Literary Techniques Used In Dante's Inferno

In Dante Alighieri’s famous The Inferno, the author Dante makes himself the main character as he has the special opportunity to enter into Hell with Virgil as his guide and travel deep into the horrifying Nine Circles of Hell. As he travels further into Hell, Alighieri uses different literary methods to emphasize the importance of numerous events and people inhabiting the circles of Hell. While Dante continues his trek in Hell, Alighieri utilizes the use of Hell’s circles, the importance of human emotion, and the significant use of numbers as three different ways to represent the symbolic journey through Hell and to Heaven. The Inferno, a metaphorical poem on Dante’s voyage through Hell, uses many distinct ways to showcase how symbolic and fulfilling the expedition is through the utilization of Dante’s changing reactions towards the people in Hell, the deepening circles of Hell, and the

When they reach the last circle of Hell and finally meet Satan, Dantes describes, “It had three faces: one was in front, and it was fiery red; the other two, as weirdly wonderful, merged with it from the middle of each shoulder to the point where all converged at the top of the skull” (34.40-42). By claiming Satan has three different faces, Alighieri may be referencing the Holy Trinity in which both are seen as three distinct bodies in one. Throughout the entire poem, the author constantly presents objects in three, such as the three beasts, the terza rima utilized, and the three parts of the “Divine Comedy.” Alighieri’s constant use of the number three in his poem possibly references to the same constant use of three in the Catholic Church. The Church, for example, believed in the Holy Trinity, Jesus was dead for three days, and there are 27 books in the New Testament which reflects number