For their punishment, these sinners have been turned into trees. Pulling a branch from one of the trees, Dante is surprised when the tree-spirit responds in agony from the pain of losing its branch. Dante feels pity for the spirit and asks it to tell its story. The spirit belongs to the man who served as a faithful aid to Fredrick II. But when Fredrick turned against him he could not stand to be out of his master's favor so he killed himself. Virgil asks the spirit to explain how the suicides become trees. The sad shade describes that when a soul is ripped from its body by suicide it is sent to this Circle by Minos where it sprouts roots and grows from the fetid soil. The trees then spend eternity feeling horrible pain as Harpies eat their leaves. As the tree-spirit finishes its story, the poets hear a great rumble thundering through the forest. Chased by black bitches as fast as greyhounds, two spirits belonging to Lano and Jacopo da Santo Andrea seek cover behind a spirit-bush to no avail. The dogs easily catch the spirits and tear it to shreds.
Inferno section 14: Dante and Virgil move into the last round of the Seventh Circle where those who were violent against God (blasphemers) spend eternity. A vast and desolate plane sprawls before the poets as they behold numerous souls lying, crouching, and wandering across the desert. The desert floor burns as flakes of fire continuously scorches the sand. Dante turns to one spirit lying in the sand that seems undaunted by the rain of fire. This soul, Capeneus, defied gods in ancient times and was struck down by Zeus. Yet Capeneus still thinks of himself as unconquered and, therefore, still blasphemous despite his horrendous punishment. Virgil admonishes the spirit and calls Dante to move on. Dante and Virgil come to a deep red river and realize that they must use it as a path through the desert. As they follow the river, Virgil describes the legend of a great creature that lives in the island of Crete. From this creature flow the tears that collect in Hell and form the great rivers: Acheron, Styx, and Phlegethon. The river that they now follow will lead them to Cocytus (Satan) at the very bottom of Hell. In response to Virgil's description, Dante asks, "But if the rivulet must follow such a course down from our world, why can we see it only at this boundary?" Virgil replies that as they have descended into Hell (which is shaped like a circular cone) they have traveled to the left and have not yet made a complete circle.
Inferno section 15: Still walking along the river in the Seventh Circle, Dante enters the area of Hell reserved for those who were violent against God-the Sodomites. As the poets walk across the burning plain, a group of shades approaches them. Dante recognizes one of the spirits as that belonging to Ser Brunetto. After Dante explains how Virgil found him and brought him to Hell, Brunetto prophesies Dante's fame and gives him details of his exile. Brunetto was one of Dante's mentors in life so upon meeting him in Hell, Dante feels sorrowful and speaks to his friend with kindness and gratitude. As they conclude their conversation, Dante asks Brunetto who else dwells in this part of Hell. Brunetto mentions a few, all-renowned scholars who were guilty of sodomy (although Brunetto does not identify this crime by name). Another group of spirits approaches Dante and Brunetto. Brunetto runs off because he is not allowed to be with those spirits.
Inferno section 16: Dante and Virgil approach a waterfall cascading into the lower regions of Hell. As they approach the falls, three spirits leave a group of spirits because they recognize Dante's garb as Florentine. The three spirits belong to Guido Guerra, Tegghiaio Aldobrandi, and Jacopo Rusticucci-all notable patriarchs of Florence who belonged to Dante's political party. The spirits wish Dante much fame and ask if Florence has changed. Dante responds with regret, "Newcomers to the city and quick gains have brought excess and arrogance to you, o Florence, and you weep for it already!" As they retreat, the spirits ask Dante to speak of them when he returns to Earth. Dante and Virgil make their way to the waterfall. Virgil asks Dante to give him the coil wrapped around his waist. Virgil tosses the coil into the waterfall to signal the beast that will carry Dante into the depths below.
Inferno section 17: "Behold the beast who bears the pointed tail, who crosses mountains, shatters weapons, walls! Behold the one whose stench fills all the world!" Dante announces as Geryon, the monster summoned by Virgil to escort Dante past the waterfall, appears. Dante describes Geryon in vivid terms: the face of an old man with gracious features, the trunk and tail of a serpent, two paws, and hair up to his armpits. Virgil instructs Dante to talk to a group of spirits sitting by the waterfall while he convinces Geryon to be their escort. Dante pauses to talk to the spirits who occupy a separate zone of the Seventh Circle, set aside for those who were violent against Nature and Art (Usurers). The Usurers also suffer from the flakes of falling fire but the also wear pouches around their necks. On each pouch sits a different crest. These crests are the only things that differentiate one spirit from another because their faces are indistinguishable. The Usureers do not treat Dante kindly. One spirit sticks out its tongue at Dante who retreats quickly to rejoin Virgil. Dante mounts Geryon who takes him on a terrifying flight to the landing below. Upon setting the poet down, Geryon flies away like an arrow.
