Dante's Inferno
Dante's use of allegory in the Inferno greatly varies from Plato's "Allegory of the Cave" in purpose, symbolism, characters and mentors, and in attitude toward the world. An analysis of each of these elements in both allegories will provide an interesting comparison. Dante uses allegory to relate the sinner's punishment to his sin, while Plato uses allegory to discuss ignorance and knowledge. Dante's Inferno describes the descent through Hell from the upper level of the opportunists to the most evil, the treacherous, on the lowest level. His allegorical poem describes a hierarchy of evil. Conversely, Plato's "Allegory of the Cave" describes the ascent from ignorance to knowledge, as one prisoner is freed to make his way up towards the opening of the cave and experiences sunlight, the unavoidable truth. Symbolism is an essential element of both works. In Plato's allegory symbols are used to represent truth, ignorance, society and the fear of change. Truth is represented by the sun, while ignorance is represented by the cave, its limited vision and darkness within. The prisoners represent ignorant members of society who are content to believe that what they see is all that exists. Fear of change is represe
While the cave dwellers in the "Allegory of the Cave" have no interest beyond what they see, the sinners have experienced life outside of Hell, and are curious about it. Plato and Dante criticize the world from different perspectives. Plato criticizes the world from a sociological point of view, while Dante criticizes it from a religious perspective. Plato implies that members of society are myopic in their views. They do not want what they have come to know and believe, to be proven false. They believe that what they see is all that there is to reality. They hold on to their beliefs, as if with chains, and react with anger if their belief system is threatened. This concept is demonstrated in the "Allegory of the Cave" where it states: "What do you think he would say if someone told him that what he had formerly seen was meaningless illusion". In Dante's Inferno, Dante specifically criticizes believers of Judaism and Islam. Dante criticizes these religions because of his loyalty to Christianity. An example of his contempt towards Islam is when Dante meets Mohammed and gruesomely describes him: "Between his legs all of his red guts hung with the heart, the lungs, the liver, the gall bladder, and the shriveled sac that passes shit to the bung. "The Allegory of the Cave" presents few characters, and except for th
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Approximate Word count = 890
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)
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