Cannibalism is a predominant theme in canto 33 that rears its ugly head in the form of desperation found in a grieving father and grandfather faced with the death of his beloved children and grandchildren. The powerful imagery of the canto is used to support the recurring motifs of canines and teeth. In the second round of the ninth circle of Hell known as Antenora in which betrayers of one’s nation, party or city are punished, Dante’s first encounter with the wealthy Ghibelline Count Ugolini is a gruesome and disgusting image of him gnawing on the head of another soul with the ferocity of a dog. This other unfortunate soul is Archbishop Ruggieri, leader of the Pisan Ghibellines, who perfidiously convinces Ugolino, a former Ghibelline turned Guelph to come to the city of Pisa. As a consequence of Ugolino’s conniving actions against the Ghibellines and Pisa, Ruggieri decides to imprison him along with his two sons and two grandsons in a hopelessly dark tower with no way out for eight months. When their mealtimes are suddenly halted, starvation slowly begins to eat the five wretched beings alive, especially the children. Slowly but surely, each of their young lives are taken away one by one. Two days following the final death of the last innocent youth, Ugolino’s famine becomes unbearable and he begins voraciously feeding on the decomposing bodies of the children. This pitiful story reflects the contrapasso of the punishments of both Count Ugolini and Archbishop Ruggieri. Since the latter is to blame for the deaths of the guiltless children, he must endure the deplorable and harsh effects of it: just as the bodies of the children become Ugolino’s meals so does Archbishop Ruggieri. At the conclusion of Ugolino’s story, Dante observes, “When he had said that, with eyes askance he took/ the wretched skull in his teeth again, which were strong against the bone, like a dog’s,” (76-8, 519). The metaphor of this vivid phrase compares Ugolino to a canine, invoking the image of a rabid dog who is overcome with rage. The depraved look in Ugolino’s eyes imply that his sanity has vanished and his only objective is to seek blind revenge on Ruggieri with the ferocity and harshness of a dog who has been wronged by an abusive owner, or in this case, a powerful political leader. The presence of the words ‘teeth’ and ‘bone’ further emphasize Ugolino’s canine-like actions because it resembles a dog struggling to chomp on a bone whose rough exterior highlights the hardness of Ruggieri’s human flesh as well as the indifference and cruelty of the soul, itself.

The metaphor of canine viciousness in this cannibalistic situation is taken even further when Ugolino describes a prophetic dream he has prior to the deaths of the children. He sees a man, along with zealous and powerful dogs, hunting a male wolf and his cubs. As the family of wolves begin to grow weary of their journey, they are suddenly torn apart by the canines with the images of their fangs being emphasized in Ugolino’s memory of the dream which, once again, supports the motif of teeth. This vision symbolizes that Ruggieri is the hunter pursuing Ugolino and his children and grandchildren while the weariness of the wolves is the starvation that overcomes each of the prisoners day by day. In addition to this, Ugolino representing himself as a wolf is an attempt to separate himself from the evilness that embodies Ruggieri, the other figures who are indirectly responsible for his and the childrens’ deaths and humanity, in general. Wolves, according to the notes (28-36, 526), are considered the enemies of mankind. With this in mind, Ugolino is implying that his crime is no where near as treacherous as that of Ruggieri because, although the two figures have had their differences and skirmishes, Ugolino is the real victim of the inherently evil nature of humans, especially since he lost his loving young heirs.

Meanwhile, as Dante is witnessing the dreadful situation of the two souls, he contemplates the shameful actions of Ruggieri. His pity is combined with resentfulness and anger towards the city of Pisa, itself. He proclaims, “For if Count Ugolino was reported to have/ betrayed your fortresses, you should not have put his/sons on such a cross,” (85-7, 519). This reaction evidently portrays that he feels as if Ruggieri’s actions overshadow the crimes of Ugolini, solely because of the needless and senseless murder of the innocent children. Although Count Ugolino is supposedly guilty of treason, nonetheless, this does not signify that his children nor grandchildren must pay the price of his punishment. Children are innocent and pure by nature and cannot be held responsible for the misdeeds of their parents or relatives, whom, with age and experience, come to discover their inherently evil and greedy nature. It has always been a universally condemned crime to harm children and Dante finds it unforgivable that Ruggieri knowingly commits such horrendous murders. Therefore, in the darkest and coldest pits of Hell, Dante finds a justifiable reason to bring Archbishop Ruggieri to infamy in the living world and to allow the memory of him to be eaten away, piece by piece.