For the careless reader, Dante's Inferno and Chaucer's Canterbury Tales are generally interpreted as mere works of fiction conceived and created for the sole purpose entertainment. However, to fully understand the authors' intended message, one must carefully analyze the rhetoric and style of each work. If both works of art are not examined carefully, the reader would overlook Dante and Chaucer's overlapping themes regarding critiques of the behavior of Church representatives in their poems. These influential artists anticipated the beginnings of the Catholic Reformation, widely illustrated in Inferno and The Canterbury Tales. In the authors' opinion, the leaders of the Catholic Church were found to be flawed in that they were incredibly corrupt and emphasized worldly wealth as a sin. Nearly a century before the Reformation era, beginning in 1517 with the Theses of Martin Luther, Dante and Chaucer both catalyzed the Reformation movement by subtly rebuking the Church, indirectly through their works of fiction . Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay Although Dante offers pointed commentary on the politics of his hometown state of Florence throughout Inferno, his commentary on the position of Church officials is of particular interest. His criticism is important because of his future role in the important historical events of the split of the Catholic Church into the Protestant sect. During Dante's lifetime, corruption in the Church was rampant. Everyone from priests to the pope was guilty of the sin of avarice, defined by the intense gluttony for monetary wealth. Dante's contempt for the representatives of the Church is represented by their placement in the structure of his Hell. To understand the severity of Dante's contempt for the sinful leaders of the Church, one must first understand the construction of his Hell. Dante's hell was built on the gravity of the sin committed; the more serious the sin, the deeper the sinner was condemned to hell. Thus, in Canto XIX (page 454), many important leaders of the Church, including Pope Nicholas III, are found in the eighth circle of Hell, which is the penultimate circle of Hell. For reference, lechers are found in the second circle, while heretics are found in the sixth circle (page 391). Now that the foundation of the structure has been laid, the form of punishment follows a similar set of general rules in Inferno. Dante finds Pope Nicholas III “writhing more than any of his comrades… licked by a redder flame” (page 454). Because Nicholas III was not a simple priest, but rather the pope of the entire Catholic Church, charged with "the keys of its custody" (page 456), his form of punishment was more drastic than the others, illustrated by the 'brighter fire, hotter flame. In Dante's conversation with Pope Nicholas III, he argues that the pope "brings sorrow to the world" instead of worshiping God, "he has worshiped hundreds... without differing from the idolater" (page 456). This very scene constitutes Dante's view of the deficiencies of the representatives of the Church; that they attach more importance to the wealth of the world than to the righteous conduct of the Catholic Church. Furthermore, Pope Nicholas III was not the only pope guilty of these sins. As shown by the ability of tormented people to see into the future, but not into the past, described on page 455, more popes were to be condemned to the same set in which Pope Nicholas III was already placed, supporting the idea according to whichseveral Church officials have been enveloped in fraud and deception. Although these factual events did not lead to widespread change during Dante Alighieri's life, they provided the necessary stimulus that led to the events of Martin Luther. Dante played this catalytic role by first introducing the idea that the Church was involved in corruption and deception. Although not directly addressed in Inferno, this preliminary introduction was necessary because of the power of the Catholic Church and its effective ability to silence its opponents and influence the public interest. Chaucer's Canterbury Tales tells the story of a variety of people on a pilgrimage to a Canterbury cathedral. It is remarkable to emphasize this; Although Chaucer may have created a setting with religious overtones, that of a pilgrimage, this is actually quite ironic because the characters depicted in the story also represent Chaucer's criticisms of representatives of the Church. In Dante's Inferno, he informs the audience of his criticisms of Church representatives by their place in his Inferno. On the other hand, Chaucer uses irony to display his opinion on the matter. For example, when describing the Prioress, she is described as “finding what pleases her most” (page 665). This claim is supported by the fact that she wears a rosary as a sign of love and admiration for Jesus Christ, but nuns were not allowed to wear flamboyant items, much less jewelry (page 666). By wearing the rosary, the Prioress signifies that she has no particular attachment to the Catholic Church, nor to the main beliefs on which it is based. This example is representative of Chaucer's view that Church officials are heavily corrupt and that the Catholic Church as a whole should not be trusted due to their dishonesty and fraud. Chaucer further illustrates his view that many Church officials are corrupted by the monk's description. . The monk also demonstrates the author's view that Church officials are corrupted by their desire to adhere to the religion of which he is the leader. Instead of reading the Bible and engaging in religious thought and prayer, the monk prefers to go hunting because "he doesn't care about the rules" (page 666). Chaucer adds to the development of the monk's character by stating that he "would not give you a plucked hen...for this text" (page 666). According to the interpretation of this quote, the text in question here is the Holy Bible. Because the monk feels no responsibility for the principles of his position, he prefers to go out and use his time according to his hobbies, which are hunting. All of these quotes support the claim that Chaucer is again creating a contrast in his characters, representative of his point of view as a whole. The specific contrast between these characters is that they both hold positions of authority in the church, but they act as if they are corrupt, as evidenced by the monk's choice of clothing, which is very ornate. Jesus Christ taught that his disciples should be humbled and show modesty towards others, but the monk completely ignores this teaching, further illustrating his misdeeds. Perhaps the most notable and intriguing example of corruption in Chaucer's narrative is that of the Pardoner, who confesses that he is advertising false relics to Christians (page 713). Chaucer's description of the Pardoner is a direct representation of the type of church official that Martin Luther would later attack, as described in The 95 Theses. Similar to Dante, exposing the audience.