Ninth Circle
Ninth Circle (Pit of Hell):
Area:
Nether Hell, Sins of Fraud or
Malice, Well of Giants, Complex, Cocytus, Traitors, nearing Earth’s
Center
Located in Cantos: 31-34
Treachery:
Caina-
betrayed of Kin-lodged head first in blocks of ice-cantos 31-32:
Icons:
The Giants Nimrod, Ephialtes, Antaeus, in Cantos XXXI; Bocca degli Abati, in
Cantos XXXII
Punishment/Contrapasso:
Betrayed of Kin—lodged in blocks of ice head down
Allusions, Devices, Metaphors, Similes:
Cain and Abel, King Arthur, Other Giants Briareus, Tityus, Typhon, The River
Cocytus
Antenora-
betrayers of country-forced to eat one another-cantos 32-33:
Icons:
Ugulino and Ruggieri, in cantos XXXII-XXXIII
Punishment/Contrapasso:
betrayers of country-forced to eat one another
Ptolomea-
betrayers of guests-lodged head up in blocks of ice with frost freezing their eyes so that they cannot cry-cantos 33:
Icons:
Ugolino and Ruggieri, Fra Alberigo
Punishment/Contrapasso:
betrayers of guests-lodged head up in blocks of ice with frost freezing their eyes so that
they cannot cry
Judecca-
betrayers of benefactors-contorted and lodged completely within blocks of ice-cantos 34:
Icons:
Lucifer, with Brutus, Cassius, Judas Iscariot-chewed endlessly in Lucifer’s Jaws
Punishment/Contrapasso:
betrayers of benefactors-contorted and lodged completely within blocks of ice