#virgil/dante are doomed yaoi but battler and virgilia do not have that strong a bond and it's interesting

[batbeato]

As someone who has read the Divine Comedy, one of Umineko's many inspirations, there's an interesting aspect of the Divine Comedy that is twisted in Umineko - Virgil.

(Before we start, I want to say that this is not a Virgilius post. I love him, very much, but this is primarily dealing with Divine Comedy comparisons and the Virgil we received - Virgilia.)

The role of Virgil in Dante's story is to lead Dante to Beatrice - this is a role that Virgilia assigns herself within Umineko as well. In The Divine Comedy, Virgil comes when Dante is at his lowest, faced with an impossible challenge, and he states that he was sent by Beatrice herself to guide him to her.

Before Virgil came to rescue him, Dante felt completely lost: he was faced with a great hill guarded by three beasts, representing various sins (pride, lust, and greed). Virgil makes a prophecy about these beasts that relates to Dante's political views, and then Virgil tells Dante that they cannot climb the hill, but must instead descend into the depths of hell - the furthest place from heaven and Beatrice - in order to ultimately ascend, triumphing over Dante's difficulties and reaching their objective (heaven/Beatrice).

The relationship between Dante and Virgil is one that has been interpreted by many as homoromantic, and it involves Dante having a great deal of respect and attachment to Virgil. Virgil leads Dante confidently through Hell, though he is as lost as Dante is during their ascent of Mount Purgatorio (as Virgil has never been there), and once Dante is in Heaven, Virgil abruptly disappears, having returned to Hell. Dante weeps for Virgil at first, only to be corrected by Beatrice, for he has many other sins (against Beatrice) he should be crying for.

Virgil can represent homoromantic bonds being superseded by heterosexual norms, but he is also a representation of Human Reason, which is needed to avoid sins (navigate Hell) and can assist in improving oneself (ascending Purgatorio), but is in the end overshadowed by belief/love/devotion. Dante's love of Virgil and love of reason is important, but according to the Divine Comedy, it is not as important (or holy) as Dante's love of Beatrice/God.

In Umineko, while these concepts remain - reason is important (red/blue truth), but love and belief can supersede mere reason (golden truth), and together they allow Battler to finally understand Beatrice - Virgil's role is not completely filled by Virgilia.

To be honest, it feels as though Virgil is split in two - into Virgilia and into Erika - because they are.

Virgilia represents Virgil the guide, who leads Battler to Beatrice. Battler does not cry over Virgilia's departure and there is no element of separation or graduation from Virgilia's guidance, replaced instead by Virgilia's betrayal, which does make Battler weep.

Erika, meanwhile, represents Virgil as Human Reason. Her presence in the story motivates Battler to look beyond human reason into (divine) love to see the truth of Beatrice. It is Erika who brings Knox into the gameboard, and who challenges Battler to look beyond his previous faulty arguments.

(It can also be argued that Virgil as the Homoerotic Bond is represented by Ronove, especially as he is a demon and thus originates in Hell, and he does help Battler on occasion.)

Though Virgilia is the most obvious derivative of Virgil, we can see elements of his role in other Umineko characters, and we can see how the themes of Human Reason and Divine Love express themselves through these new avenues.

Of course, I would have loved to see Virgilia take more from Virgil, and play a more active role in the story, especially given how her screen time is mostly comedic in Episode 4 and she only has a few scenes in Episode 6. But I'll take what we have, which is interesting in and of itself in its adaptation of such a classic work.