ENGLISH LITERATURE (CBSE/UGC NET)

Detailed explanation-1: -In the middle of the journey of his life, Dante finds himself lost in a dark wood, and he cannot find the straight path. He cannot remember how he wandered away from his true path that he should be following, but he is in a fearful place, impenetrable and wild.

Detailed explanation-2: -The dark forest–selva oscura–in which Dante finds himself at the beginning of the poem (Inf. 1.2) is described in vague terms, perhaps as an indication of the protagonist’s own disorientation.

Detailed explanation-3: -The story begins with Dante getting lost in the woods on Maundy Thursday. He intends to climb a mountain but encounters three wild beasts who threaten him; as he wonders what to do, Virgil, the author of the Latin epic Aeneid, appears.

Detailed explanation-4: -The story begins with Dante the character traveling through a dark and scary forest. The darkness of the forest itself stands for corruption and sin. Before Dante can find his way through the forest to heaven, he encounters three beasts.

Detailed explanation-5: -Dante begins The Divine Comedy with a character who has lost his way in “a dark wood.” The dark wood is a metaphor not only of a crisis of faith, but a crisis of humanity. He has lost his spiritual compass, even how to be with and treat other people.