Inferno section 18: "There is a place in Hell called Malebolge, made all of stone the color of crude iron, as is the wall that makes its way around it." Thus, begins Dante's journey through the lower regions of Hell. Malebolge means "evil pouches." Ten pouches, aligned in concentric circles, make up the Eighth Circle where "ordinary fraud" is punished. Dante and Virgil first see a deep valley where sinners who were panderers or seducers walk constantly in both directions as horned demons flog and torment them. Dante recognizes one sinner and calls him by name, Caccianemico. This sinner tells of how he arranged for the seduction of his own sister. Dante and Virgil continue across the first chasm and come to the second chasm where flatterers are sunk in excrement. Dante recognizes Allessio Interminei who explains that he is sunk to the top of his head because in life he could never stop his flattery. Upon seeing the woman, Thais, who flattered her lover extravagantly, the poets move away into the next area of Malebolge.
Inferno section 19: The third chasm of the Eighth Circle holds the Simonists, clergy members who trade the favor of the church for money. Deeply opposed to papal interference in public life, Dante takes this opportunity in the book to rail against these sinners. The Simonists must spend eternity upside down in holes. Protruding from holes, the legs and feet of these shades burn with flames. Dante sees one spirit suffering from more pain than the others. He approaches the spirit to find that it belongs to a pope (Nicholas III). Dante reproves Nicholas by recounting the story of Jesus and Peter who asked for no money when they chose Matthias to take the place of Judas. Virgil, pleased by Dante's tirade against the pope, carries Dante across this chasm to a bridge above the next valley.
Inferno section 20: In the fourth pouch of the Eighth Circle, Dante finds the Diviners, Astrologers, and Magicians who all tried to foretell the future-a sin against God's plan. With their heads placed backwards on their bodies, these shades must spend eternity walking backwards. Dante meets Manto, the sorceress who founded the city of Mantua, Virgil's birthplace. Manto tells the long story of the founding of Mantua. Virgil points out other shades in this realm: Eurypylus, Michael Scott, a writer of occult sciences, Guido Bonati, Asdente, and numerous women who became women. Virgil hurries Dante as the moon sets.
Inferno section 21: Virgil and Dante come to the center of the bridge that crosses the fifth pouch of the Eighth Circle where they find the Barrators-those who profited from their positions in public office-mired in a river of boiling pitch. Malebranche (Evil Claws) demons approach the poets with a new spirit from the city of Lucca who they throw into the chasm below. Virgil tells Dante to hide from the demons while he secures their guidance across the river. The demons start to attack Virgil but he holds them off by asking to talk to one of them. Malacoda (Evil Tail) steps forward to ask Virgil why he wishes to speak to them. Virgil explains that the demons cannot hurt Dante because their journey was willed in Heaven. Malacoda orders the other demons not to attack and instead calls ten of his sidekicks forward to escort the poets to the next chasm while they prod and torment the sinners in the pitch to ensure that they do not escape. The rebellious demons taunt Dante but do as they are told. The group proceeds to the next pouch.
Inferno section 22: As the noisy party marches up the river, Dante's attention turns to the sinners in the pitch. He notices that most of the sinners stay submerged but some leap out like dolphins while others sit like frogs with only their heads breaking the surface of the sludge. As the demons approach, all but one sinner dives beneath the surface. The demon Graffiacane hooks the remaining sinner and drags him to shore. The demons flog and claw the shade. Dante asks to know the name of this unfortunate soul. The hapless shade replies that he was from Navarre and served King Thibaut. He reports to Dante that he used his position to sell political favors and now must suffer the consequences in Hell. As the demons attack the Barrator from Navarre, Dante asks if any Latian sinners reside here. The tormented shade replies that both Friar Gomita of Gallura and Don Michel Zanche from Sardinia lie below. Continuing to claw and jab at the spirit, the wild demons begin to quarrel amongst themselves. The shade from Navarre seizes his opportunity to escape by diving back into the pitch. Furious, two demons fly after him. One demon pulls up just as it reaches the surface of the pitch. Angry with his compatriot for missing the shade, the other demon attacks his colleague and the two battle like birds of prey in midair. As the demons fight they too fall into the pitch and cannot fly. Dante and Virgil walk quietly away from the chaotic scene.
