Dante Book 1 Canto V Scene 2

 

Scene 2

 

“God, what madness have I step onto?” Dante was in the realm of darkness, and yet he felt pulled by the winds that he could not see. He had clasped onto Virgil for a companion but the hold was not tight. He could not see but felt the noise there was worse than that of a stormy sea. It was a myriad of lamenting, moaning, and shrieking yet sickening to the ears. He saw glimpses of souls being swept by the winds.

“I am to be pulled away,” Dante called out.

“Hold on!” Dante heard the words but not the voice. He then felt a hand grabbing his left hand and was pulled by it. He had held onto Virgil’s hand with his right hand, and there he whisked the other with him. The arm that pulled Dante was firm and soon he found himself inside a small opening of the solid wall.

“Squeeze in. The winds may not take us here.” Again, Dante heard the words but not the voice. His concern then was Virgil who was still outside holding hard onto Dante’s right hand. Dante reached out with both his hands to pull Virgil in.

“He won’t it. We are…” Dante ignored the words and force his arms to abide by his request. Soon, Virgil was at the opening, and it was a tight fit.

“Tucked in your legs, Virgil,” Dante told the other. “We ain’t out of the woods yet.”

“Fools, you are. Now we may be …” The words came out of the darkness while Dante and Virgil squeezed the body into the tight cavity that their only solace from the winds. It was as if they were perched on a narrow gap on the side of the cliff, and below it was the deep fall to death. As if death had not swallowed them yet.

“It’s tight like a flowered lady.” Virgil found humor at that moment.

“Damn you to the fires of Hell.” The words came out once more but within the confines of the cavity, it sounded more like another soul albeit a lady perhaps.

“Who are you?” Dante asked. “Damn, where can I get light in here?”

“I know.” It was Virgil who answered him. Virgil reached into his tunic and withdrew the orb. H3e activated it and the red light came on. It was faint but, in the darkness, it was the light.

And Dante then saw who had rescued him from the wind.

It was a lady.

“My name is Francesca. Francesca Da Rimini. I am stuck here for my sin.” The lady was covered in the off-shoulder night gown and her hair was untidy then as if she had not brushed it for a long time. “Pardon my looks, but it has been ages since I arrived.”

“None took, my lady. I am Dante and he is …Virgil. We are here to …”

“It’s been ages since anyone spoke to me. I was with … my lover, Paolo. We are sinner of lust.” The lady burst out in tears. Dante would have offered his comfort but his movements were restrictive. “We…”

“Do tell me in your words, Lady Francesca. I will not judge but I will try to find you one with the rightful judges.” Dante assured the lady.

“There is no justification in the judgment. I was judged when I arrived here. The one who stood with the tail had sent me here to be condemned for my sin. All we had done was …love.” Lady Francesca spoke. She paused and then spoke of her plight.

“I was young and was wedded to Paolo’s brother, Gianciotto who was deformed in the physical body. It was an arranged wedding with the exchange of coins for the vow. I was never consulted nor was I given the chance to speak to Paolo whom I truly loved. The marriage was a sad affair, and I was unhappy. I could see Paolo was the same. We see each other but forbidden by the vows I had taken; it was hurtful to be together.”

“Love can be painful but to be denied it, like me was a bliss.” Virgil cut in. He had denied himself the throes of love and steered his life with the research of life.

“Pray to ignore the other. If he sounds out once more, I will toss him off the opening here.” Dante cautioned Virgil. “Do continue.”

“It was inevitable. Our love consumed our fear. I went to bed Paolo one night and the nights after that. It was bliss. We were happy until Gianciotto found out. He caught us in the act. It was shameful then. I knew that I had sinned. I asked for forgiveness but Gianciotto was beyond that. He killed Paolo, his brother with the sword. He then looked at me. His words sting for eternity.”

“A whore you have become. Nothing in you will ever be mine. Carry your sins to your Hell.” Francesca uttered those words. “He then killed me. I died on Paolo’s chest. We arrived at the Underworld together and was sentenced to here for our sin.”

“Damn the idiocrasies of the Judges. Don’t they understand love from forced devotion?” Dante was furious. “I had preached on the subject of lust many times. There are many forms of lust. This was not lusting. It was love.”

“Spare me space here, Dante. I will add to your reasoning. She did commit lust when she bedded her brother by marriage. There is another word for it…. incest. They were wrong.” Virgil braced himself if he was to be shoved off. He was not then.

“Was it? Abraham married his sister Sarah (Genesis 20:12), Lot and his daughters (Genesis 19), and few others.” Dante defended the relationship.

“And the Book stopped it at Leviticus 18:6-18. It was before that a consummation of needs.” Virgil was careful with his words. “But let us focus on lust for now as the sin. Lust is a disordered desire for sexual pleasure where the pleasure was sought to by itself, isolated from its procreative and unitive purposes.” (https://manhoodjourney.org/the-deadly-sin-of-lust)

“Were they?” Dante asked. “There was love.”

“And vows that they are to hold.” Virgil looked at Dante. “Tell me, Dante. Did you lust after Beatrice? Even when she was the Empress.”

Dante hesitated to reply and finally did.

“I love her as Francesca had for Paolo. When she was wedded, I was upset. I …”

“You joined the Priesthood to preach but you could not be accepted into it. You were asked to leave for some of our sermons were … enticing to be heard. So, you left to join the Volunteers.” Virgil recalled Dante’s memory. “Did lust drove you to it?”

“How could you…Yes, it was but my lust was an overpowering urge to forget her. It was a strong desire of my mind to forget.” Dante defended his action.

“Yet you came when I told you it was Beatrice who asked of you. Do you still love or rather lust after her? Would it sadden you that she called on you as a friend and not as a lover here? She still holds her vow to the Emperor.”

“She is dead. What does it matter to her vows? It was a living vow and not she is dead.” Dante again defended Beatrice.

“It remains to be seen, Dante.” Virgil reminded the other. “We are here because you wanted to see Beatrice and when you do, ask her.”

“What made you break those vows?” Dante turned to Francesca.