Dante`s Use of the Extended Simile in the Inferno Author(s): James

Dante's Use of the Extended Simile in the Inferno
Author(s): James Applewhite
Source: Italica, Vol. 41, No. 3 (Sep., 1964), pp. 294-309
Published by: American Association of Teachers of Italian
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DANTE'S
USE OF THE EXTENDED
IN THE INFERNO
SIMILE
To the contemporary reader, one of the most startling
features of the imagery of the Commedia is the artistic effect
produced by the large number of extended similes. The surprise
is due mainly to the accumulative tendency to make poetry
synonymous with a highly-packed imagery and the absence of
all grammatical connectives. Although the critics who have dealt
with the Commedia have for the most part been spared from an
extreme point of view by the very nature of the poem, the
awareness that such more artful poetic devices as allegory and
simile are an integral part of its beauty has led critics of the
twentieth century to focus their attention increasingly upon
these devices in an effort to ascertain their poetic value. A
review of their work reveals the gradual emergence of a valid
critical approach.
The most extensive studies of Dante's similes were made
toward the end of the nineteenth century by several critics who
believed that a tabulation of the similes would somehow reveal
the mental make-up of the poet. Thus Franciosi describes his
work as a search for the " visibile parlare del Poeta," as a
" nuovo testimonio della mente e del cuore di quel Savio gentil
che tutto seppe." 1 Whereas Franciosi's study is a compilation
of the similes under rather arbitrary rubrics, Venturi is much
more elaborate in his classification, and includes an explication
of these similes and a comparison with the similes of other
writers.2 He arrives at an indication of the newness of many of
Dante's similes, as well as the accuracy of the descriptive power
of the poet. In spite of the fact that these studies are interesting
and at times revealing, their critical validity must be challenged,
since they are arbitrary classifications of the secondary terms of
the similes, and in this neglect the relation 'of the secondary
term to the primary term and the immediate and total context
of the poem. At best they reveal the mental or visual
preoccupations of the poet; at worst they lead us away from
294
THE EXTENDED SIMILE IN THE INFERNO
295
the poetic quality of the poem because of their disoriented
perspective.
This emphasis on the subject matter of Dante's imagery
reappears in such English critics of the twentieth century as
Symonds and Ker, who point to the profundity and perceptiveness
of Dante's observation of nature and suggest in passing the
verity which this imparts to the poem.3
Another English critic, Courthope, indicated the critical
path which most subsequent writers were to follow when he
criticized Macaulay's overemphasis on the visual distinctness
of Dante's imagery to the exclusion of its conceptual and
associative values.4 He further warned against considering the
imagery apart from the context of the poem and more
particularly apart from the allegory. These two points, the
more-than-visual quality of the similes, and their relation to the
principal poetic device of the poem, have been the guidelines
of subsequent critics.
In his famous essay on Dante, Eliot does refer the other
imagery to the allegory of the poem, and yet his actual comments
on the similes of the Commedia have given rise to substantial
objections." In the one page which he devotes to the similes,
he is inaccurate when he says 1) that there is more simile than
metaphor in the Commedia, 2) that the secondary term of the
simile follows the primary, and 3) that the similes are primarily
visual in nature. One can find two of the errors pointed out in
an article by Fitzgerald, but unfortunately the remainder of his
article is limited by the notion that " the significance of figures
of speech that represent definite images is that they give a clue
to a writer's interests and attitudes." 8 More fruitful is the
discussion of Miss Brandeis, who says that Eliot's emphasis on
the visual quality of the simile is more appropriate to the
Inferno than to the other two realms, " because to see the scene
was precisely all the pilgrim in his condition of mortal ignorance
could do." l However, she also shows that this primarily visual
imagery is loaded with metaphorical overtones when examined
in relation to the surrounding context. Moreover, her article
modifies Eliot's statement about the absence of metaphor in the
Commedia by pointing out that as the poem progresses toward
296
JAMES APPLEWHITE
the final vision, there is more and more metaphor, and that this
is appropriate since the nature of the poem alters from narrative
to visionary.
