Inferno Canto 6 study guide

The Inferno: Canto 6

Ø        Summery: when Dante recovered his consciousness from the sadness in the second circle, he found he was in Third Circle now. The third circles filled with the cold snow, heavy rain in the dark air and never stop. Then Dante and Virgil saw the three head doglike monster called Cerberus. The Cerberus has the red eyes and uses his claws to split the body of the soul, to torture them, to make them suffer. However, he will be quiet when he got food to eat. Dante and Virgil step on the sinner’s soul to pass through however, there was one raised his body when they passed through him. He introduced himself named Ciacco. Ciacco and Dante came from the same city which was described as full of envy and the city was divided by the different power. Since then, people’s heart filled with the pride, envy and greed. The people who Dante thought were great and just were sent to the different level of the sin. After Ciacco answered Dante’s question, he became numb and Virgil told that he will never wake up again until the final judgment. Then they kept going their journal. 

Ø       Sins

Sin of the gullet: people who love eating and drinking and can’t stop it.

Ø       Punishment/Contrapasso

           i.              People were stuck in this icy, cold and heavy “rain” circumstance to wait their final judgment. The Cerberus will eat them.

         ii.              The Cerberus bit and ate the soul, but at the third circle people all have the sin of gullet.

Ø       Character list

           i.              Cerberus: the three head doglike monster. The guard of the gate of the third circle. Splitting the soul of the sinners and making them suffer.

         ii.              Ciacco: the citizen who came from the same city as Dante. Telling the story about what happened before Dante’s born. Because his sin of gullet, he was sent to this circle to get tortured.

Ø       Higher-order thinking question

           i.              Why chose the Cerberus, the guard to be a doglike character?

         ii.              Why the Ciacco said to Dante “I beg you, bring me to people’s minds: no more do I say to you and no more do I answer you.”?

Ø        Additional:

           i.              Ironic: so became those filthy snouts of the demon Cerberus, who thunders over the souls so that they wish they were deaf. (Line 31-33.)

         ii.              Ironic: the people who Dante thought were doing well were also sent to the hell and in different level of sins.

        iii.              Political background: Ciacco told the story that truly happened at Dante’s era. At that time, the Florence was divided to two groups: the white and black guelphs. The white (Dante) guelphs were exile. (“With the power of one who now hugs the shore.”)

Ø       Important quotes:

           i.              “Return to your philosophy, which teaches that the more perfect a thing is, the more it feels what is good, and the same of pain.” (line 106-108)

         ii.              “Pride, envy, and greed are the three sparks that have set hears ablaze.” (line 73)

Ø       Ten multiple choice questions

1. How is the third circle?

a.       warm and happy  b. cold and icy rain  c. windy and sunny

2. What the shape of the monster?

a. doglike  b. with three heads  c. humanlike  d. both a and b

3. What did Virgil gave to the monster to make him quiet?

a. bones  b. human soul  c. soil

4. What’s the name of the monster?

a. Dante  b. Beatrice  c. Virgil  d. Cerberus.

5. What did Dante and Virgil saw after passed the monster?

a. the green grass.  b. the wise poet  c. the body

6. What is the sin of Ciacco?

a. gullet  b. sex  c. opportunist.

7. What happened to Ciacco after he answered Dante?

a. laugh  b. dance  c. numb and lay back.

8. Which one is NOT appear in the Canto to describe the people inherent?

a. pride  b. envy  c. greed  d. eager

9. How many characters did Dante and Virgil meet?

a. 1  b. 2  c. 3  d. 4

10. What’s the level of this Canto?

a. 1  b. 2  c. 3  d. 4