Why does Dante compare himself to Aeneas and Paul?
• Dante is referring to Book VI in the Aeneid and a Gnostic gospel called “The Vision of St. Paul,” which was very a popular text and which describes Paul’s journey into the underworld, which is mentioned in the New Testament, but not described there. • It might seem like false modesty, but he really seems to be emphasizing his self-doubt, his sense of personal unworthiness for this journey. Only the “greats” have made this trip. How will he compare? Does he have it in him? He seems to need Virgil’s reassurance here. Virgil needs to persuade him that he’ll be okay. It’s a very human reaction, to feel unworthy, to feel foolish, to be filled with self-doubt. • Virgil comments on Dante’s fear. He calls it “cowardice,” and compares it to the “trick of vision” that “startles a shying beast.” Notice how emotion, for Virgil, is linked to bestial behavior; you’re not much nobler than a beast when you allow your emotions to rule you this way-that’s the implication. What does Virgil do to “ease