Somewhat different is the approach of Miss Batard, who
has studied the working of Dante's imagination as it is revealed
in the total imagery.8 Although her discussion contributes little
to our knowledge of the nature of Dante's similes, it does
illustrate the interaction of the similes and the other images
and figures of the poem.
This survey of the previous critical material dealing with
Dante's similes indicates an increasing awareness of the necessity
of focusing the discussion on the text of the poem in all of its
aspects-the nature of the secondary term, its relation to the
primary term and the immediate and total context, its
interaction with the other imagery and the allegory. In this
article I will try to explore these several relations, with the hope
of revealing the complex contribution of the extended simile
to the central design of the poem. I will try to show that the
similes have a power of suggestion which is much greater than
the specific comparison and which is in fact an integral part
of the narrative stream.
However, before turning to the particular similes, it is
necessary to recall that the principle of suggestion is to be
found near the center of Dante's poetic conception, since he
is endeavoring to evoke an abstract pattern which can be applied
to many areas of experience. That Dante understood figurative
language, not as a form of ornamentation, but rather as a means
of expressing the truth, of making intelligible the unintelligible
can be induced from the following quotation in which Beatrice
is explaining to Dante the projected appearance of the blessed
in the celestial spheres from their home in the Empyrean:
Cosi parlar conviensi al vostro ingegno,
per6 che solo da sensato apprende
ci6 che fa poscia
d'intelletto
degno.
(Paradiso
iv. 40-43)
This quotation can be seen as a basis for an explanation of
Dante's use of poetic figures, for it shows that Dante conceives
THE EXTENDED SIMILE IN THE INFERNO
297
of sense perception as the basis of abstract understanding, the
reality perceived by our senses containing a pattern of truth
which can be detected by the faculty of abstract reasoning. The
same thing can be said of a poem, the difference being that in
a great poem such as the Commedia the reflected reality is
selected and arranged in such a way that the abstract pattern
is perceived in not one but several areas of reality. This of course
demands that the imagery of the poem be true, in the sense
that it be a real embodiment of the pattern and not merely a
hypothetical illustration of it. Dante's consciousness of this
necessity for a true subject matter can be seen in the distinction
he makes between
" poetic " and " theological
" writing.
After
the work of Prof. Singleton, it is reasonable to assume that
Dante did not pretend to be writing Scripture, but rather
something analogous to Scripture, and that the allegory of the
theologians was in fact the only means he had of expressing his
intention.10 Modern criticism would use the terms " symbolism "
or " myth," but the Middle Ages had no real way of expressing
a theory of poetry, since poetry itself was thought of as a sort
of second rhetoric.
The Commedia can be read, then, as a progression of poetic
moments, each of which presents a completely integrated
experience, the fundamental pattern of which is extended into
the imagery. This is particularly true of the sustained simile,
where the increased length of the figure elaborates, clarifies,
emphasizes the specific point of comparison, or compounds it
with additional secondary analogies or metaphors. In fact, it
is often the case that the specific point of comparison is the
least important aspect of the sustained simile. It is rather in
the strong associations evoked by the simile and their relation
to the basic pattern of the narrative that the true value of the
sustained simile lies. In the similes I will examine this relation
is one of both extension and contrast. That is, the strong element
of contrast so often present in the Dantean similes represents
not an interruption, but rather a variation of the poetic moment.
The fact that the associations implicit in the vehicle of the
simile present areas of reality which are not included in the
subject matter of the narrative has a triple effect. On the one
298
JAMES APPLEWHITE
hand, this serves to extend the basic pattern of that narrative
moment into other levels of reality and thus increase its
universality. But although the pattern is the same, the actual
reality is different, and this contrast within the similarity
strengthens our impression of the uniqueness of the experience
in Dante's poem. Moreover, since the secondary terms of the
similes for the most part portray natural phenomena or common
human experience, they bring to the poem an element of truth.
