Violence over Fraud?

As one begins to really begin to dig into the lower circles of Seven and Eight, they find that Dante treats the sins of fraud much more severely than the sins of violence. Evidence from the text supports this idea for the intensity of punishments and vulgar language Dante uses between the circles is much different. Dante's reason for this belief is that the sins of fraud are not very human. The sins of violence are a little more humanly and, although still severe, they retain some form of human nature. In Dante's eyes these sins are nothing compared to those of fraud which are alienations to human nature.
          Throughout the rounds of circle seven, the sinners are subjected to severe punishments such as the river of blood”in which are steeped all who struck down their fellow men"(pg.112). However, the language used to describe the setting and the punishment for the sinners is not disturbingly vile. Also, Dante pities many of the sinners throughout circle seven, the first being the soul in the wood of suicides whose leaves were painfully ripped off and the next being Brunetto Latino. When Dante discovers Brunetto among a band of Sodomites on the burning plain, he is immediately overcome with great sorrow and affection and goes on to say, " You were a radiance among men, for that sweet image, gentle and paternal, you were to me in the world when hour by hour you taught me how a man makes himself eternal, lives in my mind, and now strikes to my heart."(pg.138). A kind of respect and affection that is never seen by Dante when the poets continue to circle eight.
          As the poets move on past the burning plain to circle eight, the tone of Dante's righting immediately changes. Without sparing any time Dante begins to describe the punishments and dwellings of these sinners in a way not yet seen in the inferno. This language becomes very clear as he describes circle two, that of the Flatterers, explaining that " Steaming from that pit, a vapor rose over the banks, crusting them with a slime that sickened my eyes and hammered my nose; I saw a long line of people in a river of excrement that seemed to overflow of the world's latrines."(pg.161)". A much more putrid idea than that of a burning plain, a perfect example of the text supporting the idea that in Dante's mind Fraud is not of any human nature and deserves to be treated much more severely. Another prime example is the description and inhabitants of Bolgia Five. As the poets find themselves crossing through bolgia five there is a faint similarity between Bolgia five of circle eight and round one of circle seven. Round one of seven contained centaurs, which have human traits, and recognizable along with the river of blood which, although impure, seems somewhat unintimidating. However, in bolgia five, Dante takes everything from round one and upgrades it to a more evil level explaining that " A viscid pitch boiled below and coated the bank with gluey mire; I saw a figure running at us across the ridge, a Demon huge and black.”(pg.184). Everything has become much more evil in bolgia five, the home of the grafters. Centaurs replaced with demons, recognizable people with pitch covered muzzles, and blood with putrid, dirty pitch. These changes in tone between the circles clearly support the idea that Dante treats the sins of fraud much more severely than those of violence due to their alienation of human nature.
          In conclusion, Dante's idea that the sins of fraud are much eviler than the sins of violence are clearly supported by the change of tone, diction and symbolism used entering circle eight. The alienation of human nature that fraud causes is much more extreme in Dante's eyes rather than violence. In this assumption, I think Dante is right for violence has always been a tendency of man and has been common since the dawn of time. Fraud however, fraud mutates and distorts human nature and destroyed unification among humanity and should be punished much more severely.


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