Comparison of Paradise lost and Inferno - Essay Example

Milton’s Paradise lost and Dante’s Inferno are both considered to be masterpieces of English literature. Both the authors depict beautiful imagery and allegory; however there is a vivid difference in the ways both authors view hell and its dwellers. Both the writings portray Satan as an angel of God who turned astray and denounced the superiority of God. The devil assumed that he was equal in status of God and yearned to be greater than him. For this insolence, he was banished to have hell as his eternal abode.

Milton’s description of Satan is quite interesting. According to Milton, Hell was Satan’s land where he ruled over the sinners. He had chosen to stay in the hell because according to him it was better to rule in hell than to serve in heaven. (Peter) In ‘Inferno’, Dante has portrayed devil as a ferocious being, whose sight instills fear in the hearts of the beholders. Satan has been given the opposite of what he has yearned, he desired for supremacy and sovereignty and even though he appears to be powerful and huge, he is small and helpless and his fate has been sealed to remain frozen in ice till eternity.

Hell in Dante’s view was an endless torment to the sinners who were destined to enter it. The hell is a place where there is no connection with the warmth of life and bitter frost and isolation is the only destiny. Even the Satan, the most foreboding prisoner of the hell had the bitterest fate. Milton presents a similar picture of the hell. According to him, even though hell was full of flames and fire, there was only darkness and hopelessness prevalent in its atmosphere. (Alighieri) Inferno and ‘Paradise lost’ provide captivating and detailed yet different views of Satan and hell and this difference is clearly evident in their writings.

Works Cited Peter, John. A critique of Paradise Lost. Columbia University Press Alighieri, Dante. Inferno.