That is, because they are natural symbols, actual instances of
what they symbolize, they shore up our impression of the literal
truth of the journey. In other words, the term of the comparison
is not " as if " but " just as... so." The poet of the Commedia
is dealing with truth, not imagination.
Since the similes I will examine are all taken from the
Inferno, it is necessary to briefly characterize the nature of the
poetic experience in this canticle as a whole. It has been noted
that this experience is different from that of the Purgatorio and
the Paradiso, and that this difference is reflected in the imagery.
Just as the nature of the pilgrim's journey is the viewing of the
spectacle of the damned in all its horror, without being
consciously aware of the quality of this horror, so the imagery is
primarily visual, without explicit conceptual associations. Dante
the poet, however, in reflecting upon this experience, was aware
of its quality, so that the visual imagery does carry strong
metaphorical overtones which relate to the allegorical moment.
The first sustained simile of the Commedia is of that type
found frequently in the poem where there is an exact
correspondence between the vehicle and tenor in both structure
and content. In this type of simile the comparison is explicitly
elaborated and in this particular example the pattern extablished
by the simile is an instance of the basic pattern of the allegory
at this moment of the poem. That is, the basic pattern of the
simile is the specific point of comparison. (This is not always
the case.)
E come quei chie, con lena affannata,
uscito fuor del pelago alla riva,
si volge all'acqua perigliosa e guata,
THE EXTENDED SIMILE IN THE INFERNO
299
cosi l'animo mio, ch'ancor fuggiva,
si volse a retro a rimirar 0lo passo
che non lascib gid mai persona viva. (Inferno i. 2-37)
The simile is taken from a part of the poem in which
Dante the writer of " theological" allegory has not quite
achieved the standards of Dante the theorist. In the Canto in
general, as well as in such specific lines as " Che non lasci6 gis
mai persona viva," the fusion is not yet complete between the
vividness of the literal situation and the allegorical intent, the
literal subject tending to be an ornamentation, or in Dante's
terms, a " poetic" fiction. Nevertheless, or perhaps because of
this, the function of the simile is quite clear. I have postulated
that the cognitive value of the Dantean simile is to extend the
allegorical meaning into different areas of reality, to provide
additional images of sense perception which contribute to the
understanding of the fundamental patterns in the situation. In
this passage the basic pattern is that of the whole poem: the
ascent from misery to bliss, from dark to light, from the troubles
of sin to the joys of virtue. The literal subject is Dante's ascent
from a dark forest to a hill whose slopes reflect the dawn. The
specific comparison of the simile comprises a kind of secondary
allegory which is a further instance of the general pattern; the
simile is a translation in terms of sensorial perception of the
feeling of relief, which coincides with the general archetype of
misery-joy, frustration-relief. This suggestion is intensified by
the manner in which Dante integrates the simile into the
narrative-it is preceded by " nel lago del cor " and followed by
" la piaggia diserta " and even " il corpo lasso," which applies
to both physical situations, Dante on foot, and the man safely
ashore after the exhausting waters.
Nevertheless, even though this basic pattern of the allegory
is extended into the area of human experience through the
specific comparison, there is still a difference between the
experience of the man safe from the dangerous waters and that
of Dante, " ch'ancor fuggiva." Thus even in one of the most
tightly constructed of Dante's similes, there is contrast as well
as similarity. Moreover, this contrast prepares us for the new
5
300
JAMES APPLEWHITE
peril of the three beasts, as well as the remainder of the canticle.
The contrast is not superfluous, but an integral part of the flow
of the narrative.
