Outcome as a Form of Structure: Similarities and Differences in Confessions and Inferno

St. Augustine's pear-stealing episode and Ulysses's account of how he ended up in hell serve as platforms for Confessions and Inferno to discuss sin. Both episodes offer insight into the implications of overstepping divine limits, among other nuances and similar topics. While the acts appear and are to a certain extent, similar due to both characters engaging in what their works describe as sin, there are also important differences when comparing these. These differences act as catalysts for the current situation of St. Augustine and Ulysses. The similarities of St. Augustine’s and Ulysses’s acts are present through a shared belittlement of both characters in their texts, while the differences in these acts are seen in the way the text is structured and the difference between linear and non-linear storytelling. 

The differences in the acts committed by Ulysses and Saint Augustine are seen through the different storytelling approaches each character takes, particularly non-linear and linear storytelling. When discussing the episode of the pears, St. Augustine jumps back and forth in his mind as opposed to Ulysses’s chronologically linear, somewhat allegorical recount. In a mere four paragraphs, St. Augustine bounces to the present, again to the past, and again to the present. “Theft receives certain punishment by your law,” he says (St Augustine, 28). “We carried off a huge load of pears,” he says, leaping into the past (St Augustine, 29). “There is beauty in lovely physical objects, as in gold and silver and all other such things,” he says shortly after, returning himself to the present (St Augustine, 29). St. Augustine's narrative technique emphasizes and creates a smooth interplay between past and present. This represents the intersection of how his repentance is shaped by his memory, discussing sin in a non-linear way. This allows for St. Augustine to carefully explore the implications of sin over time. St. Augustine gets the chance to introspect himself and his ideas as a product of this way of storytelling. When he says, “Such was my heart, O God, such was my heart. You had pity on it when it was at the bottom of the abyss,” St. Augustine is reflecting on his past, to which he follows up with a personal reflection. He had listened to God, now he talks to him when he says, “Now let my heart tell you,” (St Augustine, 29). This structure oscillates between past and present and highlights the struggle between sinful pasts and a possibility of renewed futures. The way in which the text is written serves as a catalyst for St. Augustine’s path towards greatness. Although sin is what led St. Augustine to stealing the pears, the structure of the text, which allowed him to engage in meaningful discourse with himself, is what eventually makes St. Augustine look away from sin. On the other hand, sin is the catalyst towards Ulysses's demise, which now makes him subject to punishment in the rings of hell. He narrates his lived experience and starts telling his story by, “[asking everybody to] refrain from talking,” (Dante, 26.72). From the start, his non-introspective account is evident. He does not let anyone interrupt him, which ironically includes himself. He proceeds to chronologically narrate his story, “When I sailed away from Circe,” he starts (Dante, 26.91). He even mentions a speech given to his comrades or “brothers,” (Dante, 26.112 Dante) yet once again it is never known what he thought about sinning, or his journey, or anything at all. In fact, even when Ulysses gives the speech to his comrades, he barely acknowledges his audience. He appeals to a crew whose only purpose is to showcase Ulysses's leadership, which potentially serves as a part of justification for his actions. He gives a monologue in which he expresses himself. The, “Other, until the sea again closed over us,” he bluntly concludes (Dante, 26.112). The approach St. Augustine and Ulysses have toward their sins differ drastically from each other. This is seen in the structure of the text and leads each character to where they stand now, whether it's hell or the earth in a position for repentance. Non-linearity allows St. Augustine to engage with himself, while Ulysses's chronological allegory serves as proof and explains Ulysses's demise. 

The similarities in the acts committed by Ulysses and Saint Augustine are seen throughout the structure of the text, particularly in how, when committing the sin, both texts belittle St. Augustine and Ulysses respectively. Although this paper previously discussed the different outcomes St. Augustine and Ulysses encountered as a product of sin, the tendency described above did not always represent the reality of the characters. Although we eventually see St. Augustine rise to greatness and Ulysses live in the depths of hell, at some point both of these characters were belittled. Ulysses is introduced as someone who is “within a flame” (Dante, 26.55) and St. Augustine mortifies himself when he mentions how his “depraved soul” (St. Augustine, 29) and how he “had fallen” (St Augustine, 29). In these cases, the characters are belittled, especially if compared to those who surround them. In the case of Ulysses, who is trapped in a flame, he is surrounded by Dante and Virgil. In the case of St. Augustine, he talks to God, meaning he is surrounded by what he views as the grandiosity of God. It is evident how both texts literally make the characters small as a result of their sin. Besides this, both texts show how the characters engage in dialectical methods with those who are bigger than them. Both have the need to externalize and tell someone what they did and why. “That is you, Lord God, and your truth and your law” (St Augustine, 30) St. Augustine says in one of the many times he talks to God. Augustine utilizes a dialogic approach, engaging in an imagined dialogue with God. This rhetorical strategy also reflects Augustine's internal struggle and the dialectical method of reaching truth, highlighting the personal and introspective nature of his confession. On the other hand, Ulysses employs his monological approach when he talks to Dante, and within his story, to his crew. “What you have asked is worthy” (Dante, 26.70) he says when engaging in a one-sided dialogue with Dante and Virgil. “You must not deny experiences of that which lies beyond the sun” (Dante, 26.115) he warns his crew. Despite the unusual solo dialogue, Ulysses has to talk to someone and does so as soon as the opportunity arises. Despite their differences in facing their individualized sins, the way in which they handle these appears to be similar to each other. In both of the conversations the characters hold, neither of them receives a spoken response, yet they still talk to the other characters present. Ulysses' monologue also reflects Dante's broader narrative technique, using characters' stories to elucidate moral and theological lessons. The characters' belittlement is further emphasized in the rest of the actions the characters take. From St. Augustine admitting to being an inferior figure than God, the eventual tossing of the pears towards the pigs, and Ulysses' crash of his ship, everything related to the sin is used to further belittle the characters. It is evident how the structure of the text shows the similarities in the acts that Ulysses and St. Augustine commit.

Although differences and similarities appear to be obvious when compared in St. Augustine’s pear theft and Ulysses' way to hell, it is not until one takes a closer look into the structure of the passages and how each story is told that one realizes the similarities and differences behind the acts. In conclusion, the non-linear storytelling seen by St. Augustine offers an opportunity for him to rise toward greatness. The linear, somewhat allegorical, storytelling by Ulysses shows how this lack of introspection became a catalyst for Ulysses’s decline and eventual demise in hell. Despite this, both acts, and therefore texts, have similarities in terms of the depiction of sin and the initial movement downward, figuratively and literally, of the characters as a product of their sins. St. Augustine's journey from sin to sanctity and Ulysses’s to hell is not just a chronological recount of events but a deep, philosophical inquiry into the nature of sin, the human condition, and the possibility of redemption. This approach makes the narrative a personal and universal meditation on the path to understanding and forgiveness. 

References