Characters
Characters of the Divine Comedy
Explore the protagonists and figures Dante meets on his journey.
| Personaggio | Tipologia | Menzioni | Versi collegati | Descrizione |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Opizzo da Esti | Rulers and nobles | 1 | 1 | Opizzo da Esti is mentioned by Dante in Canto XII of the Inferno, where the poet indicates him with the formula 'è Opizzo da Esti, il qual per vero' (If XII 111). |
| Horace | Unclassified | 1 | 1 | Ancient Latin poet, mentioned by Virgil in Limbo as part of the 'bella scola' of the great ancient poets, representing the humble style for his Satires. |
| Orestes | Mythological | 1 | 1 | In Purgatorio XIII he is cited as an example in the terrace of the envious, where his voice crying 'I am Orestes' echoes as it moves away along the circle. |
| Orpheus | Mythological | 1 | 1 | Mythical poet of ancient Greece, cited by Dante in Limbo among the spiriti magni alongside Linus and other ancient sages. |
| Orlando | Rulers and nobles | 2 | 2 | Paladin of Charlemagne, famous for his death in the ambush at Roncevaux and recalled by Dante as a champion of the Christians' war against the infidels. |
| Octavian | Rulers and nobles | 1 | 1 | Octavian Augustus, the Roman emperor mentioned by Sordello da Goito in Purgatorio VII as the one who commissioned the burial of Virgil's body. |
| Ovid | Unclassified | 1 | 2 | Latin poet cited by Dante in Limbo as the third poet of the noble castle, after Homer and Virgil and before Lucan, representing the comic style. |
| Pagani | Families and factions | 1 | 1 | The Pagani, lords of Faenza, remembered in Purgatorio (XIV 118) as a lineage that will benefit from the heirless death of their leader Maghinardo, here called a demon. |
| Pallas | Mythological | 1 | 1 | Son of King Evander who allied himself with Aeneas against the Latins, killed so that the Eagle might establish its kingdom in Latium. |
| Paul | Biblical figures | 1 | 2 | Apostle mentioned by Dante in Paradise alongside Peter as a witness of sacrifice for the faith. Already recalled at the opening of the Inferno among the two paradigmatic travelers, Aeneas and Paul, to whom the poet assimilates his own undertaking. |
| Pope Agapitus | Popes and clergy | 1 | 1 | Pope Agapitus, recalled by Justinian in Paradise for his role in the religious reconciliation of the emperor with the true faith. |
| Paris | Mythological | 1 | 1 | Paris, the hero of the Trojan War, is mentioned by Dante in Canto V of the Inferno among the shades of the lustful, alongside Tristan and other historical and literary figures. |
| Parmenides | Poets and thinkers | 1 | 1 | Philosopher of antiquity cited by Thomas among those who, using reason, fell into error. |
| Pasiphaë | Mythological | 1 | 1 | Mythological figure of bestial lust, wife of Minos: she mated with a bull by hiding inside a wooden cow built by Daedalus, begetting the Minotaur. |
| Paean | Mythological | 1 | 1 | Paean is recalled in the Heaven of the Sun, among the voices that tradition denies to the sacred song of the three divine Persons. The name, joined with that of Bacchus, designates a pagan hymn excluded from the Trinitarian praise of Paradiso XIII. |
| Penelope | Mythological | 1 | 1 | Penelope is mentioned by Ulysses in the Inferno (XXVI 96) as the one who should have rejoiced at his return, a figure evoked by the hero's memory of not going back to Ithaca. |
| Piccarda | Unclassified | 2 | 4 | Florentine Franciscan nun, sister of Forese Donati; in Paradise she explains to Dante the condition of the blessed who have only partially fulfilled their vow. |
| Piche | Mythological | 1 | 1 | The Piche, burned in Dante's poetic memory, are evoked as the defeated followers of Calliope in the myth of the singing challenge against the Pierides, cited by Dante in the Proem of Purgatorio. |
| Pier dalla Broccia | Rulers and nobles | 1 | 1 | Pierre de la Brossa, a gentleman of Touraine and chamberlain of Philip III of France, hanged in 1278. In Antepurgatory he is the soul separated from his body out of hatred and envy, named by Dante among the violent against their neighbors. |
| Pier da Medicina | Rulers and nobles | 1 | 1 | Thirteenth-century figure, lord or «cattano» of Medicina, a village between Bologna and Imola; cited by Dante in Inferno (XXVIII) as a subtle instigator of discord in Romagna. |
| Pier Pettinaio | Popes and clergy | 1 | 1 | Sienese tailor/merchant of combs, venerated as a saint after his death (1289); Franciscan tertiary, recalled by Dante in Purgatorio as an example of a righteous person whose prayer benefits the souls of Purgatory. |
| Pier Traversaro | Rulers and nobles | 1 | 1 | Ghibelline lord of the Traversari family of Ravenna, recalled by Dante in Purgatorio among the illustrious names of past liberality and courtesy. |
| Peter | Biblical figures | 4 | 18 | Apostle mentioned in the mystical procession of Purgatorio XXIX, indicated as the guide of the celestial militia in Paradiso IX and remembered among the martyrs in Paradiso XVIII. |
| Pietro Bernardone | Historical | 1 | 1 | Father of Saint Francis, recalled by Cacciaguida in the Paradiso as a merchant, whose name is evoked by Dante with mild irony to signal the saint's humble origin. |