Cantos I-V

"Midway on our life's journey, I found myself/In dark woods, the right road lost." -(Canto I. 1-2 )

These two lines are the opening to the play and it is in these two line in which Dante begins to introduce the audience to the journey to come. There are two very significant phrases within these two lines. The first being, "on our life's journey". The use of the word our indicates that the journey applies to all people and hell remains a possibility for any person. The phrase, "the right road lost," is particularly significant. Not only has Dante lost his way on the road he had meant to travel, but the phrase foreshadows the journey to hell that is about to take place. The "right road" represents the road towards heaven and all that is just and as Dante wanders from the righteous path, he walks down the path to hell and sin. The dark woods are a common symbol throughout literature and represents foreboding gloom or danger and they also foreshadow the danger that awaits Dante. The journey to hell is not the only one that Dante has set on. He seems to be on a journey to perhaps find the love that he once felt when Beatrice, the woman who sets Virgil out to aide Dante, was still alive. The opening with "midway" perhaps indicates that Dante is having a mid-life crisis or he is trying to say that one's trip to the afterlife might not always wait for the end of your life. I find interest in the fact that Dante does not try to turn back and find the true path once again. This reveals a little about the character of Dante. On one hand he might seem daring or courageous and on the other it may be that at this point of his life he has nothing to lose. Dante seems to seek some kind of adventure or change in his life to deter him from the worries of his present life.

"And suddenly- a leopard, near the place/...A lion came at me, his head high as he ran/...Then, a grim she- wolf- whose leanness seemed to compress/ All the world's cravings, that made miserable." (Canto I. 25-38)

Found the author's choice of these three beasts interesting and I am unsure as to what his intentions were in these wretched monsters. I feel that perhaps the three beasts represent the evil and sin in the world that cause individuals to veer off of the road to Heaven. The lion with "his head high" represents pride and hubris, which often blinds a person's ability to see the truth. The she-wolf who "seemed to compress all the world's cravings" represents greed. Greed is often the drive behind many unjust actions and causes people to be selfish and self centered. Lastly, the leopard who is "lithe and quick of foot" represents the deception that often corrupts the ability to make sensible decisions. Just as Dante was turned from the "right road" by the three monsters, the sins that the monsters represent cause people to lead a life of sin. It is these sins which may cause a person to go to hell. I find it interesting that it was the she-wolf in particular that chased Dante from the hill. Perhaps Dante feels that the sin that the wolf represents is the most threatening or powerful in tempting others. I would think that a leopard or lion would be more dangerous than just a female wolf, so there must be some significance behind the monsters and the wolf in particular. Dante later goes on to find out that the wolf actually came from the spawns of hell. Now common sense would warn the normal individual that you would not want to travel to the place that was the home of the beast that you were trying to avoid. Here again, Dante seems willing to accept the adventure or challenge of taking the wrong path. Perhaps Dante actually wants to go to hell for the experience.