Sharon Vaughn and Jack M. Fletcher

by | Oct 23, 2024 | Analysis

 

 

Read the article by Sharon Vaughn and Jack M. Fletcher

After critically reading the article, you will be required to answer a series of questions. What do we mean by read critically? Critical reading means more than just skimming the subheadings of a textbook chapter or highlighting the occasional phrase. Critical reading means taking the time to think carefully about what is being said in a text. It involves identifying key features in the reading, such as the authors argument and the evidence being used to support it. It means not taking for granted that whatever you are reading is objective or absolute fact, but analyzing and evaluating the credibility of a text using a set of criteria. Once you have read the article, answer the following five questions:

What is the main topic of the article?
What is the issue being discussed?
What position (argument) does the author make?
What evidence does the author put forward?
How convincing is this evidence (quality of evidence, inclusion/discussion of counter-arguments, glaring omissions)?

 

Sample solution

Dante Alighieri played a critical role in the literature world through his poem Divine Comedy that was written in the 14th century. The poem contains Inferno, Purgatorio, and Paradiso. The Inferno is a description of the nine circles of torment that are found on the earth. It depicts the realms of the people that have gone against the spiritual values and who, instead, have chosen bestial appetite, violence, or fraud and malice. The nine circles of hell are limbo, lust, gluttony, greed and wrath. Others are heresy, violence, fraud, and treachery. The purpose of this paper is to examine the Dante’s Inferno in the perspective of its portrayal of God’s image and the justification of hell. 

In this epic poem, God is portrayed as a super being guilty of multiple weaknesses including being egotistic, unjust, and hypocritical. Dante, in this poem, depicts God as being more human than divine by challenging God’s omnipotence. Additionally, the manner in which Dante describes Hell is in full contradiction to the morals of God as written in the Bible. When god arranges Hell to flatter Himself, He commits egotism, a sin that is common among human beings (Cheney, 2016). The weakness is depicted in Limbo and on the Gate of Hell where, for instance, God sends those who do not worship Him to Hell. This implies that failure to worship Him is a sin.


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God is also depicted as lacking justice in His actions thus removing the godly image. The injustice is portrayed by the manner in which the sodomites and opportunists are treated. The opportunists are subjected to banner chasing in their lives after death followed by being stung by insects and maggots. They are known to having done neither good nor bad during their lifetimes and, therefore, justice could have demanded that they be granted a neutral punishment having lived a neutral life. The sodomites are also punished unfairly by God when Brunetto Lattini is condemned to hell despite being a good leader (Babor, T. F., McGovern, T., & Robaina, K. (2017). While he commited sodomy, God chooses to ignore all the other good deeds that Brunetto did.

Finally, God is also portrayed as being hypocritical in His actions, a sin that further diminishes His godliness and makes Him more human. A case in point is when God condemns the sin of egotism and goes ahead to commit it repeatedly. Proverbs 29:23 states that “arrogance will bring your downfall, but if you are humble, you will be respected.” When Slattery condemns Dante’s human state as being weak, doubtful, and limited, he is proving God’s hypocrisy because He is also human (Verdicchio, 2015). The actions of God in Hell as portrayed by Dante are inconsistent with the Biblical literature. Both Dante and God are prone to making mistakes, something common among human beings thus making God more human.

To wrap it up, Dante portrays God is more human since He commits the same sins that humans commit: egotism, hypocrisy, and injustice. Hell is justified as being a destination for victims of the mistakes committed by God. The Hell is presented as being a totally different place as compared to what is written about it in the Bible. As a result, reading through the text gives an image of God who is prone to the very mistakes common to humans thus ripping Him off His lofty status of divine and, instead, making Him a mere human. Whether or not Dante did it intentionally is subject to debate but one thing is clear in the poem: the misconstrued notion of God is revealed to future generations.

 

References

Babor, T. F., McGovern, T., & Robaina, K. (2017). Dante’s inferno: Seven deadly sins in scientific publishing and how to avoid them. Addiction Science: A Guide for the Perplexed, 267.

Cheney, L. D. G. (2016). Illustrations for Dante’s Inferno: A Comparative Study of Sandro Botticelli, Giovanni Stradano, and Federico Zuccaro. Cultural and Religious Studies, 4(8), 487.

Verdicchio, M. (2015). Irony and Desire in Dante’s” Inferno” 27. Italica, 285-297.

Framework for Critical Reading

  1. Identify the Main Topic: What is the overall subject matter being addressed? Look for keywords in the title, abstract, and introductory paragraphs.

  2. Identify the Issue: What specific problem or question is the author trying to address? What is the gap in knowledge or understanding that the author seeks to fill?

  3. Identify the Author’s Position (Argument): What is the author’s main point or thesis statement? What are they trying to convince the reader of?

  4. Analyze the Evidence: What evidence does the author present to support their position? Is it qualitative, quantitative, or both?

    • Qualitative: Consider the credibility of sources, the depth of analysis, and the potential for bias.

    • Quantitative: Consider the sample size, statistical methods used, and the potential for error or misinterpretation.

  5. Evaluate the Evidence:

    • Quality: Is the evidence relevant, reliable, and sufficient to support the author’s claims?

    • Counter-arguments: Does the author acknowledge and address opposing viewpoints? How effectively do they refute or concede to these counter-arguments?

    • Omissions: Are there any significant omissions or gaps in the evidence that raise questions about the validity of the author’s argument?

Framework for Critical Reading

  1. Identify the Main Topic: What is the overall subject matter being addressed? Look for keywords in the title, abstract, and introductory paragraphs.

  2. Identify the Issue: What specific problem or question is the author trying to address? What is the gap in knowledge or understanding that the author seeks to fill?

  3. Identify the Author’s Position (Argument): What is the author’s main point or thesis statement? What are they trying to convince the reader of?

  4. Analyze the Evidence: What evidence does the author present to support their position? Is it qualitative, quantitative, or both?

    • Qualitative: Consider the credibility of sources, the depth of analysis, and the potential for bias.

    • Quantitative: Consider the sample size, statistical methods used, and the potential for error or misinterpretation.

  5. Evaluate the Evidence:

    • Quality: Is the evidence relevant, reliable, and sufficient to support the author’s claims?

    • Counter-arguments: Does the author acknowledge and address opposing viewpoints? How effectively do they refute or concede to these counter-arguments?

    • Omissions: Are there any significant omissions or gaps in the evidence that raise questions about the validity of the author’s argument?

Answering Your Specific Questions:

Once you have carefully read the article using this framework, you should be able to answer your five questions in a detailed and nuanced manner.

Remember, critical reading is an active process that involves engaging with the text, analyzing its content, and forming your own informed judgment.

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