The Evil Counselors

Summary

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o Dante recognizes 5 thieves as Florentines, and sarcastically praises Florence for having so many sinners in hell
o Dante and Virgil now climb up the rocks to make it to the 8th pouch of the 8th circle of hell
o Evil Counselors: their sin was to abuse the gifts of the Almighty, to steal his virtues for low purposes
o When Dante arrives, he sees a number of flames, which he compares to fireflies
o Virgil explains to Dante that each flame contains a sinner
o When a double flame approaches Dante, Virgil tells him that it contains Ulysses and Diomede, who are punished together for their sins: creating the Trojan Horse and stealing the Palladium
o Dante asks Virgil if he could speak to them, but Virgil says that because they were Greek, it would be best if Virgil spoke to them in translation
o Ulysses recounts the events of his death

o Longing for more adventures and exploration, Ulysses sets out to sea. He passes the pillars that Hercules had placed to mark the western border of the inhabited world, and gives a heartfelt speech to his crew. They continue on, sees a great mountain in front of them, when a whirlwind sinks their ship.

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o After leaving Ulysses and Diomede, a flame approaches Dante, recognizing his Italian dialect, and asks for the state of Romagna
o Dante tells the sinner that while Romagna is still full of tyranny, open war remains absent. Dante then goes on to describe the state of Romagna in detail. After doing so, Dante asks the soul who he is.
o The soul identifies himself as Guido Da Montefeltro, and tells his story
o Montefeltro was originally a soldier, but saw his sins and became a friar.
o Then, Boniface VIII asks Montefeltro’s advice on how to conquer Palestrina of the Colonna family, offering absolution as his reward.

o After Montefeltro’s death, Saint Francis appears and attempts to claim his soul. However, a black cherubim appears and declares Guido of his evil counsel. Guido is then taken to Minos, who judges Guido fit for the 8th pouch​

Sin

• sin of treachery 

Sinners

• Ulysses and Diomede and Guido de Montefeltro

Landscape

• a. The distinguishing feature of the landscape is a deep valley. Dante has to climb and look over the cliff in order to see the countless flames that populate the eighth circle of hell.

Monsters

• there are no monsters or unusual creatures

What does Dante see? his concerns?

• Dante sees the flames that are engulfing each sinner, and especially pays attention to Ulysses and Diomede, and desires to find out their stories. Dante holds up without a problem in this cantos

Virgil

• Virgil helps Dante in that he helps Dante communicate with Ulysses and Diomede. Because they were Greek, Dante’s Italian may be heard with disdain, and so Virgil translates what Dante says and what Ulysses and Diomede say back.

Advice and Help

• Ulysses and Diomede are in this section to in a sense help Dante. They share stories of how they came to be in this circle of hell, and help aid in Dante’s

Simile

• a. “As many fireflies as the peasant sees when he rests on a hill and looks into the valley… such myriads of flames I saw shine through the gloom of the eighth abyss when I arrived at the rim from which its bed comes into view”(XXVI, 25-33)

Most Powerful Image

• b. “As many fireflies as the peasant sees when he rests on a hill and looks into the valley… such myriads of flames I saw shine through the gloom of the eighth abyss when I arrived at the rim from which its bed comes into view”(XXVI, 25-33)

Literary Device

• a. Allusion
            i. “Master, I… meant to ask what spirit must endure the pains of that great flame which splits away in two great horns, as if it rose from the pyre where Eteocles and Polynices lay?”(XXVI, 49-54)
            ii. Allusion to Eteocles and Polynices. They were sons of Oedipus and fought over the throne of Thebes, and after a war they were both killed and placed on a same funeral pyre, which burned in two raging horns of fire.

Relation to the Allegory of the Story

• Dante continues to face instances where a man’s moment of weakness is translated into a descent into sin. This is especially evident in the case of Guido de Montefeltro.