The Inferno of Dante Alighieri in Divine Comedy can be compared to the situation experienced by Brazil in the contemporary era whose government finds itself lost in front of the inability to resolve political, economic, management of public sector, ethics and morals crises facing at the moment which resulted from not have adopted the necessary strategies to prevent their occurrence and to keep the country on track. The situation of Dilma Rousseff government at the moment is similar to Dante in inferno.

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THE INFERNO OF DANTE ALIGHIERI AND OF THE DILMA ROUSSEFF
GOVERNMENT IN BRAZIL
Fernando Alcoforado *
The Divine Comedy, epic and masterpiece of Dante Alighieri, was probably written
between 1307 and 1321. The poem became known as Divine Comedy only in its first
printed edition in 1555. The poem describes a trip where succeed many events. Its
strength lies in the wealth of allegories that make the timeless story [See the article A
Divina Comédia- Poema épico de Dante Alighieri (The Divine Comédia- epic poem of
Dante Alighieri) drawn by Helder da Rocha available on the website
<http://www.stelle.com.br/pt/index_comedia .html>].
The Divine Comedy is a strictly symmetrical and planned narrative poem that tells an
odyssey through Inferno, Purgatory and Paradise. Dante, the personage of the story, is
guided through hell and purgatory by the Roman poet Virgil, and in heaven by Beatriz,
muse in several of his works. In the Inferno, Dante finds himself lost in a dark forest,
and his life had ceased to follow the right path. Trying to escape the jungle, it is a
mountain that would have to climb to save, but is soon prevented from rising for three
beasts: a leopard, a lion and a wolf.
The Inferno of Dante can be compared to the situation experienced by Brazil in the
contemporary era whose government finds itself lost in front of the inability to resolve
political, economic, management of public sector, ethics and morals crises facing at the
moment which resulted from not have adopted the necessary strategies to prevent their
occurrence and to keep the country on track. The situation of Dilma Rousseff
government at the moment is similar to Dante in inferno.
When trying to overcome the crisis to remain in power, the Dilma Rousseff government
has adopted a fiscal adjustment that aggravated further the economic crisis of Brazil that
threaten the survival of businesses, increase dramatically unemployment levels and lead
the country to bankruptcy. At adopt fiscal adjustment that would be his "mountain" to
climb to save, the Dilma Rousseff government faces three "beasts": the National
Congress where does not have the necessary majority to approve the fiscal adjustment,
Lava Jato Operation that denuded the existing systemic corruption in her government
and the Brazilian people that rejects her as president.
In the Divine Comedy, about to give up and go back to the jungle, Dante is surprised by
the spirit of Virgil - the ancient poet he admires - willing to guide him through an
alternate path. Out of inferno, Dante and Virgil find themselves facing a very high
mountain: Purgatory. The mountain is so high that it exceeds the air ball and penetrates
the ball of fire coming to reach the sky. Virgil was called by Beatriz, passion Dante's
childhood that saw him in trouble and decided to help him. She came down from
heaven and fetched Virgil in Limbo. The path proposed by Virgil is to take a trip
through the earth's core. Starting at the gates of inferno, would cross the underworld
until they reach the base of the Mount of Purgatory. From there, Virgil would guide
Dante to the gates of heaven.
Virgilio of Dilma Rousseff government is the former President Lula who tries to guide
the current president by an alternative way able to keep her in power and prevent her
removal through impeachment. This alternate route was announced today (02.10) by
Rousseff to the composition of the new cabinet that reflects their capitulation to the

