ENGLISH LITERATURE (CBSE/UGC NET)

Detailed explanation-1: -Second, Ulysses used his natural gift of eloquence to persuade others to illicit action: he is a false counselor. He persuades his crew to overstep the limits set for man and defy the divine order. They are punished for their presumption with a watery death.

Detailed explanation-2: -Dante confesses to Beatrice Portinari, his idolized perfect woman he loved since childhood, to only two sins: Lust and Pride. He does not really tell on himself.

Detailed explanation-3: -Upon first glance, it may seem strange that Dante gave a pagan such a central role in his epic Christian poem. Virgil greatly influenced Dante’s poetic technique and, by having him serve as the pilgrim’s guide, Dante demonstrates to his readers that he is following in Virgil’s poetic footsteps.

Detailed explanation-4: -Virgil distinguishes between three types of sin: sins of ‘incontinenza’, sins of ‘violenza’, and sins of ‘frode’. We shall examine these in the order of gravity accorded to them in the Inferno, starting with sins of ‘incontinence’, then moving onto ‘violence’, and concluding with ‘fraud’.