“Abandon all hope, ye who enter here.” — Dante Alighieri, Inferno (Canto 3, line 9)
Still one of my favorite lines in literature to this day. There have been a variety of mentions and adaptations of Dante’s work, from the 2010 video game “Dante’s Inferno” to its influence on other books and media, including the current John Wick franchise. Yet, The Divine Comedy goes beyond violence or spiritual depravity. It is regarded as one of the greatest love stories and poetic writings ever written, as it bridges the gap between the human and the divine. Having recently finished the trilogy, it rings in my mind near-daily.
The Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri is an epic poetic trilogy on Christianity and his time’s political and religious orders. The first book begins in Inferno (hell), the second sets in Purgatorio (purgatory), and the third ends in Paradiso (paradise, or heaven). Written over 10 years, The Divine Comedy is still widely beloved since its completion in 1320, as it highly influenced and challenged Medieval Europe’s religious, political, and social circles.
While The Divine Comedy is poetry and fiction, it inspires Christians of various traditions and denominations, giving us an idea of hell’s torments, purgatory’s mystery, and heaven’s glory.
But what of the man? Who was Dante Alighieri? What caused him to write such an epic that has lasted throughout the ages?
Who Wrote the Divine Comedy?
Born in 1265 in the San Martino quarter of Florence, Italy, Dante’s early life would play a significant role in his writings.
According to historians, Dante met a beautiful woman named Beatrice, the inspiration for his writings. At nine years old, Dante became infatuated with Beatrice. He would not see her again until 1283 at age 18, and when he did, his time with her was short. While his feelings for her grew, the two never married. Dante would have an arranged marriage and have four children, while Beatrice would marry a distinguished banker in Florence. At age 24, however, Beatrice passed away, devastating Dante when he came across the news. He would write various poems dedicated to her life and beauty.
It is fascinating to read just how much beauty and love one woman can have on a man’s life, even if they do not come together in holy matrimony. So, what does her role play in The Divine Comedy itself? Before we go into that, some historical context is necessary.
While Dante was a devout Roman Catholic, he was not one to shy away from his criticism of the papacy. Before this, there was great division between The Roman Catholic Church and its political influence. Dante found himself amidst two opposing sides in the ruling Guelph Party: the Bianchi (Whites) and the Neri (Blacks). The Bianchi were more constitutional and democratic, while the Nari were aristocratic and favored the Pope.
By this point, Dante was involved in politics and philosophy and favored the Neri. By 1300, the Guelph Party was restored in Florence and continued to support the papacy, as did Dante. This was not to last.
Under Pope Boniface VIII, a shift occurred. The Pope began expanding his military and political influence in a way that negatively affected Dante and the Guelph Party. Dante would soon become outspoken against the papacy, its actions and influence in Italy, and the newly formed alliance with the French monarchy. As time passed, turmoil and division grew to where Dante and the party were nearly executed for the political actions relating to Charles of Valois–Brother of King Philip IV of France–and his request to enter Florence, which resulted in a revolt.
Along with this, Dante was accused of corruption and financial wrongdoing. Rather than being executed, a hefty fine was given, along with public penance. A two-year exile from Florence would occur if the fine was not paid. In the end, Dante was exiled from Florence for life and threatened execution should he try to return, and this is where The Divine Comedy begins.
Dante wrote The Divine Comedy during his exile to express his beliefs and grievances. From his love for Beatrice to his bitterness toward the papacy, Dante would compose all three epic poems. To push his point even further, he wrote all of them in Italian for the common reader rather than in Latin, the language of the elite. The Divine Comedy would go down in history as not only a contributor to spiritual wonder and belief about the afterlife. Still, it would deliver a heavy blow of criticism towards Pope Boniface VIII, the papacy, political rivals, and personal enemies.
How Many Books Are in the Divine Comedy?
As previously mentioned, The Divine Comedy consists of three epic poems: Inferno, Purgatorio, and Paradiso.
Inferno: Dante inserts himself into the story as the main character. He loses himself in a dark forest as he strays from the path. Before being attacked by wild animals, he is saved by an ancient Roman poet of the past, Virgil. Virgil explains how he was sent to him from the Heavens, as requested by Beatrice, to save him from eternal damnation by leading him to the highest sphere of heaven. To get there, he must enter through all nine layers of hell.
Each layer follows from highest to lowest: Limbo, Lust, Gluttony, Greed, Anger, Heresy, Violence, Fraud, and Treachery. Through each layer, Dante meets people who grieve, woe, and lash out about their earthly lives and how they entered damnation. Various figures are met in each layer, including Socrates, Aristotle, and Plato, along with Alexander the Great, Caiaphas the High Priest, and Pope Boniface VIII. To push his political point further, Dante even names political rivals, clergy, and even certain Popes in hell. The further Virgil guides him, the colder it becomes. In the last layer, he comes face-to-face with Satan, who is three-headed with a traitor in each mouth: Cicero and Brutus (plotters against Julius Caesar) and Judas Iscariot, (Christ’s betrayer). After this, they arrive at the entrance of the mountain of purgatory.
