Dante as A Character

I view Dante as a character who is lost in life, and is seeking to reach his ultimate goal of salvation.  He cannot reach salvation until he travels through the circles of hell.  It appears to me that Dante is a description of many things.  First, I think he does serve as the author because he seems to tell the story from his view.  Also, he could be a description of everyman, and how every man appears to be lost in their journey to salavation and needs a helping hand to guide them to a path of righteousness.

Once again, it seems as if you are right there in the circles of hell traveling down on a journey to the purgatory with Dante.  The imagery is immense, and so descriptive that it seems as if Dante had to be writing this from personal experience.  I do not know how Dante was as a person, only through reading this book, but if he is indeed the author he has no problem with being honest and truthful.  For example he starts off in the beginning in a "dark wood" and states that he is lost.  Some people have trouble writing or talking about their beliefs or their problems in life, but Dante was very clear in that he was in a state of confusion and needed to better his life.

Dante could also be seen as a depiction of every day man, in the fact that most men today are lost when it comes to salvation, and most probably dont know what salvation is or what it consists of.  Also, just as Dante had to travel down the circles of hell to see what life would be like, some people experience this today.  Some must experience the worst: maybe a friend dying, or some unfortunate event that tears them apart emotionally before they can have faith in God and he will lead, and guide us with his helping hand.  God in the Inferno could be represented as Virgil, because he is divine and powerful, and shows Dante to the depths of the Inferno that have not been seen by human beings.