In Cantos Twelve, Dante and Virgil enter the seventh circle of Hell, where all of the murderers are forced to endure their eternal punishment. Said punishment would be standing in a pool a bubbling blood while being shot with arrows by centaurs. What I think is that the murderers standing in a pool of boiling blood is a representation for all of the bloodshed that they have caused and the centaurs shooting the murderers is them being forced to suffer the pain they brought upon others for all eternity. From the fact that Dante calls these people out for their "foolish wrath" and "blind cupidity", I feel like he thinks that this is a justified punishment, and that the murderers are getting what they deserve.
I commented on Natalie and Hannah's posts.
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ReplyDeleteIt is rather fitting. They bathed in the blood of all those they killed in life, either literally or metaphorically, so now they will forever drown in blood while being wounded constantly in death. Dante has a wonderful sense of irony, doesn't he?
It makes a lot of sense. Much like his punishment for the blasphemers.
ReplyDeleteHonestly... This is bruuuuuuutal for a punishment... Just think--one murder and you're murdered over and over for eternity. This is not just one death, but an eternity of deaths and shame... Definitely in line with the rest of Dante, and not even comparable to actual Hell, but still... wow... and no pity either
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