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In the Inferno, Dante describes, in great detail, how Hell is laid out, given his understanding of the teachings of Fourteenth century Catholicism. Additionally, Dante's view is affected by the socio-political upheaval of his contemporary Italy. Much of this upheaval was related to controversial religious power struggles with in the Roman Catholic Church as well as changing social structure. In Dante's version of Hell, the souls of sinners guilty of the lesser or minor sins inhabited the upper levels or circles of Hell. The more serious the nature of one's sin, the deeper into the depths of Hell one's soul was sentenced. Additionally, according to the teachings of fourteenth century Catholics, Christ was the personification of God and is referred to as the Everlasting Light. Therefor, to be closer to god was to be closer to the light of or enlightened by God. This was true for the everlasting soul in the after life. If one lived the Earthly life close to God, their soul would be closer to God in the afterlife as well.
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