C.S. Lewis is probably one of the greatest Christian writers who ever lived. His variety and depth of works is legendary. But, in this particular book, he does what few authors have done well. No other author has better captured the subtle deceptions of the Devil and helped the Christian (or non-Christian) to understand it in such a clear way. The book brings feelings of disturbance, humor, sadness, and elation. It is convicting and will leave the reader on guard upon finishing it. It is a useful tool for any Christian and will be for many more years to
Dante's journey is more for self enlightenment in comparison to other great epics, such as Beowulf. Although Dante does not realize it, he is there to improve himself. During this trip, he feels pity for the sinners in the levels of Hell and often faints because of the awful treatment they are being subjected to. He eventually feels compassion for the sinners and realizes that Hell is a place that you would not want to be in. He then goes back to the normal world wanting to tell everyone to change the way they live so they do not end up in Hell, like he experienced on the
Dante Alighieri’s The Divine Comedy begins with Dante’s journey into Hell. Dante has strayed from the true path and must therefore take this journey into the supernatural realms in order to correct himself. In the Inferno, Dante dramatically changes his perception of sin from a response of empathy to a response of disgust and hatred. The turning point of his perception is when he encounters the sinner Filippo Argenti in the Fifth Circle of Hell. It is this point of the journey when Dante truly begins to adjust his response to sin, illustrating an inward change in Dante’s own soul.
“True humility is not thinking less of yourself, it 's thinking of yourself less” (C.S. Lewis)
Enlightenment itself is a concept that cultures around the world believe in and how people can master this concept. Enlightenment is an elevated understanding of life and learning how one may remove any negativity from their life. Societies view enlightenment as important because it helps people understand any and all forms of negativity never promote happiness and prosperity.
One of the most significant themes, if not the most significant theme within Dante’s Inferno is the perfection of God’s divine justice. Dante expressees divine justice within Inferno in a multitude of ways, with one of the the most prominent examples being the overall structure of Hell and how the punishment for the sinners (perfectly) reflects upon the sin. To the modern reader, Hell likely seems more like an act of cruelty than divine justice, much less a product of God’s love. At first,the torments that the sinners are subjected to seems extreme and grotesque. But, as the poem continues to progress, it becomes quite clear the there is a perfect balance within God’s justice as the degree of each sinner’s punishment perfectly reflects upon the gravity of the sin. Furthermore, the inscription on the gates of Hell explicitly states that Hell exists as a result of divine justice; “ll. “Justice moved my great maker; God eternal / Wrought me: the power and the unsearchably / High wisdom, and the primal love supernal (III.4-6).”
In his introduction to ‘Paradise Lost’, Philip Pullman relates an anecdote in which a country squire listening to Milton’s poem being read aloud suddenly exclaims: ‘”By God! I know not what the outcome may be, but this Lucifer is a damned fine fellow, and I hope he may win!”’ (Milton, 2008, 1). It is this effect Roman Polanski aims for in The Ninth Gate by presenting the anti-Christ, another aspect of the unholy trinity, as heroic, and his means of achieving it the utilization of the model of the hero’s journey as formulated by Joseph Campbell. Whether or not we consider this aim achieved, such is the film’s subversive use of the hero’s journey, its tropes and its character archetypes, we may consider it in conversation with and critique of the model itself, be it Campbell’s original model or that further refined for writers by Christopher Vogler.
Dante’s Inferno is an epic poem by Durante “Dante” degli Alighieri, written in the 1300s. He wrote a trilogy, known as the Divine Comedy, consisting of Inferno, Purgatory, and Paradise. Dante was inspired by many events and issues happening at that time, such as the war between Guelphs and Ghibellines, the Battle of Montaperti, and Christian religious beliefs. In this paper, I will explore the first book, Inferno, on the topic of Hell and how the sinners had a significant impact on Dante’s journey through Hell. In Circle 5: Styx, Canto VIII, Filippo Argenti, a sinner of Wrathful, helped Dante to symbolize to readers his anger towards Black Guelphs, political enemies of the White Guelphs. In Circle 7: Round Three, Canto XV, Ser Brunetto Latino,
Themes are fundamental and universal ideas that are explored in literary works. The epics of The Inferno by Dante and The Odyssey by Homer are two different stories with themes that that have some similarities while others have distinction. In The Odyssey, the central point is Odysseus struggling to go back home. In Inferno, Dante is the main character who is fighting between good and evil, which translates to be the theme of the story. Dante explores deeply the Christian hell and heaven, which includes the immediate Purgatory. This experience makes him cast his allegiance to good and God. The differences between these two stories are depicted when comparing the epic conventions, epic characteristics, and when comparing the various religious backgrounds of the times in which these two stories were written.