Inferno section 23: Dante feels uneasy as he and Virgil leave the demons. He fears that the demons will blame them for their fight and pursue them as a hawk would pursue a mouse. In fact, the demons are chasing them so Virgil quickly scoops Dante into his arms and descends down to the sixth pouch. The demons cannot leave their realm so they watch helplessly from above as their prey escapes. In the sixth pouch, Dante and Virgil find spirits walking very slowly. Cloaked in hoods and garments that appear dazzling but are lined with lead, these shades-the Hypocrites-must spend eternity bearing these deceptively beautiful instruments of torture. Dante crosses paths with spirits who belonged to Jovial Firars, men who were supposed to govern Florence. The Friars discuss the rationale behind some of the punishments bestowed upon their brethren. Virgil asks where they will find a bridge to cross this chasm. The Friars respond that all the bridges were destroyed at the same time. Realizing that Malacoda had lied to him about the bridges, Virgil storms angrily away.
Inferno section 24: Somewhat stunned by Virgil's anger, Dante follows his master downcast and wary. Virgil puts his pupil at ease, though, when he turns to him wearing a calm and benign expression. Virgil finds a place where they can climb out of this chasm. Since he is weightless, Virgil pushes Dante from behind as he struggles up the rocky and treacherous cliff. When they reach the top, Dante falls to the ground in exhaustion. Virgil implores him to keep moving so the two travelers continue to the next chasm-seventh pouch. This new chasm holds the Thieves who must spend eternity running naked through the darkness as serpents chase them. Dante spies a gruesome sight: thrust through the loins of a shade, the head and tail of a serpent clasp in a knot about the body of the shade while the rest of the serpent's body coils around the shade's hands behind its back. Another serpent sinks its fangs into the neck of the shade that then turns to ashes, only to take shape again and repeat its misery. Dante finds that this spirit belongs to Vanni Fucci of Pistoia, a man who robbed the sacristy of a church. Vanni prophesies that Dante's White party will lose a battle at Pistoia.
Inferno section 25: Vanni Fucci curses God and makes an obscene gesture. To silence him, a serpent wraps itself around Vanni's neck and Dante believes that the sinner has gotten what he deserves. Chased by a horrible monster, Vanni runs away. Virgil identifies the monster as Cacus, the creature that was killed by Hercules for stealing his cattle. Five Florentine Thieves approach Dante-three of them humans and two of them serpents. Of the encounter, Dante writes, "As I kept my eyes fixed on those sinners, a serpent with six feet springs out against one of the three, and clutches him completely. It gripped his belly with its middle feet, and with its forefeet grappled his two arms; and then sank its teeth in both his cheeks.Then just as if their substance were warm wax, they stuck together and they mixed their colors, so neither seemed what he had been before; just as, when paper's kindled, where it still has not caught flame in full, its color's dark though not yet black, while white is dying off." Dante vividly describes this metamorphosis as snake and human become one being and then trade forms. He goes on to describe other similar scenes including that of a reptile creating smoke by biting one of the human spirits.
Inferno section 26: Still in the seventh pouch of the Eighth Circle, Dante opens here with an invective against Florence, "Be joyous, Florence, you are great indeed, for over sea and land you beat your wings; through every part of Hell your name extends!" The travelers now move to the eighth pouch where the evil counselors dwell. Numerous flames spread across the darkness like fireflies. Virgil explains that these flames hold the spirits of the sinners. Dante sees a divided flame and asks Virgil to whom this fire belongs. Virgil explains that Ulysses and Diomede share this flame because together they plotted the invasion of the Trojan horse and they also separated Achilles from Deidamia, who died of a broken heart. Dante approaches Ulysses who eagerly recalls the dramatic story of his death at sea.
Inferno section 27: A flame near the flame of Ulysses tries to speak in unintelligible tones. Finally, once it has controlled itself, the flame asks to speak politely and wonders if anyone knows whether there is war or peace in his former Latian land. A Latian himself, Dante jumps into a discourse about the past and present situation in the cities that make up his home region: Ravenna, Romagna, Cervia, Forli, Montagna, and Cesena. According to Dante, most of these cities are misruled. Dante asks for the name of the spirit who eagerly reveals that he was a soldier who became a brother of the order of St. Francis. St. Bonafice asked the spirit, Guido da Montefeltro, to devise a plan to make war against other Christians and absolved Guido for this sin in advance. The war plan was successful but when Guido died a demon claimed his soul because the absolution made by Bonafice was not valid. Guido ends his story and moves away as the poets advance to the next bridge.