Quali i fioretti,dal notturno gelo
chinati e chiusi, poi che '1 sol li 'mbianca
si drizzan tutti aperti in loro stelo,
tal mi fec'io di mia virtute stanca,
e tanto buono ardire al cor mi corse,
ch'i' cominciai come persona franca: (Inferno ii. 127-132)
This simile is of the same type as the first in that it is
structurally symmetrical and therefore presents its basic pattern
in the point of comparison. It directly follows the speech in
which Virgil encourages Dante, who has had doubts about his
own capacity to make the journey as well as the reason for his
being singled out for it. The allegorical meaning is that Divine
Grace restores man's virtuous courage. The literal subject, an
instance of the allegorical, is the fortitude Dante derives from
his awareness of Beatrice's love. But the vehicle of the simile
is also an instance of this symbolic pattern (the plants revived
by the morning sun), and this association is strengthened by the
connotations already imparted in the Comnmedia to the sun,
darkness, light, cold-warm, low-high, closed-expanding, and
which have been prepared from the opening lines of this canto:
Lo giorno se n'andava, e 1'aere bruno
toglieva li animai che sono in terra
dalle fatiche loro; e io sol uno
m'apparecchiava a sostener la guerra
si del cammino e si della pietate,
che ritrarrd la mente che non erra. (Inferno ii. 1-6)
And if the general suggestion of the secondary term extends the
symbolic pattern into the realm of physical vegetation, the
specific comparison of the simile, the visual presentation of the
revival of hope and moral courage, is a further instance of the
basic archetype.
There is nevertheless a certain contrast inherent in the
delicate, precious nature of the simile, but in this it is in
THE EXTENDED SIMILE IN THE INFERNO
301
harmony with the whole canto, the stil nuovo tone of which
contrasts both with the dark forest the poets have left and
with the stark horror of the inferno they are about to enter.
It is a sort of lyric interlude, but an interlude which is also
a hope for the poet and a prefiguration of the Earthly Paradise
for the reader, since Beatrice not only descends, but also ascends.
Thus it is highly appropriate that this simile be found in
connection with Beatrice's appearance, for it is she who brings
back to the poet the world of the Vita Nuova as he looks
forward to Paradise.
The image is all the more striking since in typical Dantean
fashion the secondary term precedes the primary. However, far
from representing a stalling point in the course of the narrative,
in this simile as in the preceding one, a narrative transition is
made within the figure itself. The image is completely
symmetrical, there being a direct correspondence between the
two subjects. The parallel may be classified as the status quo
ante (" i fioretti, dal notturno
gelo / chinati e chiusi " = " mia
virtute stanca "); the motivating force (" 1' sol li 'mbianca " /
= " tanto buono ardire al cor mi corse,"); and the result (" si
drizzan tutti aperti in loro stelo," / = " ch'i' cominciai come
persona franca: :"). Once we reach the result we are already
passing beyond the status quo of the narrative. One can only
marvel at the skill of a poet who can thus progress his narrative
while focusing our attention on an emotional state.
There is another type of simile found in the Inferno which
might be called the epic simile. It is also an extended
comparison, but differs from the first two similes we have
considered because of its asymmetrical structure and because it
does not contain a precise correspondence between the respective
contents of the two terms of the comparison. The several
occurences of this type of simile in the Inferno are usually
troubling to the critics and commentators because of the seeming
lack of relevance of the secondary term and because the tone of
the simile seems to defy integration with the flow of the
narrative. I believe that if we talk, not in terms of unified
content or narrative, but in terms of artistic unity, it is then
possible to note that these passages are extremely relevant, and
302
JAMES APPLEWHITE
that it is the very element of contrast which integrates or fuses
them with the esthetic ensemble. I have already noted an
element of contrast in the two previous similes, where the
comparison was tightly bound structurally to the narrative
context. It would seem from these examples that Dante was
highly conscious of the effect to be achieved by contrasting areas
of experience which resembled his other world with this other
world. Unity is not monotony, and if we thought that it were
we should have to exclude most, if not all of the more famous
musical compositions from the realm of art, for the processes
of inversion and contrast are indispensable in the development
of melodic themes. As in music, so in the Commedia, as we will
see by examining the following simile of the hoarfrost:
In quella parte del giovanetto anno
che '1 sole i crin sotto I'Aquario tempra
e gid le notti al mezzo di sen vanno,
quando la brina in su la terra assempra
l'imagine di sua sorella bianca,
ma poco dura alla sua penna tempra;
lo villanello a cui la roba manca,
si leva, e guarda, e vede la campagna
biancheggiar tutta; ond'ei si batte l'anca,
ritorna in casa, e qua e 1 si lagna,
come '1 tapin che non sa che si faccia;
poi riede, e la speranza ringavagna,
veggendo il mondo aver cangiata faccia
in poco d'ora, e prende suo vincastro,
e fuor le pecorelle a pascer caccia.
