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A figure taken from Greek mythology, Charon is the ferryman who transports dead souls across the river Acheron and into hell. At first, he refuses to ferry Dante across Acheron, because Dante is a living soul. But he agrees to help Dante when Virgil tells him that their journey is ordered by God's will.
Get the entire Inferno LitChart as a printable PDF.
Charon Character Timeline in Inferno
The timeline below shows where the character Charon appears in Inferno. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Canto 3
...riverbank. Virgil identifies the river as Acheron and as they approach, an old man named Charon comes near with a boat, to ferry souls across the river into hell.
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Charon tells the souls waiting by the river to despair and not hope for heaven. When...
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...the people who have died under God's wrath, and that it is thus good that Charon told Dante this is not his path, as good souls do not come this way....
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