Inferno section 28: Here in the ninth pouch of the Eighth Circle dwell the Sowers of Scandal and Schism. Dante warns his readers of the gruesome details that are to follow. As the poets cross this chasm, they first cross paths with Mohammed. Mohammed, disemboweled, speaks of his successor, Ali, who is likewise mangled and circling the chasm for eternity. Mohammed explains that when their wounds heal, a demon wounds them with a sword again and the process starts again. As Dante and Mohammed talk, a large group of spirits crowds around to listen. Mohammed asks Dante to tell one of his living brethren, Fra Dolcino, to supply himself with food so that the Novarese will not be victorious when the winter snows fall. A different spirit to carry the message to Messer Guido and Angiolello that they will be drowned at sea. Yet another shade, whose hands are cut off, enters the discussion. This spirit belongs to Mosca, a leader whose bad counsel began the rivalry between the Guelphs and Ghibellines in Florence. Dante speaks harshly to Mosca who, pained by Dante's comments, sulks away. Finally, a headless sinner approaches the group. This spirit belongs to Bertrand de Born, an evil counselor whose scandal caused a father and son to become enemies. He must now spend eternity pacing the depths of Hell with his brain, that which created the plot, severed from his body.
Inferno section 29: Dante weeps sorrowfully as he leaves the Sowers of Scandal behind. He laments that he had been looking for an ancestor of his whose murder had not yet been avenged. Virgil reveals that he saw Dante's ancestor, Geri del Bello, crouching under a bridge while Dante spoke to the group of shades. Geri, Virgil explains, was so angry about the fact that his death has not been avenged that he refused to speak. Dante still feels sorry for his ancestor but continues to the ninth pouch. At the bridge over this chasm, Dante hears tremendous wails and smells a stench that reminds him of rotting human limbs. Dante and Virgil move to a spot where they can better view the resting place of the Falsifiers. Most of these sinners lie in a grotesque and diseased heap while others crawl about aimlessly. Dante notices two shades furiously scratching scabs off one another as if they were both scaling fish. Dante asks the shades for their names and their stories. The first spirit identifies himself as an alchemist from Arezzo. Minos sent him to this Circle because alchemy is a form of falsifying. The second spirit proudly identifies himself as Capocchio, another famous alchemist.
Inferno section 30: Dante opens this canto with a recount of ancient Greeks who had gone insane as a preface to the following scene: "But neither fury-Theban, Trojan-ever was seen to be so cruel against another, in rending beasts and even human limbs, as were two shades I saw, both pale and naked, who, biting, ran berserk in just the way a hod does when it's let loose in its sty. The one came at Capocchio and sank his tusks into his neck so that, by dragging, he made the hard ground scrape against his belly." The remaining shade from Arezzo explains that the two shades that attack Capocchio belong to Gianni Schicchi and Myrrha. Schicchi and Myrrha reside in the part of Hell reserved for Counterfeiters of Other Persons (another type of falsifying) because they both pretended to be other people. After all of these shades retreat, Dante looks around at other miserable souls. He sees the soul belonging to Master Adam, swollen with dropsy. Master Adam was a counterfeiter of coins in Florence. Dante asks Adam for the names of other sinners nearby. As Adam begins to reveal the names of those around him, one of the shades, insulted by the conversation, attacks Adam. The two start to quarrel while Dante listens quietly. Virgil admonishes Dante for listening to the fight and urges him onward.
Inferno section 31: As Virgil and Dante climb to the crest of the next chasm, the Ninth Circle, they hear a thunderous horn. Dante looks in the direction of the sound and sees huge towers in the distance. Taking Dante by the hand, Virgil explains that the towers that he sees are actually the silhouettes of giants mired in mud. As the poets approach, Dante gets a better view of the entrance into the final pit. The giants, anomalies of Nature, encircle the pit like a turret. As Dante describes these monstrosities, one of them begins to yell gibberish. Virgil tells the giant that he is stupid because he must use the horn that hangs around his neck to vent his frustration. This giant, Virgil explains, is Nimrod, the builder of the Tower of Babel. Dante and Virgil approach the next giant, Ephialtes, who is wrapped with a chain. Dante wishes to see the giant Briareus but Virgil explains that he too is tied with chains, so the poets will only see Antaeus who can set them on the bottom of the pit because he is not tied in chains. Virgil greets Antaeus by recalling all of the giant's deeds on Earth. He tells Antaeus that Dante will bring him great fame if he helps the poet descend. The giant gingerly stoops to lift Dante then sets him down in the pit where Judas and Satan live.
