Essay on The Allegory of the Cave and Dante - 1251 Words

The Allegory of the Cave and Dante â€Å"If you would not be forgotten as soon as you are dead and rotten, either write things worth reading or do things worth writing.† This maxim applies to the poet Dante Alighieri, writer of The Inferno in the 1300s, because it asserts the need to establish oneself as a contributor to society. Indeed, Dante’s work contributes much to Renaissance Italy as his work is the first of its scope and size to be written in the vernacular. Due to its readability and availability, The Inferno is a nationalistic symbol. With this widespread availability also comes a certain social responsibility; even though Dante’s audience would have been familiar with the religious dogma, he assumes the didactic role of†¦show more content†¦He is situated at the bottom of â€Å"a hill that [marks] one end of the valley that [pierces his] heart with terror,† which refers to his upward journey towards understanding and salvation (3). It is ironic that he must travel t o Hell in order to save himself from eternal damnation. Indeed, those who are condemned to Hell have lost â€Å"the good of intellect,† a symbol for absolute truth: God (19). In Canto IV, Dante peers down into â€Å"a gulf so dark and deep and murky that †¦ [he] could see nothing below† (27). Upon entering this â€Å"sightless zone† of the first circle of Hell, he and Virgil encounter sinners of â€Å"shadowy sadnesses† (27). Repeatedly, Hell is likened to a â€Å"hemisphere of darkness† and sin is associated with dark images (29). The reason Dante enters this blind world is so that he may gain his vision to see the truth. Although Canto IV concludes with Dante reaching â€Å"a part [of Hell] that has no light inside it† (35), his journey through the underworld is not totally devoid of light. Rather, it is one â€Å"that gathers light from a descent into darkness, a pilgrimage of knowledge that penetrating deeper seemingly turns away from light, which yet reappears – and yet again vanishes, as in the canto’s final line† (311). In the first level of Hell, Dante encounters familiar poets, ancient philosophers, and other great minds that are present in â€Å"a place so separate from the otherShow MoreRelatedThe Inferno By Dante And The Allegory Of The Cave1169 Words   |  5 Pagessole symbol light can act as. Plato’s argument equates truth to light, while Dante’s argument equates God to light. Dante argues that the light is guiding, rather than definite. Through these two examples, I will show that light symbolizing the equivalent of truth or searching for truth yields problems. To support my claim, I will look at The Inferno by Dante and The Allegory of the Cave by Plato, whose interpretations of light appear to work well with one another. 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It is similar to Platos The Allegory of the Cave, in which man