Cosi mi fece sbigottir lo mastro
quand'io li vidi si turbar la fronte,
e cosi tosto al mal giunse lo 'mpiastro;
cht, come noi venimmo al guasto ponte,
lo duca a me si volse con quel piglio
dolce ch'io vidi prima a pid del monte. (Inferno xxiv. 1-21)
The specific comparison of this simile likens the dismay
and subsequent relief of Dante in his reaction to the attitude
of Virgil to the despair and subsequent joy of the peasant who
mistakes the hoarfrost for snow and then discovers his mistake.
The comparison exists on a purely emotional level, there being
no apparent similarity between Virgil and the hoarfrost other
THE EXTENDED SIMILE IN THE INFERNO
303
than the reaction they produce in Dante and the peasant, nor
any similarity between Dante and the rustic other than this
relation. Nor is there any visual comparison between the delicate
late winter landscape and the horrid ruggedness of the infernal
terrain. Structurally, the simile lacks the symmetrical proportion
so characteristic of the other type of simile we have discussed.
Moreover, the tone of the passage is directly opposed to the
prevailing mood of the narrative. The style of the passage, the
periphrasis of the first tercet, the preciositd of the second suggest
the atmosphere of a
or a dolce stil novo
Provencal lyric
composition, and are far removed from the vibrant
monumentality of the Inferno. " La figura del villano, che 'si
batte I'anca' e 'qua e 1l si lagna, / come '1 tapin che non sa
che si faccia,' non &ritratta dal vero nd approfondita psicologicamente, ma stilizzata secondo un modulo di grazia disegnativa
lineare e goticizzante. A tale disposizione, alquanto esterna e
decorativa, della sensibilit5 che ispira la pagina, rispondono i
mezzi stilistici, lessicali, metrici, con la ricercata invenzione delle
figure (cfr. vv. 1-2, 4-6, is,
18), con lo studio delle rime difficili
(-empra, -anca, -agna, -accia, -astro, -eggia, -appa) e anche, con
frequenza insolita, delle rime equivoche (cfr. vv. 2 e 6, 11 e 13,
e 24, 37 e 39)-" 11
o20
The disparity of the two terms of the simile, the seemingly
incongruous evocation have led many readers to consider this
material extraneous to the poem, an interesting if somewhat
overdone lyrical passage to be appreciated somehow out of
context. I believe this to be a mistake, and all the more so since
this is not the only passage in the poem where the art of Dante
seems to escape the context of the narrative, nor even the only
instance of a run-a-way simile. In reading him we become aware
that Dante is extremely conscious of his stylistic means and is
aware at all times of the effect he is producing, and that the
Commedia is one of the most carefully and elaborately
constructed of all works of art. To say that he forgot himself
once or twice is plausible, but to say that he forgot himself
repeatedly is not. It is far more reasonable to assume that the
unity exists on a level other than content, tone or style: on
the level of artistic composition.
