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Both Dante's Inferno and Saw center around the concept of cotrapasso, or as the translator, Mark Musa states it, the "counter penalty". This is the key theme in Dante's Hell and the punishments that Jigsaw puts each of his victims through. In both works those who have sinned are put through a punishment that fits their sins. This can be seen in the treatment of thieves, in which both works, the sinners are burnt to ash as their punishment.
In Dante's Inferno, Dante first finds himself lost in the dark wood, with no reccolection of how he arrived. He escapes death, achieves personal growth and achieves redemption through the help of his guide Virgil. During their journey through hell, Dante learns the punishments that await each type of sinner. This learning process is guided by Virgil who corrects Dante when he shows too much Pity or interest in any one sinner. This is all in an attempt to give Dante safe passage to heaven by helping him understand the wrongs of sin.
In the movie Saw, the main characters can be identified as Dr. Gordon and Adam. Each with their own set of sins, the find them in their punishment, set up by Jigsaw. What is interesting in this premise is that Jigsaw does not want them to die. He instead wants his victims to learn from their punishment and respect their lives more. This can be seen in the recounts of a survivor named Mandy. She was a drug addict, who was set straight by the punishment Jigsaw put her through, even thanking him during her police interrogation.
In both Dante's Inferno and Saw, the main characters are sent through a journy of redemtion. Interstingly, both stories begin with the main characters not knowing where they are or how they got there. This only changes once their guide, Virgil and Jigsaw, exlpain their situations and what they must overcome to free themselves. Along their journey, we discover the sins and punishments of those who have come before them. We are emerssed in the lives of Dante, Dr. Gordon and Adam, as if to be part of the journy for both.
In both works, the punishment of theives are quite similar. As seen in this quote from Dante's Inferno, Canto XXIV, "Suddenly a snake darts out and strikers a sinner's neck, whereupon he flares up, turning into a heap of crubmling ash;". The punishment involves a firey death. This is almost identical to the death of the theif who steals money from those who he is able to gain trust. The sinner in Saw is set ablaze, until the only thing that remains is a chared body and ash.
In Dante's Inferno, those who commit suicide are condemed to wood of suicide, where they are all turned into trees or shrubs. Their punishment is explained in this quote from Canto XIII, "I snapped the tiny branch of a great thornbush; and its trunk cried: "Why do you rip me?" and when its blood turned dark around the wound,". This sample of the text shows the punishment those who commited suicide must indure. Never to return to their bodies again, and to be ripped and teared for eternity. Put in context with Saw, the victim, Paul, who attempt suicide by razor blade, must prove he cared about life. His punishment involves a timed escape through a maze of barbed wire, which eventually cuts him so badly that he bleed out and dies. The punishment and lesson to be learned for both cases, try to teach the victims how precious their bodies are.
This may seem strange when referring to a horro movie such as Saw, however the main characters technically have a happy ending, having lived through their ordeals. Just as Dante's Inferno is considered to have a happy ending, hence the "Divine Comedy" title for the work, so to can Saw be considered a "Comedy" in the old sence of the word. In both works, the main characters survive their ordeals, as changed men, having grown from their journey. The all gain a new perspective on life.
Through out the works of Dante's Inferno and Saw, their is a reccuring theme of punishment and redemption. The punishments also fit the crimes in similar manners across both works. Whether it be those involved in suicide, forced to realize how preicous their bodies are. As well as Thieves who "burned" their victims, so to speak, and are now punished by being burned themselves. Of course in a much more literal sense. Above all, the most important comparison that can be made is that all of the main characters technically have a happy ending, thanks to their guides, Virgil and Jigsaw.