When Virgil and Dante reach the Third Circle of Hell, after Dante has regained consciousness, they encounter a three-headed beast/dog named Cerberus, the “guard” of the realm. This dog-beast is used as a symbol for which sin the Third Circle represents – gluttony. Dante narrates Virgil’s feeding of the creature: “As a howling cur, hungry to get fed, quiets down with the first mouthful of his food, busy with eating… so it was will all three filthy heads of the demon Cerberus…” (VI, 28-32).
Before Cerberus was fed, a detailed description of the torture endured by the spirits in this circle is given. “[Cerberus] rips the spirits, flays and mangles them. Under the rain they howl like dogs, lying now on one side with the other as a screen, now on the other turning, these wretched sinners.” (VI, 18-21). Whereas many of the other souls in each circle experience their justice by way of becoming their sin, the spirits in this particular one become the prey of Cerberus, or the victim of their original sin. In addition to being eaten, the souls are allowed only the nourishment concocted from the precipitation (a mixture of cold rain and hail) and the earth it falls on – a resulting muddy substance.
As they satisfy the dog-beast’s hunger and move past him, they meet a damned soul by the name of Ciacco, who, only presumably, was a gluttonous man during his earthly life given his sparse characterization. He, like the others in his realm of Hell, does not deserve this kind of punishment for eating an excess of food. Eating too much can really only hurt the individual who is doing the eating, unless they’re doing it at the expense of others. The details of this specific case isn’t included, leaving the reader to assume that this damned soul was just a simple glutton. Maybe he ate too much cheese or drank too many glasses of wine in Florence, but that doesn’t justify his hellish afterlife of being eaten by a three-headed demon dog, and having to eat gloop.
However, if gluttony is viewed in terms of greed for money (at the expense of others, and causing others emotional or physical harm), this would possibly be a just punishment. The lack of background information regarding Ciacco makes it difficult to analyze.
I agree totally, and I have to admit I read that section as I was eating and it made me feel a little bit guilty. Also, he had to have bought whatever he was eating from some vendor so it can even be argued that he was helping someone else feed themselves and their family. I’m sure the wine-seller and others were always glad to watch a loyal customer come in.