The Inferno is the first part of Dante Alighieri‘s 14th-century poem called the Divine Comedy. It tells the story of Dante’s imaginary journey through Hell which is depicted as nine concentric circles of torment located within the Earth. It represents the journey of the soul toward God, with the Inferno describing the recognition and rejection of sin.
Dante didn’t pull any punches in his writing. There is no fire brigade in Hell. But there are some appalling scenes, reminiscent of the mad scramble to reach the boarding gate before everyone else when your flight is called on a budget airline. There are so many bodies and so much carnage, even the Midsomer Murders wouldn’t be able to compete.
The most chilling effect though, is the sign over the gates of Hell: ‘Abandon hope, all ye that enter here’. It’s the same feeling some students get when they enter a classroom. They know it won’t go well for them. They have probably struggled to complete their homework (or not done it at all – the biggest sin), because they probably can’t see the relevance or worth of study. They don’t want to be there, but they are compelled. Their chains are the obligation to attend, and the threat of failure if they don’t. They look for any chance of escape. Hell for them is being compared to the bright kids in the class, and the poor expectations that are placed upon them by certain teachers. They are like the inhabitants of Dante’s inferno – not sure why they are there, but they are convinced they’ve done something very wrong.
As Dante descends ever deeper into the depths of the inferno, he sees that the torment increases in relation to the magnitude of the sins committed. But there is no escape from the inferno, but some students do ‘escape’ from school. They are often excluded from education because of their misdemeanours. True, it takes a lot to be thrown into outer darkness where there is weeping and wailing and gnashing of teeth, but some students welcome it. It means a release from the torture of sitting for hours in a classroom, dressed in an uncomfortable uniform, having to jump through all the hoops of fire just to survive the day. For some, even though they feel the heat, school is a lukewarm experience at best, that in the end damages their perception of learning and taints their entire life.
It doesn’t have to be like this. Children shouldn’t be forced to travel through hell just to achieve their qualifications. Those who are excluded from school may be rare exceptions, but how many have traumatic situations going on in their lives that can only be expressed through their challenging behaviour? We often discuss the mental health needs of teachers, but how often do we recognise the mental hell that some children might be enduring? If we did, and made better provision, we might just transform their hell into paradise.
