Dante's Inferno, Cantos One and Two

Canto One:

1. "Midway on our life's journey...Off the true path." (Lines 1-10). The dark forest is described vaguely in the beginning section. This helps to emphasize Dante's disorientation and confusion. It makes the character easy to relate to, as this is how most people would react in a similar situation. It also serves to keep the reader uncertain, as if we are journeying through Hell right along with Dante.

2. "A leopard...made me turn about, to go back down." (lines 25-29). The general concensus is that the leopard represents lust, the lion pride, and the she-wolf avarice. However, there is some shady interpretation around these three animals. The very idea that the symbolism itself is uncertain adds to the chaos and confusion Dante is feeling in this situation. It adds to the mystery of the animals and the implicit fear we are meant to feel. It is a ploy to get us to empathize, or at least sympathize, with Dante.


Canto Two:

1. "I am no Aeneas or Paul: Not I nor others think me of such worth..." (lines 26-27). Dante declares himself unworthy here by comparing himself to two men who were granted the privilege of taking this journey into Hell. Yet, it stands to reason that they would not be in Hell if they were such great men.

2. The mention of Lucy and Rachel by Beatrice at the end of the second canto suggests that, like most epics, The Inferno starts in the middle of the story. Virgil and Beatrice say that they were sent here by a series of events to be Dante's guides in the afterlife. This suggests that Beatrice will play a much larger role in the story than she does already, and foreshadows the revealing of the events that happened before the story.