Summary :
Dante
and Virgil continue their way through the eighth circle of hell, and come
across the ninth bolgia. Dante looks in, and says he has never seen so much
blood before. He says that there was more blood and wounds there than in any
previous conflict. Dante and Virgil look on to see a man who has been torn in
half with his guts hanging out. The man reveals himself to be Mohammed and
explains why he is sliced in such a way. He tells the poets that the ninth
bolgia is where the sowers of discord are, and that there is a devil who cuts
them in half. Mohammed goes on to explain that the sinners then walk in a
circle, allowing their wounds to heal, only to be cut in half again.
Then,
once again, Virgil is questioned on why he is down this far and hell, and we
see Virgil tell the sinner the same story he’s told everyone else. Upon hearing
that Dante is still alive, Mohammed asks him to warn Dolcino to pack more food
on his campaign back on Earth. With that, Mohammad walks off and Dante is
approached by another man. This one claims to be Pier da Medicina, and he asks
Dante to warn Guido and Angiolello of being drowned by the Cattolica. Dante
asks to be shown another sinner, and is pointed in the direction of Curio, who
has his tongue cut out. Mosca then shouts that Dante should remember him too,
but is quickly silenced by Dante.
Dante
then sees a man who holds his own head out like a lantern. The man exclaims
that he is Bertran de Born, the man who pinned Henry II against his son, the
Young King Henry of England. Bertran then explains his own contrapasso, marking
the end of Canto XXVIII.
Important Quotes :
|
“Every tongue would surely fail,
because our language and our memory have little capacity to comprehend so
much.” (Inf. 28.4)
|
Dante is pointing out here that the
scene here in the ninth bolgia is so cruel and disgusting, that nobody could
possibly describe it. It is physically impossible because of how little the
human mind can comprehend.
|
|
“And all the other you see here were
sowers scandal and schism while they were alive and therefore are they cloven
in this way.” (Inf. 28.34)
|
Mohammed is explaining the punishment
for the sowers of discord. He is also flat out explaining the contrapasso.
|
|
“I surely saw, and it seems I still
see, a torso without a head walking like the others of the sorry flock…” (Inf. 28.118)
|
Dante’s account of Bertran de Born.
Bertran is carrying his head like a lantern. This image of holding a head
mirrors that of Perseus holding Medusa’s head.
|
The Sinners :
Here
in the ninth bolgia of the eighth circle of hell, the sinners are the sowers of
discord. All that means is that the people there pinned two sides against each
other, or split one group of people into two.
Punishment
for these sinners :
The
punishment in the ninth bolgia is one of the easier ones to explain. Here, the
sowers of discord are first sliced by a devil with a sword, and then they must
make their way around the circle. While they are making their round, their
wounds heal allowing their bodies to come back together. Once they make it
around the circle, the devil slices them again, and the process repeats.
Link to Contrapasso :
The
contrapasso in Canto XXVIII is very straight forward. Since all the sinners did
on Earth was split people apart and pin them against each other, the same is
done to their bodies in hell. Their bodies are literally cut in half, the same
that their actions caused groups of people on Earth to do.
Character Analysis :
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Mohammed
|
-He is the first to confront Dante in
the ninth bolgia.
-On Earth, he was the founder of
Islam.
-Because he drew many people away from
Christianity, he is labeled as a sower of discord.
-All he asked is that Dante warn
Brother Dolcino to bring more food on his campaign.
|
|
Pier da Medicina
|
-He approaches Dante after learning
that Dante is still alive.
-He uses his slit throat as mouth, so
that he may speak to Dante.
-He asks Dante to warn Guido and Angiolello
about being drowned.
|
|
Curio
|
-He has no tongue and cannot speak to
Dante.
-Dante is told that Curio is the one
who told Caesar to cross the Rubicon River, starting the Roman Civil War.
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|
Mosca
|
-He is one of the Florentines Dante
mentions much earlier (Canto VI).
-On Earth, he urged a Ghibelline
family to take revenge on a Guelf family, dividing the city of Florence
between the two political parties.
-He asks Dante to remember him, but
Dante rejects him.
|
|
Bertran de Born
|
-He walks around holding his head up
like a lantern.
-On Earth, he
told the Young King Henry to rebel against his father, Henry II
-He doesn’t
seem to have any shame in who he is and what he did.
|
Discussion Questions :
1.
Dante
really stresses the fact that there were more wounds here than in any other
manmade conflict. Why do you think Dante the poet makes this bolgia so
destructive and dyed with blood?
2.
Unlike
in the previous bolgias, the sinners here perk up when they hear that Dante is
still alive. We see again the pattern of the people in hell wanting recognition
back on Earth. What caused them to do this? Why is there a group of people who
want recognition this deep in hell?
3.
Not
only to the people want recognition, but they also want Dante to warn some of
their friends back on Earth. Why do you believe that these sinners want Dante
to do this? Is it an attempt to help Dante, or are they only in it for
themselves?
4.
Bertran
de Born has no problems shouting out who he is and what he did. We have not
seen this kind of publicity so far on Dante’s journey. What is the motivation
behind Bertran doing this? Might it have something to do with him carrying his
head?
Multiple Choice :
1.
What
circle of hell are Dante and Virgil in?
a.
Fifth
circle
b.
Eighth
circle
c.
Twenty-first
circle
d.
Seventh
Circle
2.
Who
is being punished in this Canto?
a.
The
Sowers of Fraud
b.
The
Violent Against Neighbors
c.
The
Sowers of Discord
d.
The
Wrathful
3.
How
are they punished?
a.
They
are sliced in half
b.
They
boil in blood
c.
They
are weighed down by the souls they betrayed
d.
Both
c and b
4.
Who
talks to Dante first?
a.
Virgil
b.
Curio
c.
Dolcino
d.
Mohammed
5.
Who
approached Dante next?
a.
Pier
da Medicina
b.
Mohammed
c.
Ali
d.
Curio
6.
What
is his wish?
a.
That
Dante spread his fame on Earth
b.
That
Dante warn his friends from Fano
c.
That
Dante tell Dolcino to bring more food
d.
Both
a and b
7.
Who
had his tongue sliced in half?
a.
Guido
b.
Curio
c.
Mosca
d.
Achitophel
8.
Why
does he suffer this punishment?
a.
He
betrayed Caesar
b.
He
tried to escape
c.
He
talked of rebelling against God
d.
He
started the Roman Civil War
9.
Who
carries his head around?
a.
Curio
b.
Mosca
c.
Bertran
de Born
d.
The
young king
10. What does his
head act as?
a.
A
lantern
b.
A
reminder of his sin
c.
A
sign of rebellion
d.
All
of the above
May Lupa
flourish in the times to come.
