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How Does Homer Use Hell In The Odyssey

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How Does Homer Use Hell In The Odyssey
Hell or Underworld: An Adventure After Death A judgment placed on the soul of a human being determines the future punishments and consequences after death. Dante Alighieri and Homer, two authors each publishing epic novels explaining the outcome of death, the afterlife, and one's potential punishment. Alighieri is the first individual of his time to evaluate people in a poem, The Inferno, and place them in Hell for their sins and illegal actions. The Greek poet, Homer, uses his story to teach the benefit of humility in The Odyssey. In the contrasting epics, The Inferno, and The Odyssey, authors, Dante and Homer, present the Underworld and Hell in unique and different ways, while using Hell to serve very different purposes in their respective novels.
In Dante’s The Inferno and …show more content…
Alighieri writes, “The path to paradise begins in hell” (Alighieri 76). This emphasizes the path one must take to salvation. Dante’s Hell, with its’ symbolic creatures, and characters serves to warn him and other sinners of the consequences that may occur if they don’t learn from their mistakes. The nature of the punishment reflects on the character and cruelty of one’s sin. In contrast Homer’s Underworld exists so Odysseus can learn to not face death with fear but only with courage. The allegorical journey that Alighieri has Dante taking through Hell may suggest that he is searching to find God for a chance at redemption. To further emphasize this purpose of the Hell, Alighieri deliberately places Dante with in the actual Hell environment. During his travels with Virgil, the voice of reason, Dante begins to understand a sinner’s offense towards their creator. This journey, further explaining God’s justice system, allows readers to understand the process that Dante is going through to find God. Homer and Alighieri both use symbols to represent the individual Underworld or
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