Landscape in Dante’s Divine Comedy Canto I, Essay Example

In Canto 1, Dante blends the description of nature with the description of his own feelings, and the purpose of the vivid representation of the surrounding environment is to communicate the mood, state of mind, and the situation of the narrator. Dante uses the description of the landscape as an allegory throughout Canto I of the Divine Comedy.

Allegory for life situation

The most famous, first line of Dante’s Divine Comedy is indeed the best example of using allegories of nature to describe a life situation. The internal journey begins at the same time as the external one:

“In the midway of this our mortal life,
I found me in a gloomy wood, astray
Gone from the path direct: and e’en to tell
It were no easy task, how savage wild” (I:1. 1-4)

It is important to review the different aspects of the starting allegory. The reader can visualize the situation of the writer through the imagery of Dante: the “gloomy wood” represents that the narrator is not able to see clearly. Further, the expression of “path direct” can be understood as the “moral way”, or in a direct sense: the physical path in the gloomy forest that is ahead of Dante. The author does not only state that it is “no easy task” to get out of the dark, gloomy forest, but also that it is hard to find the way back after getting off the right path.

Allegory for mood

There are also several examples of the writer using the imagery that describes the natural environment to depict his mood. The depiction of the dusk: “The hour was morning’s prime,” and “sun ascended” are in perfect harmony with the emotions of the poet: “with joyous hope”.

Similarly, the “gloomy” forest is representing the disappointed, hopeless, and dark mood of the narrator.

Events and changing landscape

It is interesting to follow up how the landscape and the time of the day is creating a unique atmosphere for the scenes. In the beginning, we see a “dark forest”, at the point when the poet finds out that he lost his way. He next heads to the “mountain’s foot”: going deeper into his thoughts to discover what lies below. When he discovers how hopeless his situation is, he writes: “The valley, that had pierc’d my heart with dread”. (I:1. 14)

Next comes the morning, as it has been already noted, the representation of his hope. Dante tries to climb the mountain, and the sun starts shining again, as if it was encouraging the poet to carry on, until a lion appears. The author finishes this imagery scene with:” Impell’d me where the sun in silence rest” – an image of a sunset.

Finally, he falls even deeper:

“While to the lower space with backward step
I fell, my ken discern’d the form one of one”. (I: 5.1-2)

            Virgil also advises Dante that when the “greyhound” comes,  “Italia’s plains arise”.

Danger

Danger is not only represented with dark scenes of the nature, but also visionary animals. It is important to note that the animals that appear throughout Canto I are not only symbolizing danger, but also obstacles. When Dante is prevented from entering one path, Virgil tells him that the wolf does not allow anyone to go that way: he needs to find another way.

Vision for limit and will

In the physical journey described by Dante, the poet is restricted in his movements by the landscape and the wild animals. While he wants to take one path, he is not able to do so, as a wild animal appears. The only way he can find his way out of the forest is through a guide. This tells us that Dante thought that Virgil was a “good” and virtuous person, and despite he lived before Christ, he can be not only a guide in the physical journey, but also a spiritual leader. According to Dante’s vision and Christian imagery, people have free will, but in order to find the right path, they also need to find a spiritual leader. He talks about how he wants to find his way back to God in the last passage.

According to Dante, people are born with free will and the choice between good and bad is not always clear. Men need to seek spiritual guidance in order to find their way back to God. In this sense, the scenery of Canto I is also a representation of sin and innocence. When Dante gets closer to finding the way back (to God), the sun rises and shines warmly, as if it represented divine approval. When he tries to take a forbidden route, the landscape changes, and he is made to turn back. The author believes that God helps his people through giving them spiritual guidance, and that is why Virgil is sent to accompany him.

Conclusion

The imagery of Canto I in Dante’s Divine Comedy has several layers. Nature’s description can represent the narrator’s mood, the life situation, the moral journey, and God’s approval as well. By engaging all senses of readers, Dante makes the vision of the “dark forest” both vivid and easy to comprehend.

Dante, Aligheri  “The Divine Comedy”. Inferno. Translated by Henry Wadsworth. (1555) 2014. Gutenberg Foundation site.