The final piece for Dante’s salvation is Beatrice. In canto 30 Dante is awestruck at finally seeing Beatrice after all those years “I saw the lady who had first appeared/ to me beneath the veils of the angelic/ flowers look at me across the stream” (Alighieri 64-66). But, this does not mean that Dante is going to Paradise. Here, Beatrice is depicted with a stern and harsh stance towards Dante, “just as a mother seems / harsh to her child, so did she seem to me/ how bitter is the savor of stern pity!”(Alighieri 79-81). Dante is to undergo one last trial or reflection in order to ascend. It makes you wonder if the journey through Hell and Purgatory was enough to grant entry to Paradise, but it is not that simple; Dante passed and spectated throughout his journey, not participating. Dante merely took lessons from cautionary stories. In order to truly grant access to Paradise he must look into himself, and renounce all his sins by feeling anguish and sorrow: “my reply/ be understood by him who weeps beyond,/ so that his sorrow’s measure match his sins”(Alighieri 106-108). We have come to know since the beginning of Inferno that Dante has overwhelming love for Beatrice. With that in mind, there is no room for self deception for Dante. He cannot hide or lie about his sins to himself or even his love. Thus, he finally rids himself of sin by acknowledging them and feeling remorseful.

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