Dante’s Divine Comedy; Inferno: Canto VIII
Virgil and Dante have reached the gates of Dis, and find themselves dissed. The city gates are locked and demons and fallen angels on the other side won’t let the poetic duo enter. Oddly, Virgil’s usual ploy (telling the recalcitrant locals “We’re on a mission from God”) isn’t working. The Hellish Host even trots out …