Characters In Dante's Inferno

Dante’s usage of mythological creatures in the Inferno was well thought out, with every creature having its own role and place. An educated man, Dante Alighieri knew,not only, how to write worlds into his paper but also, how to write them into the minds of his readers. He uses character placement to make his stories more realistic. His characters are people, or things, that the people in his time would be familiar with. They connect his writings to the real world, creating a sense of reality. Even though, we are aware that some of his characters, mostly consisting of mythological creatures, can not exist, just the knowledge that they exist in this world is enough. Each mythological character, whether it be human, animal, or somewhere in between, has its own place in Dante’s Hell which make it seem more realistic and expressive.
Dante’s skillfully placed people, used guardians or guides of different circles of hell, can be seen as a foreshadowing of what has yet to come. The first human-like figure Dante encounters, Charon, is the boatsman of the river Acheron. Charon was described as “a man of years whose ancient hair was white… whose eyes were set in glowing wheels of fire.” (Inferno 3.83-99) Shouting at the sinners, Charon recognizes Dante as a living soul. Charon’s description from an elderly years changes to a devil. This can be seen as to symbolise Dante’s descent into hell, where torture changes just as quickly as Charon’s appearance. Beyond Charon, Dante confronts