In the first canto of Dante´s Inferno, Dante, the protagonist, is presented to the reader trying to find his way through dark woods searching for the mountain of Purgatory. The mountains should lead him to Heaven, but three ferocious beasts block his path; a leopard, a lion, and a she-wolf causing Dante to cower and retreat into the woods, and so appears Virgil offering Dante an alternate route to Purgatory through the Underworld.

In the second canto, Dante asks Virgil if he deems him strong enough to undertake such a venture full of pity and misery (Canto 2: 31-36). To this, Virgil replies that Dante´s soul is wounded by cowardice. Virgil also reveals that he was presented with the task of delivering Dante from his fears by a divine lady. (Canto 2: 44-51)

¨I was among those who are suspended, 

and a lady called me, so blessed and beautiful that

 I begged her to command me.¨ (Canto 2: 52-54) 

The lady Virgil speaks of is Beatrice. A woman who Dante had loved since his childhood and who died prematurely.“My friend, not the friend of fortune, on the deserted shore is so blocked…”( Canto 2: 61-62) In these lines, Dante also hints at the fact that Beatrice also cared more for him, she admits her interference in remedying Dante´s misfortunes rather than letting him suffer through his fate.

Dante describes her eyes as ¨shinning brighter than the morning star¨ (Canto 2: 55-56). 

The morning star is usually indicative of the planet Venus which is mostly at its brightest just before dawn and can be associated with the Roman goddess of love (Britannica https://www.britannica.com/topic/Venus-goddess); but the fact that Dante refers to her eyes as ¨shining brighter than the morning sun¨ presents Beatrice (she who bestows blessings) as being more blessed than Satan himself as he is also associated with the morning star ¨Lucifer, (Latin: Lightbearer) … the morning star (i.e., the planet Venus at dawn); personified as a male figure bearing a torch, Lucifer had almost no legend, but in poetry, he was often herald of the dawn.¨ (Britannica https://www.britannica.com/topic/Lucifer-classical-mythology). Beatrice continues to speak to Virgil, stating that love has caused her to seek him to help the now lost Dante.

Thus Beatrice personifies love as a whole. She descended from the heavens to seek Virgil in hell without fear because she is blessed/ protected by her faith (love for God), and thus, the love Dante bears for her creates a chain of protection that will see Dante through his journey through the underworld. The love he has for Beatrice is his salvation.  

Gianni, Hotchi, Karla