Charon

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Charon is the demon who governs the passage of the damned souls across the Stygian swamp, at the shore described at the beginning of the third canto of the Inferno. The authorized note identifies his first distinguishing trait in the whiteness of his «hair and beard», presented through the image of the «ancient fleece», and notes how Dante characterizes him predominantly through his actions — rushing forward with the boat, shouting, and showing his woolly cheeks — rather than through an extended physical description. Virgil addresses him directly with the abbreviated name «Caron», an oxytone form typical of Greek names not declined in Latin, a sign of familiarity between the two. The ferryman recognizes the extraordinary nature of Dante's journey, foretold as lighter and conducted by another way, and finally quiets himself before the will of heaven, which can do what it wills.