304
JAMES APPLEWHITE
Sapegno is aware of this: "Forse, volendo attribuire a
questa prima parte del canto un valore pii 'funzionale,' gioverebbe intenderla come espressiva di una pausa di liberazione e
di sfogo dopo l'atmosfera opprimente ed ambigua e la tensione
psicologica delle due bolge precedenti." "x Undeniably
pertinent, this statement does not go far enough in its insight.
The principle of pause followed by outburst of explosion
contrasted with explosion is fundamental in the Commedia,
not only in terms of the narration, but even, as Auerbach has
shown in his discussion of the Farinata episode, in terms of
stylistic devices."2 Although it is topical to compare the
Commedia to a Gothic cathedral, if the analogy is squeezed
hard enough, we see that its very essence lies in the principle
of contrast within similarity, for in the Gothic cathedral
compartments of light and dark were fused to create the illusion
of the floating, restless vault, whose very existence was due to
the juxtaposition of contrasting elements in a tense stability.
In the Commedia, the tension resides not only in the conflict
of two worlds, where it is resolved in a figural realism, not only
in the contrast of the specific with the general, where it abides
in the symbol, not only in the disparity of a preordained order
in the after-world and the progress of their journey through
this world, but also in the reasonable succession of integrated
poetic moments which sustains the unity of the poem.
The simile is situated in the passage of the poets from the
bolgia of the hypocrites to the bolgia of the thieves, and is
provoked by the malign action of the devils in the bolgia of the
barrators. In each bolgia both the moral disposition and its
symbolic representation are characterized by deception, and in
the case of the barrators this deception even enters the action
of the narrative. Now in the simile there is also a sort of
deception, though it comes not from the maliciousness of the
deceiver, but rather from the misapprehension of the rustic of
a natural phenomenon. The contrast is strengthened by the
fact that the final result is one of joy and not one of evil. Thus
the symbolic pattern of the simile serves to link together two
episodes of the poem, while the imagery itself provides a
separate, contrasting episode. This is reinforced by the succession
THE EXTENDED SIMILE IN THE INFERNO
305
of emotional tones in the narrative, from the bewilderment of
Dante at the anger of Virgil to the delicate joy of the peasant
scene to the physical lassitude of Dante, a natural psychological
sequence. Turning again to the visual imagery, we see that
besides the contrast between innocent and malevolent forms of
a pattern of experience implied by it, the apparent transformation of the snow into hoarfrost serves as a prelude, and
again by contrast, to the coming malign transformations of the
thieves. The image then has the function of both contrast and
transition.
Moreover, the contrast in landscape does more than provide
a momentary pause or relief. The hazy, stylized daintiness of
the scene makes it seem less real then the barren terrain of
Nether Hell; that is, in this instance the poet has actually
reversed the general problem of reality in the poem by creating
the illusion that the true reality at this moment is the region
of the other world. Surely the simile has its own beauty, but
by its relation to the poem both its own and that of the
surrounding context is enhanced.
Quale nell'arzand de' Viniziani
bolle l'inverno la tenace pece
a rimpalmare i legni lor non sani,
- ch6 navicar non ponno; in quella vece
chi fa suo legno novo e chi ristoppa
le coste a quel che piu viaggi fece;
chi ribatte da proda e chi da poppa;
altri fa remi e altri volge sarte;
chi terzaruolo e artimon rintoppa tal, non per foco, ma per divin' arte,
bollia 1I giuso una pegola spessa,
che 'nviscava la ripa d'ogni parte. (Inferno xxi. 7-18)
The comparison, which refers to the visual aspect of the
boiling pitch, is contained in only two of the twelve lines of
the simile (lines 8 and 17). The other ten lines do not pertain
directly to the specific comparison, and in fact the two middle
tercets are set off by the punctuation. After noting the lack of
equilibrium, the usual comment on this simile would point
out the obvious personal recollection and perhaps also the
306
JAMES APPLEWHITE
political significance of the laudatory evocation of the Republic
of Venice. The latter is certainly pertinent, since it is placed in
opposition to the political machinations of the barrators. There
may even be an indirect reference to the wickedness of Florence,
since barratry was one of the crimes of which Dante was accused
in 13os. However, the contrast is more extensive.
