Scarmiglione

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Scarmiglione is one of Malacoda's devils, in the squad that escorts the two pilgrims inside the eighth circle. His name, coined by Dante, has an evident meaning: 'disheveled, ruffled.' When Malacoda orders his team to lower their hooks, he calls him by name with the imperative "Lower it, lower it, Scarmiglione!" The roll call of the squad continues immediately after with other fanciful names (Alichino, Calcabrina, Cagnazzo, etc.), merged into a complex where the visual and the phonic elements produce an effect of arrogance and aggressive farcicality, consistent with the 'comic' character that Dante intended to give to this ditch. These are the popular devils, defined as 'basically good-natured,' typical of a non-tragic register. The name Alichino, in particular, preserves the link with the tradition of medieval theater (Old French Hallequin, from which Arlecchino/Harlequin), while Scarmiglione belongs to the nucleus of original names created by the poet to characterize the scene.