Name: LIBA, PIOLA MARIE
Course and Year: BSA-2
Divine Comedy (25 pts. each)
1. Describe Dante’s description of the following:
A. Hell
ANSWER: Hell can be represented as nine circles of torment located
within the Earth. The first circle (Limbo) confined those who lived
their lives without regard for good and evil, in second circle confined
those who were guilty of carnal sin (appetite of pleasures or lust) the
third circle (gluttony) lies the prodigal and the avaricious and realized
the vanity of fortune. The fourth circle (Greed) those whose attitude
toward material goods deviated from the appropriate mean are
punished in the fourth circle. In the fifth circle (Wrath) The sullen (the
passively wrathful) lie beneath the water, withdrawn, "into a black
sulkiness which can find no delight in God, man, or the universe,"
while the actively wrathful fight each other savagely on the slime's
surface. Sixth circle (Heresy) In the sixth circle, heretics, such as
Epicurus and his followers (who say "the soul dies with the body") are
trapped in flaming tombs. In seventh circle (violence) The Seventh
Circle, divided into three rings, houses the Violent. In eight circle
(fraud) called Malebolge “Evil ditches” within these ditches are
punished those guilty of Simple Fraud. There are 10 deep, narrow,
concentric ditches or trenches called bolge. In the ninth circle of Hell
(treachery), trapped in the ice, each according to his guilt, are punished
sinners guilty of treachery against those with whom they had special
relationships.
B. Purgatory
ANSWER: As for Dante, Purgatory is a place where "the human spirit
purges himself, and climbing to Heaven finds himself worthy." The
lone piece of land in the southern hemisphere, Dante's Purgatory, is an
island mountain. The lower slopes are intended for souls whose
penance were postponed, and are divided into three sections:
Antepurgatory, Purgatory proper, and Earthly Paradise. The mountain's
upper section is divided into seven terraces, each of which represents
one of the seven capital sins. Eden, the Earthly Paradise, is located
atop the mountain, where the pilgrim is reunited with Beatrice, the
woman who inspired the poem.
C. Paradise
ANSWER: Paradise is portrayed as a series of concentric spheres
surrounding the Earth, consisting of the Moon, Mercury, Venus, the
Sun, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, the Fixed Stars, the Primum Mobile and
finally, the Empyrean.
2. Discuss Dante’s description of the Bible’s statement (New Testament) of Christ to
the converted robber hanging on another cross beside Jesus. “Right now you are with
me in Paradise.”
ANSWER: The bible states that "Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in
paradise,"' according to Luke 23:43, which implies to "right now," There are
Many ways to interprets what "today" really is , whether it means "I'm telling
you now that in the future" or "I'm telling you today that in the future"
Purgatory implies that Jesus meant "in the future," and that temptation and
other phases obstruct one's path to Heaven. Moreover, it aims to give people
the chance to change and be a better version of themselves and stop the things
that would lead them to eternal damnation.
3. What does the Divine Comedy reveal about human nature?
ANSWER: The Divine Comedy reveals that human nature has fallen.
Throughout his epic journey, Dante the pilgrim comes across the shades of
many people who, when they were alive, committed all kinds of sin, some
more serious than others. Though some of the characters come across as
sympathetic, the sins they committed still have consequences. It also reveals
how people are not aware of their actions that all they did is to commit sin to
other human beings.
4. Describe the story’s theme of “good vs. evil.”
ANSWER: In The Divine Comedy, Dante explores the ideas of Good and
Evil. He expands on the possibilities of life and death, and he makes clear that
consequences follow actions. Like a small generator moving a small wheel,
Dante uses a single character to move through the entire of Hell's eternity. Yet,
like a clock, that small wheel is pivotal in turning many, many others. This
single character, Dante himself, reveals the most important abstract meaning
in himself: A message to man; a warning about mankind's destiny. Through
his adventures, Dante was able to reveal many global concepts of good and
evil in humanity. Through this story, we are given the opportunity to see
ourselves in the situation when evil prevails in our life and the consequences
of our actions to what we will have to go through in our next life.
