Dante's Inferno (Cantos I-XV) Questions and Answers Graded A+

Dante's Inferno (Cantos I-XV) Questions and Answers Graded A+ Who wrote The Divine Comedy? Dante Alighieri During what half of which century was it written? during the first half of the fourteenth century In what country did the author live? italy Where does Dante find himself in Canto I, and what does this place symbolize? The Dark Wood of Error; worldliness and sin What is incontinence? not restrained, uncontrolled excretory function Why can't Dante get to the divine light? The lion, the leopard, and the she-wolf (or she-woof, if you are Mrs. Kaatz) won't let him pass. Who appears to help him? Virgil How old was Dante at this time (in years)? 35 What do the beasts foreshadow/represent? The three rings of hell; incontinence, violence, and fraud Why is the soul who is helping Dante in Limbo? He died before Christ's teachings. What are the three gates? The Gate of Hell; Gate of Dis; Gate of Purgatory What is another name for the Gate of Purgatory? Peter's gate Who told this soul to help Dante, and what does this soul symbolize? Beatrice told Virgil to help Dante, and she symbolizes divine love. What is the Sun the symbol of? Divine Illumination In what season does the story open? Spring; Easter season What do each of the three beasts represent? Leopard; malice and fraud Lion: violence She-wolf: incontenence What is Virgil the symbol of? Human reason What is one of the central characteristics of Dante's style that is conveyed in the phrase "each footfall rose above the last"? The device of selecting a minute but exactly centered detail to convey the whole of a larger action. It is sometimes argued that the representations o