- Both of the authors of Beloved and Inferno seek justice, and contain themes of justice within the novels

JUSTICE

Historical justice

Justice as theme

To "Sixty Million and more" reads the dedication before Beloved. Referring to the lives affected by slavery, Morrison wrote her novel in respect for the slaves that built America and died without recognition. Written to remember all of the lives damaged by slavery, she commemorates their story through literature to ensure it is never forgotten. Dante's history, his power struggle and eventual exile from Florence by the Black Guelphs led to his writings, beginning with the Inferno. Both authors are seeking justice through literary form for historical events which affected both of their lives. Morrison, having an African American heritage, pays homage to her own culture and its past struggles to keep it significant forever. Dante's works are directly affected by historical events, involving rise to power and trial for false crimes, and seeks justice through his use of vernacular writing to appeal to all, even common people, for his point to be made. Both writers want their stories to be heard, and use their own history to tell them.

In the Inferno, sinners are stuck in Hell to pay for their sins in a fair and equal "punishment fits the crime" type setting. Dante's form of justice, or contrapassos, vary depending on degree of sin, serving their misdeeds for all of eternity. Sethe is stuck in the hell of 124. She is forever haunted by the ghost of her murdered baby, until she returns in literal form. The guilt she experiences over committing the killing acts as her Contrapasso, and when Beloved returns, she must take care of her. Sethe experiences the tortures of her own actions, forever reliving in rememory of Beloved, through her murder, her return, and later departure.