Essay --

Similarities and Differences between Inferno and The OdysseyWhen reading the stories The Odyssey by Homer and Inferno by Dante Alighieri, it is obvious how diverse these two stories are. In The Odyssey, Ulysses is trying to pass along his home, which he has not seen for twenty years. The theme for The Odyssey is one man, Ulysses, need to go home. The Inferno theme shows the character Dante struggling with good and evil. The character, Dante, explores in depth the Christian idea of hell. It is through his experience in hell that he casts his faithfulness to God and good. When reading these two stories, many differences between them are plain when examine characteristics, conventions, and the polar religious experiences of the periods in which these stories were written.Characteristics in Homers, The Odyssey include a hero, Ulysses, heroic courage, a vast mountain, and weird forces. In The Odyssey, the main character Ulysses is a war hero trying to travel home. He faces unbe lievable trials during his return which include being cast on an island, battling Neptune and the seas, fighting suitors, and regaining his home from the suitors. The setting for his story involves his trip from the island and over the seas until he reaches his home country. Ulysses also goes into hell where he visits the ghosts, or shades, for guidance.During Ulysses journey, he is both helped and tested by weird powers of different gods and goddesses. In Dantes Inferno, the hero of the story is Dante. Dante is a man who was banished from his home because of his beliefs and therefore, fights with the choice between good and evil. Dantes bravery comes in the form of human race he faces the challenges that all mankind struggle with. He travels ... ...o, Dante being led by Virgil, a man whose work Dante admires. Dante wishes to learn from the sinners in hell, and to absorb oft information from Virgil, while in hell. Virgil shows and explains to Dante about the sinners and t he resurrection. Dante wrote, remember now your science, /which says that when a thing has more perfection, /so much greater is its pain or pastime (Alighieri, 1992, Canto VI 6.106-6.108).Although Homers The Odyssey and Dantes Inferno are very opposite in nature, both stories can be pleasant for an audience in todays world. The Odyssey is a story about struggling against gods and showing courage through a heros actions. The story is written with dotty verses that attract audiences, even in todays world. Inferno was written with amazing vision into mankinds fight among good and evil. That fight goes on even in todays world.