Inferno section 32: Dante and Virgil emerge in the Ninth (and final) Circle of Hell. Before them lies a frozen wasteland that defies description. Dante invokes the Muses to help him find the language to speak the truth about this abyss. The poets begin to move through the first ring, Caina, where Traitors to their Kin are immersed in ice. A voice warns Dante not to step on the spirits who are sunk to their chin in the crystal clear ice. Dante looks down at his feet and sees two brothers immersed together. As the brothers weep, their tears freeze, binding them closer together. Dante continues on his journey and accidentally kicks the face of a frozen spirit. This spirit wails in pain and sorrow and demands to know how Dante can walk through Antenora, the second circle, kicking shades. Antenora holds the Traitors to their Homeland or their Party so Dante wants to know the name of the shade with which he now speaks. The shade refuses to give its name so Dante begins to pull at the spirit's hair. The two tussle until another spirit reveals that the feisty shade belongs to Bocca. Angrily, Bocca starts to name other traitors confined to Antenora as Dante moves away. On his way past these traitors, Dante notices a spirit feeding on the head and neck of another sinner lying nearby.
Inferno section 33: Dante tells the carnivorous shade that he will bring it fame on Earth if it reveals its story to him. Weeping, the shade replies that it will gladly tell its story because in doing so it will reveal the name of the shade upon which it feeds. The first spirit belongs to Count Ugolino while the second one belongs to Archbishop Ruggieri. Ruggieri captured Ugolino and put him to death. Dante already knew that Ruggieri had killed Ugolino but he was not aware of the cruel details of Ugolino's death. Ugolino recounts that he when he awoke in prison he heard his sons asking for food. Rather than bringing the men food, Ruggieri's henchmen nailed the doors of the prison shut and let all five die of starvation. One by one, Ugolino heard his sons die then he himself died from hunger. The story saddens Dante because although Ugolino betrayed the locations of strongholds in Pisa, his sons had done nothing wrong and did not deserve to die in such a tormented manner.
Dante and Virgil move to the third ring (Ptolomaea) where Traitors against Their Guests jut out of the ice, their eyes frozen shut by their tears. One of the shades calls to Dante to take the ice from its eyelids. Dante agrees to do so if the shade reveals its name. The spirit agrees and states that it belongs to Friar Alberigo, a man who murdered his younger brother. Dante did not know that this man was already dead. He believes that his spirit must have descended into Hell while a demon occupies Alberigo's body on Earth. Dante finds his hypothesis to be true when he notices the spirit belonging to Branca d'Oria resting nearby. Alberigo implores Dante to remove the ice from his eyes as he had promised. Dante refuses, believing rudeness to be a grace in Hell. Instead, Dante curses the Genoese because the body of one of their countrymen currently walks the Earth inhabited by a demon.
Inferno section 34: Virgil and Dante finally arrive at the fourth ring of the Ninth Circle (Judecca) where the Traitors against their Benefactors lie fully covered in ice. Carefully stepping across the encased spirits, Dante emerges from the wind and mist in full view of Satan (Dis). Frozen up to his breast in the ice of Cocytus, Satan stands larger and more ominous than any creature Dante could imagine. His arms are greater than the height of one of the giants that they had just passed and three gigantic pairs of wings fanning the wind that freezes the pit. Satan has three heads-red, black, and yellow-and from his six eyes streams continuous tears. In each of its mouths, Satan gnaws on the worst of the traitors: Judas, Brutus, and Cassius. Virgil abruptly tells Dante that they must leave. Virgil pulls his pupil onto his back and begins to climb down Satan's hairy body. Virgil continues to climb until they come to a point where Satan's legs stand upright in a dark cave. Virgil explains that when they climbed down Satan's side, they passed the center of the center of the earth so that they now stand just below the Southern Hemisphere. Satan stands where he was planted when he originally fell from Heaven. Dante quickly scrambles to climb back to Earth and as he does he sees stars above him for the first time since his journey began.
