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Description
Virgil departs from Dante as he enters the Earthly Paradise. There, Dante encounters his deceased beloved, Beatrice (representing Theology), who stands on a car (the Church) drawn by a gryphon (Christ) and is attended by maidens dressed in white, green, and red (the three theological virtues, Faith, Hope, and Charity). By giving Beatrice a golden crown, rather than the laurel wreath described in Dante's text, and by presenting the wheel of her car as a swirling vortex, Blake transforms her into a symbol of materialism and suggests the dangers of submitting to her will.
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Description