hroughout the course of history, women’s rights have continued to be taken away throughout literature. This trend is clearly visible throughout The Inferno, written in fourteenth century Florentine Italy. Women are, in some cases completely excluded from The Inferno, as is made evident in the relatively excluded character of Beatrice. Female characters involved in Dante’s Inferno, are first seen as punished as well with the lustful in the form of Francesca da Rimini. Women are also seen as monsters in some circles, a negative depiction indeed. To make a case for Dante, he does include women in his version of hell and he punishes men and women alike, and makes them both monsters; yet one gender is seen far more frequently than others in this epic poem. Throughout Dante Alighieri's The Inferno, women are not given any roles as major characters; even the women that are discussed are portrayed in an unequal manner, reflecting the bias evident in the perceived societal norms of the fourteenth century.
In Italian literature, women have been given “a voice peina,” a little voice with a …show more content…
However, she is, in fact, the only one to speak. The only representation of women in Dante’s The Inferno, comes from Francesca in the circle for the lustful, relatively early in this version of hell. She is the only woman found in this portion of the epic trilogy to speak on the behalf of others (Carey 21). Francesca is seen here as speaking on the behalf of her lover, Paolo, her husband’s brother. She is obviously seen as flawed as well, for multiple reasons. One, she is in hell. Two, she had relations while in marriage with her husband’s brother. She can be seen as a symbol of innocence, and some readers might pity her character. Yet, this is the only woman that speaks in The Inferno, a inequality imposed by Dante. Hence, women are truly not given an equal
In Italian literature, women have been given “a voice peina,” a little voice with a …show more content…
However, she is, in fact, the only one to speak. The only representation of women in Dante’s The Inferno, comes from Francesca in the circle for the lustful, relatively early in this version of hell. She is the only woman found in this portion of the epic trilogy to speak on the behalf of others (Carey 21). Francesca is seen here as speaking on the behalf of her lover, Paolo, her husband’s brother. She is obviously seen as flawed as well, for multiple reasons. One, she is in hell. Two, she had relations while in marriage with her husband’s brother. She can be seen as a symbol of innocence, and some readers might pity her character. Yet, this is the only woman that speaks in The Inferno, a inequality imposed by Dante. Hence, women are truly not given an equal