Dante's Inferno, Cantos Five and Six

Canto Five:

1. Minos is a demon who passes judgement on all who pass into Hell and decides what ring the are suited for. You must confess your sins to him, then he tells you where to go. This is a parallelism drawn with the gates of Heaven. When you get to Heaven, you are judged to see if you're good enough to be there. Likewise, you have to confess all of your sins and a guard (St. Peter) will either let you in or turn you away.

2. "We read of Lancelot..." (line 113). These lovers came together because of a book, the story of Lancelot and Guinevere. Now they are in Hell, in the circle meant for those with lust, because they read this book. This is ironic because Lancelot and Guinevere are not in the same circle of Hell.


Canto Six:

1. "Tell if you can the divided city's fate..." (line 55). Dante is putting in a political reference to the upheaval going on during his time. In his city, which he has been exiled from, there is an argument about whether the church should be involved in politics or not. Dante was exiled because he believed the church should be separate from the state. This whole book could have been driven by his political views, so this little jab at the state of his city is funny.

2. Plutus, in Greek mythology, is the personification of wealth. He is talked about in the last line of this canto, as standing there before the road to the next circle of Hell. This is a foreshadow that the next level will be for people who suffered from excessive greed.