The pattern which underlies the extended vehicle of the
simile is one of activity, and this is also the basic pattern of
this moment of the poem. The contrast is in the direction and
result of the activity. This balance in activity - on the one
hand the destructive, futile scheming of the barrators and on
the other the positive production of the shipbuilders - has as
its point of equilibrium the visual image of the boiling tar.
That is, the tar carries both associations. It is generally
recognized that the contrapasso of the boiling tar is quite
appropriate for the barrators, both because they carried on
their dealings " under cover," and because in life they were
so to speak glued to money and the obsession of material gain.
But the picture of the tar also suggests the industriousness of
the ship builder who calks his hull and repairs his mast during
the winter. Moreover, the image of repairing one's boat in order
to prepare it for the voyages of the summer months would
seem to carry moral overtones in the poem, for Dante here
refers
to
the
boats
as " non
sani"
and
repeatedly
in
the
Commedia uses the imagery of the sea and boats to suggest man
and the voyage of life (as in the simile of the " naufrago " cited
above or the opening lines of Paradiso ii: " O voi che siete in
piccioletta barca..."). Dante himself suggests this stronger
contrast between virtuous soul-mending and the soul-damaging
activity of the barrators in the line: " Non per foco, ma per
divin'arte," a line which is multiple in its significance if we
remember that fire is the symbol not only of human industry
but also of purgation and that " divin'arte " in the context of
the Inferno implies Divine Justice. Thus this simile can in no
way be considered extraneous to the poetic moment of the
poem, nor even to the course of the narrative, since it sets the
scene, by way of contrast, for the two cantos of devilry which
follow.
THE EXTENDED SIMILE IN THE INFERNO
307
Quante il villan ch'al poggio si riposa,
nel tempo che colui che '1 mondo schiara
la faccia sua a noi tien meno ascosa,
come la mosca cede a la zanzara,
vede lucciole git per la vallea,
forse coli dov'e' vendemmia ed ara;
di tante fiamme tutta risplendea
l'ottava bolgia, si com'io m'accorsi
tosto che fui 1I 've 'I fondo parea.
E qual colui che si vengib con li orsi
vide '1 carro d'Elia al dipartire,
quando i cavalli al cielo erti levorsi,
che nol potea si con li occhi seguire,
ch'el vedesse altro che la fiamma sola,
si come nuvoletta, in su salire;
tal si move ciascuna per la gola
del fosso, ch6 nessuna mostra il furto,
e ogni fiamma un peccatoreinvola. (Inferno xxvi. 25-42)
This passage is typical of a rather frequent device employed
Dante
in the Commedia-the juxtaposition of two extended
by
similes. In this case the specific comparisons of the two similes
present us with a picture of the flickering, fading flames in
which the souls of the damned counselors of fraud are encased.
That they have a functional value in the narrative, the
preparation of the atmosphere for the Ulysses episode has been
recognized by such critics as Fubini.3 What needs to be shown
is the relation of these similes to the basic experience of this
moment of the poem.
The basic pattern of the allegory at this moment is the
sensation of flight, which is presented on both the sensorial and
figurative levels. It is announced in the opening lines of the
canto (" Godi, Fiorenza, poi che se' si grande, / che per mare e
per terra batti l'ali,") and carried throughout the canto into
the voyage of Ulysses (" e volta nostra poppa nel mattino, / dei
remi facemmo ali al folle volo,"). Even the image of the
contrapasso, the tongues of fire, is presented in terms of flight
(the " lucciole " as well as " la mosca " and " la zanzara " and
the ascent of the burning " chariot "). This sensation of flight is
fused on the moral level with the necessity of guiding virtue
or Grace ("e pid lo 'ngegno affreno ch'i' non soglio, / perch6
308
JAMES APPLEWHITE
non corra che virth nol guidi;"), and the conscious selfadmonition of Dante the poet is echoed in the precarious
physical position of Dante the pilgrim who is in danger of falling
into the error of those who did not guide the flight of their
intelligence with virtue (" Io stava sovra '1 ponte a veder surto, /
si che s'io non avessi un ronchion preso, / caduto sarei girl
sanz'esser urto."). Finally, the voyage of Ulysses is generally read
to symbolize the inability of man to attain the Earthly Paradise
on the basis of purely human values and without Grace.
