Dantes Divine Comedy - Eighth Circle of Hell in Canto XXVIII :: Divine Comedy Inferno Essays

Eighth stage set of Hell  in Canto XXVIII      Who, even with untrammelled terminology and many attempts at telling, ever could recount in full the blood and wounds that I straight off saw?  Dante begins the opening of Canto XXVIII with a rhetorical question. Virgil and he have just arrived in the Ninth Abyss of the Eighth Circle of hell. In this come out the Sowers of Discord and Schism are continually weakened by a demon with a sword. Dante poses a question to the reader Who, even with untrammeled words and many attempts at telling, ever could recount in full the blood and wounds that I now saw? (Lines 1-3) The rhetorical question draws the reader into the passage because we shaft by this point in the Divine clowning that Dante is a great poet. What is it that Dante sees before him on the brink of the Ninth Abyss that is so ineffable that he, as a poet, feels he ratnot handle? In the pastime lines Dante expands on this rhetorical position. He elabo rates on why it is important for any man to offer a good description of what he sees. No poet can achieve this description Each tongue that tried would certainly fall short... (L. 4) It is not just poetical talent that is at stake poets do not have the background to give them the poetic power for such description. His reasoning is the shallowness of both our barbarism and intellect cannot contain so much. (Lines 5-6) Once over again the reader is intrigued how could a man of Dantes stature criticize language which is the very tool he uses to make believe the epic work of La Commedia ? If we cannot take Dante sternly with these opening statework forcets, we must pose the question of what Dante is trying to do by teasing us with this artificial beginning to Canto XVIII? Dante will now controvert himself and try to describe what he says is impossible. But, if he were to go right into a description of the Ninth Abyss, it would deflate his rhetorical position. Instead, Dante firs t sets up a quite an lengthy comparison of the sights he has just witnessed with examples of bloodshed throughout human history. Were you to reassemble all the men who once, within Apulia1s fateful land, had mourned their blood, shed at the Trojans hands, as well as those who fellDantes Divine Comedy - Eighth Circle of Hell in Canto XXVIII Divine Comedy Inferno Essays Eighth Circle of Hell  in Canto XXVIII      Who, even with untrammeled words and many attempts at telling, ever could recount in full the blood and wounds that I now saw?  Dante begins the opening of Canto XXVIII with a rhetorical question. Virgil and he have just arrived in the Ninth Abyss of the Eighth Circle of hell. In this pouch the Sowers of Discord and Schism are continually wounded by a demon with a sword. Dante poses a question to the reader Who, even with untrammeled words and many attempts at telling, ever could recount in full the blood and wounds that I now saw? (Lines 1-3) The rhetorical question draws the reader into the passage because we know by this point in the Divine Comedy that Dante is a great poet. What is it that Dante sees before him on the brink of the Ninth Abyss that is so ineffable that he, as a poet, feels he cannot handle? In the following lines Dante expands on this rhetorical position. He elaborates on why it is important for any man to offer a good description of what he sees. No poet can achieve this description Each tongue that tried would certainly fall short... (L. 4) It is not just poetic talent that is at stake poets do not have the background to give them the poetic power for such description. His reasoning is the shallowness of both our speech and intellect cannot contain so much. (Lines 5-6) Once again the reader is intrigued how could a man of Dantes stature criticize language which is the very tool he uses to create the epic work of La Commedia ? If we cannot take Dante seriously with these opening statements, we must pose the question of what Dante is trying to do by teasing us with this artificial beginning to Canto XVIII? Dante will now contradict himself and try to describe what he says is impossible. But, if he were to go right into a description of the Ninth Abyss, it would deflate his rhetorical position. Instead, Dante first sets up a quite lengthy comparison of the sights he has just witnessed with examples of bloodshed throughout human history. Were you to reassemble all the men who once, within Apulia1s fateful land, had mourned their blood, shed at the Trojans hands, as well as those who fell