The Role Of Virgil In Divine Comedy By Dante Alighieri

Undoubtedly, Virgil plays many roles in Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri, ranging from physical ones to spiritual and moral ones. It is very easily noticeable that Virgil plays a huge part in Divine Comedy as the pilgrim Dante's guide, something which may reflect the importance Dante the author gives to Virgil in his own life. As seen in the poem, the character Dante needs a guide to lead him to paradise and salvation and it is Virgil who was chosen by the author. There are several reasons with regards to why exactly Virgil was chosen, something which will be looked at later. Though at first sight Virgil only seems to be a physical guide for Dante to lead him to his beloved Beatrice in paradise, on a deeper level, the ancient poet has many other functions which are highlighted greatly in the relationship between Dante the character and Virgil. From teaching Dante to protecting him when necessary, a clear father-son relationship forms between them throughout the poem, which makes the ending of Dante transcending Virgil the more surprising. But first, let us take a look at who Virgil the poet is and why he is so significant in the Divine Comedy.

Virgil, or Vergil as some write it, fully named Publius Vergilius Maro in Latin, lived from October of 70 BC to September 19 BC. He was chosen by Dante as his guide in the Divine Comedy as “he fitted Dante's poetic purpose from a multitude of angels”. He was considered to be the Romans’ greatest poet, mainly thanks to an epic poem (which was viewed then as the highest form of poetic achievement) named the Aeneid. This poem dealt with the adventures experienced by Aeneas which gives reasons as to why Dante chose Virgil as his guide in the Divine Comedy. Firstly, Dante was Italian, which, according to Virgil’s Aeneid was founded by the Trojan Aeneas and secondly, because the Aeneid deals in part with Aeneas descending into the underworld, exactly what the characters Dante and Virgil do in the Inferno. Virgil as a master poet is also depicted very evidently in Canto IV of the Inferno, where Virgil is greeted as “Prince of Poets” (Inferno 2.80) when they enter Limbo. Besides, Dante and Virgil had three things in common; both were poets, Virgil was a love poet while Dante was a lover, and the two seemed to have shared moral beliefs, making fictional Virgil appear to be an older, stronger and wiser version of Dante.

Dante also had huge admiration for the poet Virgil. He looked at Virgil as his “model, teacher, inspiration,” acknowledging Virgil for his success since he followed Virgil’s style of writing, referring to Virgil as 'my master and my author, from whom alone I learned that beauteous style which does me honor'(Inf.1.79-87). “As poet, Vergil stood, in Dante's eyes, for human intelligence and art at its highest level of achievement”. Dante also sees Virgil as not corrupted by ambition and great but wise. In the Inferno, Virgil seems to symbolize reason, civilization, and culture, a certain way of being and virtues, all of which Dante feels he along with culture has lost, making Virgil a source of human reason. Lastly, Dante needs Virgil specifically to guide him. As Dante sees Virgil as someone wise, who is not corrupted by ambition, Virgil is the perfect guide for Dante to save him from the she-wolf, which symbolizes the sin of ambition, as Dante would not be able to take it on by himself and would get destroyed by it. As shown by the list of evidence above, Dante had many reasons for thinking that Virgil is the best choice for guiding Dante the character, ranging from moral reasons to personal and historical ones.

To continue on the theme of history, I would now like to focus on the role of Virgil as Dante's predecessor. As mentioned earlier, Virgil is one of the creators of the poetic tradition which Dante uses, something which he acknowledges his success. The relationship which Virgil has to Dante the character and the text can be read interestingly, relating to Harold Bloom's theory of the anxiety of poetic influence.

