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In Canto 28, Dante represents Mahomet as a demonic monster. This is not unlike the representation of the Muslim Saracens in the Song of Roland. Compare the representations of Muslim beliefs in the two poems and see if you have any ideas why there was such intense hatred of Muslims in the Catholic Middle ages as you can see in these poems. Do you think it was a response to the Crusades? To the developing competition that Europe was beginning to offer the Muslim world? To what? You might want to look in a good history book or encyclopedia to get some more concrete information on this disturbing issue. Support your ideas with specific examples from Dante's Inferno and Roland. This is potentially worth double credit (up to 100 points) if you do a wonderful job with it. Be sure to document your sources.

On the other hand, this essay:  "The Uncanonical Dante: The Divine Comedy And Islamic Philosophy:  by Paul A. Cantor, examines elements in Dante that derive from Islamic philosophers, especially "Averro�s, or Abu al-Walid Muhammad Ibn Ahmad Ibn Rushd, to give him his full Arabic name." After reading the essay carefully, look for elements in Dante that are NOT anti-Islamic, but actually stem from Islamic culture or an awareness of its importance.  This is potentially worth double credit (up to 100 points) if you do a wonderful job with it. Be sure to document your sources.