Dante's Second Circle Of Hell, 'Lust'

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Dante’s Second Circle of Hell, “Lust”: The Forbidden Love: Helen and Paris During Homer’s, The Iliad, Zeus and Leda’s daughter, Helen was recognized as the world’s most beautiful woman in Greek mythology. A beauty that launched a thousand ships and caused an epic battle between Greece and the city of Troy. A battle that began from a forbidden love between a married Helen and a young Prince of Troy, Paris. Considering Dante’s 9 Circles of Hell, from the reading of The Inferno, which circle does Helen and Paris belong? In Greek mythology, Helen was known to have many men worship her beauty. Kings and princes would come from all over Greece to seek her hand in marriage. “Undoubtedly even many of the palace guards were secretly in love…show more content…
Paris and Helen’s relationship symbolized lust and adultery, which associate them with Dante’s second Circle of Hell, “Lust”. Helen and Paris relationship was a destructive force, causing a war between two countries, fueled by lust, desire and selfishness. Initially, Dante felt pity for Helen inadvertently causing the Trojan War. However, that pity soon seized once Dante realized Helen obstructed the divine law of God, by committing adultery and being unfaithful. Dante would judge Paris for his selfishness, lust for a married woman, and abduction. These sins commit both lovers into Dante’s second Circle of Hell, “Lust”. Consequently, these behaviors would often lead them and their lovers to death (Danteworlds). Due to the lustful relationship they would be judged for their sins and summoned to the second circle of hell. In Dante’s second circle of hell they would be condemned to a dark place where rain fall never stops, and the violent wind swirls would be constantly tearing through the air, preventing them to find peace and rest. Therefore, the wind symbolizes the restlessness of sinners who were led by desire for fleshly pleasures and forbidden

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