What are the nature and signs of the lost souls? How do the various characters in Hell behave, and how do they think and feel? How do they present themselves and what arguments do they put forward to justify or embellish their guilt? And above all, to what extent are they aware of it? The author aims to answer these questions in a psychological and sympathetic investigation based on a close examination of the text, key words, and associations within the work itself. In this way historical authenticity is maintained while also allowing the extraordinary modernity of the first canticle of The Divine Comedy to shine through, its aim in the poet’s mind being to illuminate the dark recesses of the conscience to liberate the reader from the sequence of errors which give rise to the pain of living.