What the hell is the point?

Never in my life have I read something (or heard of anything for that matter) so intricate, detailed and lengthy. As the book goes on we learn name after name and sin after sin of countless people. Dante seems to playing god as he describes which sins are  more dastardly (>>>>>>>>>). Which seems odd and a bit contradictory since one of his motives of "Inferno" seems to be to humiliate and tarnish the name of those who defy god.
This may be a stretch, but isn't he actually committing a sin by judging others when the one true judgement of people that matters comes from God? Let me know your thoughts on this.

Now for my main point, what is his motive for all of this?

Is he trying to entertain people by offering a description of what is perhaps one of the most mysterious and important circumstances of humanity?

Do you think that he truly believed that his depiction is exactly what hell is like?

Was he simply trying to further a political agenda by "exposing" all of the sins of his enemies and people who didn't share his beliefs?

A combination of things? Or something else? I look forward to reading y'all's ideas and explanations for this wacky and twisted masterpiece.
-Cam

Are we all just pawns??

This post will be about book 6 of the Illiad, which I found particularly interesting. 

While reading the Illiad, I couldn't help but feel powerless. It seemed as though all actions and events were done by the gods in some way. For example, in book 6, Diomedes in wounded and prays to Athena for revenge. Athena then grants him SUPERHUMAN STRENGTH. He then goes around slaughtering everyone including the man who hurt him prior, Pandarus. Later, he wounds Aphrodite and then Apollo! This was a big uh-oh. Apollo shows Diomedes mercy but then out of retaliation urges the God of war Ares to fight on the Trojan side. Which leads me to my next talking point, are any mortals worthy of wielding the power of a god without messing things up? 

Later Hera and Athena go to Zeus to get permission to intervene on the side of the Archaens. 

This book truly made me wonder if this extremely long and taxing war is just a playground for the gods. It almost seems like a form of entertainment for them, like a play. Although humans have free will, they almost always ask/sacrifice to the gods for advice and help. Even when a human decides to do something, it seems as though a God can shut it down with the snap of a finger; all while able to be wooed, wounded and tricked by the mortals! This back and forth of power by Homer is intriguing to me. Let me know your thoughts!

(Also, I apologize for the tardy post. I added this class late and the permission email to enter this blog found its way into my spam folder) Also enjoy this horrible graphic I made with powerpoint haha