From this point of view, the calm of the scene in the first
simile, which pictures a peasant, a man of little genius, who
" si riposa " when his effort is no longer illumined, provides a
double contrast with the difficulties of the pilgrim Dante and
the restless roving of Ulysses, for both are struggling without
complete illumination. The contrast is even present in the
comparison of the joyful spectacle of the fireflies with the
tormented flames of the damned, though the purely visual
experience is similar.
In a like manner, in the second simile the flaming ascent
of the prophet Elijah is a pictorial representation of a virtuous
flight, an illustration which could not be expressed explicitly
in the Inferno because it could not be consciously perceived by
the pilgrim in his state of ignorance. Moreover, the periphrasis
which is used to designate Elisha suggests a contrast between
the chosen prophet as spectator and the pilgrim Dante as
spectator. Thus, in this canto, the motif of the allegory is
presented through the variations of invective, self-admonition,
the calm of the peasant's ordinary, controlled genius, the
heavenly flight of the prophet, the state of the damned, and
the final voyage of Ulysses, in an ever increasing crescendo.
These examples from the Inferno illustrate how there is
an interpenetration of different areas of reality at any one
moment of the poem. Not only do the similes of Dante increase
the visual vividness of the scene, they also enhance the
suggestiveness of the narrative moment by offering contrasting
variations which both expand and conflict with the episodes
and the other imagery. Moreover, they often play an important
role in the very flow of this narrative. They are well-forged
THE
EXTENDED
SIMILE
IN
THE
INFERNO
309
links in the chain of the allegory, strong in themselves, but an
integral part of the whole.
JAMES APPLEWHITE
Davidson
SG.
College
Franciosi,
2 Luigi
renze,
Venturi,
Scritti danteschi
Le Similitudini
(Firenze,
dantesche,
1876), p. 169.
ordinate e confrontate
(Fi-
1874).
SW.
P.
Collected
Ker, " Divina
Commedia,"
Essays, ed. Charles
Whibley
(London,
1925),
I, 305-320.
to the Study of Dante (London, 190o6).
J. A. Symonds, An introduction
"A Consideration
of Macauley's
of
Comparison
4 W. J. Courthope,
Dante and Milton," Procedings
III.
of the British Academy (London),
Selected Essays (New York, 1934), p. 205.
5 T. S. Eliot, "Dante,"
6
" Dante's Figures of Speech," Italica, XVIII
Thomas
A. Fitzgerald,
(1941),
120o.
Irma
Brandeis,
558.
s Yvonne Batard,
Comddie (Paris, 1952).
"Metaphor
in
The
Divine
Comedy,"
Hudson
Rev,
VIII,
9
Dante,
et Apollon,
les images
de la Divine
The text followed in the citations is that established in: Natalino
Sapegno,
La Divina
Commedia
(Milano,
1957).
Dante Studies I (Cambridge,
o10C. S. Singleton,
"
12
Minerve
Sapegno,
1957).
p. 272.
Erich Auerbach, Mimesis, trans. Willard Trask (New York, 1953),
151-176.
13 Mario
Fubini, Due Studi danteschi
(Firenze, 1951), 1-51.
Editor's note:
In 1962 The Dante Society of America awarded Mr.
Applewhite's
paper first prize among those submitted by graduate students.
He was attending Tulane University
at that time.