Unfortunately, Dante’s journey transitions from the wood into the depths of Hell where he and readers discover the Christian view of sin, repentance, and the need for a savior. The author introduces his readers to Jesus Christ during Virgil and Dante’s conversation about the lost souls in Limbo. In the First Circle of Hell, known as Limbo, the lost souls that did not have an opportunity to meet Jesus Christ dwell in this place. Although they did not sin, they did not have a proper relationship with God through Jesus Christ. However, Virgil testifies about Jesus’ decision into Hell when he says, “ I saw a mighty lord descend to us…He took from us the shade of our first parent…and much more he chose for blessedness; before these souls were taken,
The year is 1302, Dante Alighieri is absent from his role as one of the six supreme magistrates. Prior to that he had an extremely successful political career who had no problem exerting his power. Dante considered himself “a moderate White, he found it necessary during the two-month term to join in banishing his brother-in-law, Corso Donati, and his "first friend," Guido Cavalcanti, as ringleaders respectively of the Blacks and Whites.” Blacks and Whites were faction groups who had ongoing fights in the streets of Florence. This is an extremely admirable trait of a great ruler and/or ruler, the ability to at any moment turn on friends or family in order to uphold the city or government. This is comparable to the pride Greeks had in their respective
There is a medieval theme in where religion is shown as their way of life in which it was used as a means of dictating people and taking advantage of others. With religion in the medieval sense it was a do or die situation you were penalized if you did not follow the wishes of the church. Renaissance is also a main premise in Dante’s inferno as it starts to show the breaking away from religion and focuses on the individuals and their stories. The sinners in the circles are given priority over the religious nature and given the opportunity to talk about why they are there. This makes them seem more human then sinners. As he travels through each layer of hell we see how Dante’s writing style is both medieval and
Prince Caspian, written by the divine author C. S. Lewis, portrays a daring adventure and a battle for freedom while characters obtain braveness, courage, leadership, and patience through spiritual instruction. The spectacular setting of this widely known book takes place in the land of Narnia, and the period of time when there were kings, kingdoms and castles, and when battles were fought with swords, catapults and pure skill. Prince Caspian, a remarkable book from C. S. Lewis’s series, The Chronicles of Narnia, affected me in many ways, and caused me to stop and deem through the range of spiritual character traits portrayed, and how I may apply them to my own life.
In the “Divine Comedy” the writer, Dante Alighieri uses his own namesake to create a character, Dante, whose moralistic qualities change dramatically as he journeys through Hell, Purgatory, and Heaven. In the beginning, Dante finds himself lost on the path of sin and is sympathetic to others who have strayed as well. As he begins his journey, Dante shows concern and sympathy to the suffering sinners. It is only once Dante ventures deeper into the circles of Hell, when his demeanor changes and hatred begins to show. Dante, once weak and blindly empathetic to the sinners who turned their back to God’s love, becomes consciously aware of the importance of faith and justice.
Dante’s Inferno represents a microcosm of society; meaning, laymen, church, politicians, and scholars are all compiled into one place and punished for their sins. Hell, despite being depicted as brutal, ugly, and chaotic, is made realistic because the inhabitants come from every country and every walk of life. While Dante Alighieri did not invent the idea of Hell itself, he did create an important and in depth concept that still receives attention in biblical, classical, and medieval works. The Divine Comedy itself was written sometime between the years 1308 and 1321 and scholars still consider it the “supreme work of Italian literature.” The work itself is an epic poem divided into three separate sections: Inferno, Purgatorio, and Paradiso; respectively Hell, Purgatory, and Heaven. Inferno explores the descent of mankind into sin. The work’s vast usage of imagery and symbols, a powerful allegory, and well known allusions highlight political issues whilst dealing with the nature of sin and the road to salvation.