Inferno, Canto 30

The Text of Canto 30 (Open PDF)

Summary

The shades of Myrrha and Gianni Schicchi are pointed out by Griffolino. Dante becomes intent upon a quarrel between Adam of Brescia and Sinon of Troy, and earns a memorable rebuke from Virgil.

The Prepatory Lecture

Click here if video doesn't appear.

Questions for Reflection

• In addition to alchemy from the previous canto, what are the three additional forms of falsification in this malebolgia? In addition to the act of falsifying, is there any other common thread that connects these various acts?
• Who is Master Adam, what was his sin, and what associations might Dante be trying to make between this new Adam and the first Adam? Is Master Adam in any way an infernal parody of Jesus, the true Adam?
• How do we see the vice of envy at play in Master Adam’s feelings about his former employees (who got him killed)? Why might envy play such a vivid role in this canto? How does envy poison our ability to acknowledge our own failings and take ownership of them?
• Who is Sinon and how is his name a kind of moral indictment against him (Si/non)? What were the political and spiritual consequences of both Potipher’s wife’s lies and Sinon’s falsifications?
• How does the Pilgrim backslide a bit in his moral judgment at the end of the canto? How does Virgil’s rebuke correct him?

Canto 30 © Jan Hearn

The Images

The Falsifiers. In this canto we have the images of impersonators (falsifiers of person), perjurers (falsifiers of words), and counterfeiters (falsifiers of money).

Mark Vernon's Lecture