rd to find any documentation on Dante's journey outside of Florence. It is know that his last days were spent in Ravenna, under the watchful eye of Guido da Polenta. The city recognized him as a great poet and it was here the last of The Divine Comedy was written. Dante died shortly after finishing his final and best work in 1322. His ashes are still buried next to the church of San Francesco. Dante's Purgatory section of The Divine Comedy covers Dante's journey through Purgatory and the challenges he faces. Purgatory was an island with a huge mountain towering from it. At the top was Paradise or heaven. It was sealed off by a gate with angles guarding the entrance. The bottom was antepurgatory where the souls that were not ready for the journey resided. The mountain itself was composed of seven concentric ledges separated by steep cliffs. On each ledge, one of the seven capital sins waited on a soul. They were composed of Pride, Envy, Wrath Sloth, Avarice, Gluttony, and Lust. When the soul had released his sin, he was able to proceed to the next level. When he ascends to the next level, an angle would greet him and perform a cleansing ritual. In addition, on each ledge of Purgatory, there were models of the sin as well as the virtues which opposed the sin. These were a kind of test for the soul. Dante was guided by Virgil or reason as Virgil is depicted. Cato refuses to let Dante sit around and do nothing. At first, he will not let them pass, but Virgil explains their reasons for being there and gains passage. For Dante to be purified, he must first witness a miracle. He breaks a reed in his hand and it instantly regrows itself. Dante is now ready for his journey through Purgatory. The journey is a quest for freedom, which could be considered the idea of purgatory. After leaving Hell, each soul must make it through purgatory to find its place in heaven. Why was freedom so important to Dante in The Divine Comedy? Early on in his life he...
