Where each of the first two cantos has had two major
similes ([Inf. I. 22-27]; [Inf. I. 55-60]; [Inf. II. 37-42];
[Inf. II. 127-132]), the third canto reserves its
similetic energy for this double simile that describes the final
action of the canto, the departure of the sinners in Charon's
skiff. It is a commonplace that the third canto is the most
'Virgilian' canto of the Commedia. In fact, study has shown
that it has more than twice as many Virgilian citations than any
other canto in the poem (see Hollander [Holl.1993.1], pp.
250-251). This double simile has long been recognized as
involving an amalgam of two Virgilian passages (Aen. VI.309-312 and Georg. II.82). It has also been understood as comprising the 'controlling simile' for the entire poem, combining pagan and Christian elements: see the article by M. Frankel (Fran.1982.1).
