How is Hell organized in Dante Alighieri’s Inferno?

In Dante Alighieri’s Inferno, Hell is structured into nine concentric circles, with each circle representing specific sins arranged in order of increasing severity. As the protagonist descends, he encounters souls whose punishments correspond to the nature of their earthly transgressions.12

The organization of these circles is as follows:

• Circle 1 (Limbo): Unbaptized people and virtuous pagans.2
• Circle 2: Lust.2
• Circle 3: Gluttony.2
• Circle 4: Avarice and prodigality.2
• Circle 5: Wrath and sullenness.2
• Circle 6: Heresy.2
• Circle 7: Violence (against others, self, or God).2
• Circle 8 (Malebolge): Fraud.2
• Circle 9: Treason and betrayal.2

At the very bottom of the pit, at the center of the world, Lucifer is frozen in a lake of ice, eternally chewing on the traitors Judas, Brutus, and Cassius. This location represents the farthest point from God and the complete absence of warmth, love, and goodness.12