 One of the pain points of that theory is that the ephebe, which of course is Dante in this case, must grow beyond and transcend the influence of the precursor, Virgil in this case, or forever remain it their shadow. Three out of the six “revisionary ratios” which Bloom discusses in terms of ephebes who attempt to escape their precursor’s influence and become “strong poets” can be found in Dante’s Divine Comedy, although Dante is generally considered to be a “strong” poet regardless. Firstly, “apophrades,” can be found in the Divine Comedy, which is “the intentional inclusion of elements from the precursor as a representation of mastery of the work.” Dante takes this idea even further and includes Virgil himself, not only some elements of his poetry. This decision of Dante is what allows him to transcend Virgil both physically in the poem when he enters paradise without Virgil, since Virgil, as a pagan, is not allowed in, as well as with regards to poetic mastery. Secondly, “clinamen,” when “the author revises the work of the precursor”, can be found in the poem in Canto IV, where Dante substantially rewrites the description of the underworld in Virgil’s Aeneid, turning it into “a Christian context recreating Virgil’s elysian fields as Catholic Limbo.” Thirdly, “tessera,” is “an act of extension of completion whereby the ephebe pushes the work of the precursor further.”

In the case of the Divine Comedy, Dante pushes Virgil’s notion of an underworld and a journey through it from the Aeneid into an epic that is much larger, in which the protagonist goes a great deal farther than Aeneas ever does. Therefore, in terms of poetic influence, the epic poem can be read as the journey of the ephebe as they surpass the influence of the precursor. Although this might seem like a subtle role which Virgil plays in the Divine Comedy, it is a very notable one as the poem is not only about a soul's journey to redemption but also about Dante escaping the poetic influence of Virgil and transcending his mastery.

Probably the most obvious role which Virgil plays in the Divine Comedy is of a character, to be more exact, a physical guide for the pilgrim Dante. He is not the protagonist, of course, but perhaps the second most important character in the poem, whose job, in terms of being a physical guide, is to lead the character, Dante, through hell and purgatory. The role of Virgil as a guide is a very obvious one, as he immediately establishes himself as Dante’s guide in Canto I, ordering Dante straightforwardly to just “Follow” (Inferno 1.127). Virgil seems to be a suitable guide to lead Dante on his search for salvation as hell is not unknown to him. He discloses to Dante that he has been sent to the depths of hell before by the witch Erictho, something which lends verisimilitude to the character of Virgil and reinforces his suitability to be Dante’s guide. The fact that Virgil plays a big role of being the character Dante’s physical guide is also emphasized by both Dante the poet and Dante the character referring to Virgil as “my guide” most of the time. In conclusion, one of the biggest roles Virgil plays in the poem is of being the physical guide to Dante the pilgrim throughout the narrative thread of the Divine Comedy.

Another way in which Virgil has the role of guiding Dante is by being the personification of classical wisdom and human reason, who guides and protects the individual which is “represented by Dante/Everyman through the world of sin.” As expected of someone who symbolizes reason, Virgil is shown to be 'measured, sober and wise'. Similarly, one of the reasons why Beatrice chose Virgil to be Dante’s guide to deliver him to her is for “his “high council” (Inferno 2. 67).” 

Although not mentioned earlier, Virgil wrote the Fourth Eclogue, a poem which many people in the medieval period considered to a pre-Christian prophecy about the coming of Chris This assumption was then used to form a connection between the pagan tradition and Christianity, turning Virgil into a kind of “poetic prophet”. Dante uses this connection to his advantage in Purgatorio XXII, where a character named Sataius calls to Virgil: “You were the lamp that led me from that night./You led me forth to drink Parnassian water;/then on the road to God you shed your light” (Purgatorio 22.64-65).Virgil’s reliance on the angelic messenger in Canto VIII, outside the gates of the city of Dis, also symbolizes how reason is powerless without faith. This is an important aspect of Dante’s moral philosophy and something that marks Inferno as a Christian poem, making it distinct from the classical epics that preceded it. “In the fullest sense of the word, Virgil acts as Dante’s guide, showing him not only the physical route through Hell but also reinforcing its moral lessons” such as not feeling pity for the sinners in hell as God decided to send them there. 

Virgil's role as Dante the character's guide is perhaps one of the most obvious ones but it is important to note that as the personification of reason and the perfect Roman with noble virtues, Dante may be using the character of Virgil to promote his philosophy and make it seem more trustworthy and 'correct'.