Dante's Inferno | Canto 23 Summary & Analysis

[Music] in canto 23 of Inferno Virgil and Dante walk in single file still in the fifth pouch of the eighth circle Dante knows that the demons will be angry with them over the mess the poets just left behind and will come after them dante speaks his fears to virgil and suggests they hide just then the demons appear in pursuit virgil suddenly picks dante up and proceeds to slide with dante on his chest down the embankment to the sixth pouch the demons who cannot leave their designated circle stop at the edge and the poets continue on in this next pouch tired looking weeping people walk in a circle they wear robes that are dazzling gold on the outside and heavy head on the inside the people move very slowly due to all the weight one of the sinners calls out to dante virgil and dante slow their pace to walk in step with this man and one other the two souls noticed that dante is alive and asked him who he is and dante tells them and asks what sin has caused the punishment they all endure they explained that they were both jovial friars then they come to a man who is staked to the ground Caiaphas in his life he advised that the innocent Jesus be punished now others must walk over him as his own punishment virgil asks one of the friars for a way out of the pouch and the man tells him that the bridge ahead is broken but still usable virgil is angry demons lied to him about the bridge which they had said was unusable that friar tells him that demons are known liars it is Dante's not virgil who suggests a course of action he's been suspicious of the demons all along even when virgil reassured him that all would be well dante is becoming sure of himself now taking the lead in suggesting a course of action while virgil has been overconfident Dante begins to understand God's will and the nature of Hell more completely Virgil's anger at the why told by the demons is as much due to his own foolishness for trusting them as it is due to the why itself lying demons are also consistent overall sin of fraud for which sinners in the eighth circle are guilty and with the theme of true language and false language encountered several times the sin of hypocrisy is to say one thing but believe another or to present a false image of oneself while in private leading a very different kind of life for this reason the hypocrites wear beautiful robes that are heavy LED on the inside the image of luxury is false for inside the robes the sinners are miserable

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Keywords: divine comedy, Inferno, Inferno Canto 23, Dante's Inferno, Inferno summary, Inferno Canto 23 summary, dante's inferno, dantes inferno, Dante

Id: DYeg7dqOf5Q

Length: 2min 49sec (169 seconds)

Published: Mon Dec 04 2017