In the second ring of the seventh circle of hell, those who have committed suicide when they were alive are punished in a very unique way. Upon their descent into hell, they lose their physical form as a result of discarding it when they committed suicide. They then become trees, fixed in a position that cannot move like some of the other souls encountered in hell. The tree could also feel pain and bleed when one breaks off even a tiny twig.
While Pier della Vigna seemed to have lived a noble, morally upright life dedicated to serving Emperor Frederick, he took his own life to escape the pain and shame of the lies and rumors that were spread about him. This one moment in his life has come to determine his judgment and eternal punishment. His willingful weakness is what he is being punished for in hell. The current form of Pier’s soul is direct punishment for having taken his physical body for granted, and now he cannot enjoy life as a human would, having lost the human form and the faculty of movement.
Pier della Vigna tells his story to Dante so that Dante can go and tell the living when he returns from his journey. In a way, this will avenge Pier della Vigna against the liars when Dante tells people about how Pier was dedicated to Frederick and how the lies were false.
It is evident that the tree now feels remorse and regret for what he did:“Like the rest, we shall go for our husks on Judgment Day / But not that we may wear them, for it is not just / That a man be given what he throws away.” He knows that his soul will never again join his body. The suicidal trees deliberately abandoned their bodies, so they do not even deserve a chance at reclaiming them. Instead, when all the souls retrieve their bodies, the bodies of the suicidal tree souls “will dangle to the end of time.” This would further punish the suicidals by reminding them every day of their wrongdoing and the sight of their soul-less body would make them more regretful, wishing that their soul could fill the dead body hanging from their branch. This is a particularly cruel but just punishment for violence against one’s self.
