Canto XXVI begins with Dante sarcastically praising his native city Florence for having so many of its citizens populating Hell: with so many thieves, Florence has earned such a widespread fame not only on Earth but also in Hell! The poet Virgil, Dante’s guide through Hell and Purgatory, now leads him along the ridges to the Eighth Pouch, where they see thousands of little flames flickering in a deep, dark valley, and reminding Dante of fireflies on a hillside. Virgil informs Dante that each flame contains a sinner, and that in this pouch are the damned souls of the Evil Counselors, or people who used their intelligence for evil purposes. Dante sees what appear to be two souls contained together in one flame, and Virgil identifies them
