Symbolic Retribution Paragraph Lucifer committed the deadliest sin when he strived to achieve the highest place in heaven and overthrow God: pride. He did not have enough humility in the presence of God, and he did not surrender to his power. Instead, Lucifer believed that he could replace God. This pride earned him a spot in the deepest part of Hell, where he forever tries to escape, but sends himself deeper into Hell by attempting to do so. As he flaps his wings and cries in self pity, his tears freeze and he traps himself in more ice. Lucifer could easily stop crying and flapping his wings, but he lacks humility, or acceptance of his awful fate and poor image. Lucifer’s pride was meant to bring him higher and up the ranks in heaven, but now it brings him farther into Hell; hence, he is symbolically punished as a result of his character flaws. Lucifer’s punishments portray aspects of symbolic retribution in more ways than one. In Hell, Lucifer has three heads consumes three sinners, which mocks the Holy Trinity. He also must forever consume the blood and flesh of the worst sinners in all eternity, just like Christians symbolically consume the blood and flesh of Jesus Christ in communion. One could say that Lucifer is forced to an eternal unholy communion and an unholy communion as his punishment for mocking God during his time in Heaven. This mocking is a central theme of Cantos 34, and it is portrayed through the diction of the text. For example, Virgil addresses Lucifer by saying “On march the banners of the King of Hell” (1-2), a distorted version of a hymn written to celebrate the Holy Cross. Virgil’s sarcastic and mocking connotation sets the tone for the story and the theme of Lucifer’s punishment. Lucifer’s punishment has many references to God and Christianity, because in the Middle Ages, God played a central role in everyday life. Lucifer was given the role of Satan because he committed the ultimate sin according to Dante and others living in the Middle Ages: overthrowing God. Dante was influenced by others living in the Middle Ages when writing of Lucifer’s Punishment. In the Middle Ages, a modest religious lifestyle was strongly enforced, and pride was a more punishable sin in the Middle Ages than it is now. This is why betrayal of Jesus was the worst sin of all in the eyes of Dante.
Lucifer committed the deadliest sin when he strived to achieve the highest place in heaven and overthrow God: pride. He did not have enough humility in the presence of God, and he did not surrender to his power. Instead, Lucifer believed that he could replace God. This pride earned him a spot in the deepest part of Hell, where he forever tries to escape, but sends himself deeper into Hell by attempting to do so. As he flaps his wings and cries in self pity, his tears freeze and he traps himself in more ice. Lucifer could easily stop crying and flapping his wings, but he lacks humility, or acceptance of his awful fate and poor image. Lucifer’s pride was meant to bring him higher and up the ranks in heaven, but now it brings him farther into Hell; hence, he is symbolically punished as a result of his character flaws. Lucifer’s punishments portray aspects of symbolic retribution in more ways than one. In Hell, Lucifer has three heads consumes three sinners, which mocks the Holy Trinity. He also must forever consume the blood and flesh of the worst sinners in all eternity, just like Christians symbolically consume the blood and flesh of Jesus Christ in communion. One could say that Lucifer is forced to an eternal unholy communion and an unholy communion as his punishment for mocking God during his time in Heaven. This mocking is a central theme of Cantos 34, and it is portrayed through the diction of the text. For example, Virgil addresses Lucifer by saying “On march the banners of the King of Hell” (1-2), a distorted version of a hymn written to celebrate the Holy Cross. Virgil’s sarcastic and mocking connotation sets the tone for the story and the theme of Lucifer’s punishment.
Lucifer’s punishment has many references to God and Christianity, because in the Middle Ages, God played a central role in everyday life. Lucifer was given the role of Satan because he committed the ultimate sin according to Dante and others living in the Middle Ages: overthrowing God. Dante was influenced by others living in the Middle Ages when writing of Lucifer’s Punishment. In the Middle Ages, a modest religious lifestyle was strongly enforced, and pride was a more punishable sin in the Middle Ages than it is now. This is why betrayal of Jesus was the worst sin of all in the eyes of Dante.