You can purchase a copy of Inferno at the link below:
Purgatorio: Roman Catholicism and some other liturgical traditions maintain a belief in purgatory, an intermediate state of faithful Christians before entering heaven, where their souls are cleansed and purified upon entry. All seven layers relate to the vices of life: Pride, Envy, Wrath, Sloth, Avarice and Prodigality, Gluttony, and Lust. While enduring Purgatory, Virgil guides Dante through the mountain. As he endures, he comes to know many in his life and before on why they are still “doing time” in purgatory. Such people include his musician friend Casella, the thirteenth-century poet Sordello, and first-century poet Statius.
Upon entry into the gates of Paradise, Virgil parts ways with Dante due to the state of his soul. While Virgil was able to save Dante, he was a pagan in his earthly life and barred from entry. Before his departure, Dante finally sees his beloved Beatrice again, who is in a state of glory and deification.
You can purchase a copy of Purgatorio at the link below:
Paradiso: Guiding Dante through the spheres of Heaven, Beatrice grows ever more beautiful in her state, causing her glory and brightness to be too much for Dante at certain points. The spheres of heaven they enter are the Moon, Mercury, Venus, the Sun, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, the Fixed Stars, and the Empyrean.
Throughout their journey, Dante comes across various Saints of the Roman Catholic Church and from the Scriptures, including St. Bernard of Clairvaux, St. Justinian the Great, St. Thomas Aquinas, his friend Charles Martel, and many more. As they approach the Fixed Stars, he is approached by St. Peter, who examines Dante’s faith and questions him about God and Scripture. St. James then approaches and questions him about Hope and then St. John about love. Upon entering the final sphere, Beatrice departs from Dante as St. Bernard guides him ever closer to the Blessed Virgin Mary. After asking for her intercession, Dante is then before the light of God. Unable to describe God in Trinity descriptively, he describes the Trinity as three enlarged radiant circles. Here, Dante completes his journey as he has united with those in heaven and with God.
You can purchase a copy of Paradiso at the link below:
Is There Allegory in the Divine Comedy?
Allegory can be found throughout all epic poems of The Divine Comedy.
As previously mentioned, Dante added current political rivals and enemies into Inferno. Where they are in the layers of hell also displays the moral dilemmas of Dante’s time and political turmoil. Biblically, it even reveals the depths of sin and how one was willing to commit it, whether through temptation or an overtaking by deeds with the Devil himself. Caiaphas in the Inferno layer of Hypocrites is one character that significantly stands out. By turning Christ over to keep his political and religious influence, to the point of declaring “we have not king but Caesar,” (Jn. 19:15), he is found nailed to a cross on the ground, eternally suffering the same fate as Christ but without the release of death or the hope of resurrecting.
Purgatorio shows hope for souls enduring their purification, the distance they have gone to overcome sin, and their journey into entering paradise. While being purged of sin, they look forward to eternal paradise. Even for Non-Roman Catholics, this can be an allegory of our time on earth in how we endure suffering for the sake of Christ as we place our hope in one day being resurrected and united with God.
In Paradiso, we see the same when St. Peter turns flaming red, signifying the disruption of the Apostolic line of Roman Bishops (aka the papacy) down on earth. We also see the poetic view of the cosmos of its time as various spheres of heaven are inspired by Greek and Roman mythology, astronomy, and astrology. We also read of a poetic explanation of the deification of all those who enter heaven, specifically Beatrice, who becomes more radiant and angelic as they get closer to the final Heavenly sphere.
What Can the Divine Comedy Teach Us about Christian Literature?
A personal gripe I have with modern popular Christian literature and art, generally speaking, is how safe it is. Rather than offering raw and emotional storytelling, it is tame and shallow in order to be family-friendly. Scripture itself is not family-friendly but violent and horrifying. Of course, there is hope in Christ’s life, death, resurrection, and eventual return, but the horrors had to be understood to get there.
Despite The Divine Comedy being over 700 years old, his work continues to serve as a perfect example of proclaiming Christian truth while:
- Understanding the weight of sin, hell, repentance, penitence, and hope
- taking liberties for the sake of narrative and story development
- applying past and present cultural beliefs into the story.
In all three epic poems, Dante applies horror, thrill, mystery, grief, hope, joy, and excitement as he pushes boundaries in combining Christianity and Greek mythology. Even C.S. Lewis does this in his afterlife story, The Great Divorce, which follows the self-identified character leaving hell into heaven with his guide, Scottish author George McDonald.
From philosophy to theology to poetry, Dante’s Divine Comedy continues to be read, discussed, and applied in many Christian circles and even among secular institutions as one of the greatest pieces of literature ever written.
To dive deeper into Dante’s work, I highly recommend Hillsdale College’s course on Dante’s Divine Comedy, free and available to all.
You can purchase a copy of all three volumes of The Divine Comedy at the link below:
Photo Credit: © Getty Images/bpperry
Further Reading:
100 Good Christian Books You Should Read Soon
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50 Great Books on Christian Art
100 Christian Novels You Haven't Read Yet
50 Best Christian Books for Deeper Learning
25 Great Christian Books to Read for Lent
