Why One Sin Is Worse Than Another - 1629 Words

Most Christians these days see every sin as equally bad. In other words, no one sin is worse or should draw worse punishment than another. In Dantes The Inferno, however, this is not the case. In The Inferno, the deeper one delves into Hell, the worse the sin that has been committed. The punishments that the souls incur are representative of the sins they committed in their corporeal state of being. Sins that affect others are considered worse then those that only affect ones self by Dante. The Wrathful in Canto 8 are lower down then the Hoarders and Wasters in Canto 7 because according to Dante, The Wrathful commit violent acts, or sins against others, while the Hoarders and wasters only against themselves. This is how one sin is†¦show more content†¦Members of this circle even include righteous men such as priest, popes, and cardinals who sinned greatly in avarice or prodigality, the opposite vices in the management of worldly goods. Now that it is clear why the Wrathful are in a lower circle then the Hoarders and Wasters, I would like to back up to circle three and look at the Gluttons. The reason for this is because the previous question was answered so it automatically brings up the question: Why is hoarding and wasting a more horrible sin than being gluttonous? A glutton is one who has an uncontrollable appetite and deliberately converts food into a sort of god, or at least an object of worship. So now in Hell he is punished by being forced to eat filth and mud, instead of the extravagant food and drink that he/she is used to in life. Here is what Dante saw upon entering the third circle; Huge hailstones, dirty water, and black snow pour from the dismal air to putrefy the putrid slush that waits for them below(Dante, Canto 6 line 10-12). The reason that this sin is not as bad as hoarding and wasting is that gluttons misused the natural products of the world, which for Dante, was not as bad as the sinners in t he next circle who have no respect for the manmade objects of the world, such as money and property. The reason that it is not as bad as the Wrathful is the same reason that I gave for the Hoarders and Wasters; the sin they commitShow MoreRelatedVoltaire s Candide And Dante s Inferno1562 Words   |  7 PagesVoltaire’s Candide he satires religion and questions it because of how morally corrupt religious are and how wrong it is to persecute another person’s religion. In Dante’s Inferno he reflects and shows why his religious beliefs are the reasons why people are in hell as well as why his religion justifies certain people being in hell. In Voltaire’s Candide religion is one of the main targets of what Voltaire mocks. 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