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PMDB (Brazilian Democratic Movement Party) and also in relation to Lula who
returned to govern in the Presidential Palace. In practice, Dilma Rousseff abdicated the
power going to exercise only nominally the presidency of Republic.
The worsening political and economic crisis in the country has made the threat of coup
to remove Dilma Rousseff of the power that was being sponsored, according to the
government forces, by the opposition forces to the government, was led by the PMDB
and Lula that today exercise real power. The composition of the new cabinet reflects
this situation. In other words, the coup against Dilma Rousseff was carried out by Lula
and PMDB and not by opposition forces to the government. If she can prevent the
impeachment, Dilma Rousseff could win survival to face his greatest challenge: the
economic crisis. It will be an almost impossible task, Dilma Rousseff leave the
purgatory of political and economic crises, stop the impeachment and promote the
development of the country, that is raise to heaven.
In the Divine Comedy, in the last round of Purgatory, Dante says goodbye to Virgil and
follows accompanied by an angel that takes him through a fire that separates the
purgatory of earthly paradise. Finally, Dante meets Beatrice and purifies himself,
bathing in the waters of Lethe river so he can travel further and climb to the stars.
Unlike Dante who was able to save by lifting from Purgatory to Heaven, hardly the
Rousseff government will be able to overcome their "mountain" (Purgatory) to reach
Heaven.
The "mountain" of Dilma Rousseff government is represented by four types of crises
that must be overcome: 1) economic crisis that threatens the survival of families with
the escalating of inflation and massive unemployment, bankruptcy of enterprises with
advancing of recession toward depression and the disintegration of the country with
economic stagnation and rising public debt; 2) political crisis that threatens to throw the
country into chaos of the total ungovernability and violence and generate political and
institutional setback to maintain order; 3) management crisis due to the inefficiency and
ineffectiveness of the structures of federal, state and municipal levels and the existence
of incompetent rulers who demonstrate inability to propose solutions to the current
crisis, much less point out new directions for the country; and, 4) ethical and moral
crisis resulting from the existence of widespread systemic corruption at all levels of
government and within the Brazilian society.
The future trajectory of Brazil is of growing political instability because the Brazilian
economic crisis has structural roots, it is systemic and the Dilma Rousseff government
does not meet policy and managerial competence to overcome it. The Brazilian
government's inability manifests itself not only in solving today's problems, but above
all by compromising the future of the nation. Time conspires against the Dilma
Rousseff government whose tendency is to worsen the current situation and drop in
acceptance of his government by the Brazilian population as has been found in recent
surveys where only 7% of the population approves his government. The Brazilian
population is against the Dilma Rousseff government what is seen as responsible for
corruption and crash of Petrobras and also for its disastrous economic decisions in the
post-election period contrary to the interests of the people (increase in taxes, temporary
blocking spending, power more expensive with cuts in subsidies for the electricity
sector and changes in the rules of social benefits).
This situation can only come to an end with the existence in Brazil of a government that
is able to unite the nation around a common project of economic, political and social

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development and consists of competent people in the nation's command. Faced with the
inability of Dilma Rousseff government to prevent the economic and social chaos going
on that tends to worsen, ensuring the political governance of the country and unite the
nation around a common development project, will it becomes increasingly unlikely
their hold on power. Accordingly, the Dilma Rousseff government will not leave the
Inferno where is, and if it reach Purgatory, hardly will rise Heaven.

Fernando Alcoforado, member of the Bahia Academy of Education, engineer and doctor of Territorial
Planning and Regional Development from the University of Barcelona, a university professor and
consultant in strategic planning, business planning, regional planning and planning of energy systems, is
the author of Globalização (Editora Nobel, São Paulo, 1997), De Collor a FHC- O Brasil e a Nova
(Des)ordem Mundial (Editora Nobel, São Paulo, 1998), Um Projeto para o Brasil (Editora Nobel, São
Paulo, 2000), Os condicionantes do desenvolvimento do Estado da Bahia (Tese de doutorado.
Universidade de Barcelona, http://www.tesisenred.net/handle/10803/1944, 2003), Globalização e
Desenvolvimento (Editora Nobel, São Paulo, 2006), Bahia- Desenvolvimento do Século XVI ao Século XX
e Objetivos Estratégicos na Era Contemporânea (EGBA, Salvador, 2008), The Necessary Conditions of
the Economic and Social Development-The Case of the State of Bahia (VDM Verlag Dr. Muller
Aktiengesellschaft & Co. KG, Saarbrücken, Germany, 2010), Aquecimento Global e Catástrofe
Planetária (P&A Gráfica e Editora, Salvador, 2010), Amazônia Sustentável- Para o progresso do Brasil e
combate ao aquecimento global (Viena- Editora e Gráfica, Santa Cruz do Rio Pardo, São Paulo, 2011),
Os Fatores Condicionantes do Desenvolvimento Econômico e Social (Editora CRV, Curitiba, 2012) and
Energia no Mundo e no Brasil- Energia e Mudança Climática Catastrófica no Século XXI (Editora CRV,
Curitiba, 2015).