Cantos XXIV-XXVII

The ditch there, but whoever spoke from below
Seemed to be moving. I turned quick eyes to peer
Down into the dark, but the bottom didn't show--

Wherefore I said, "Master, pray lead from here
To the next belt, and let us descend the wall:
Just as I cannot decipher the things I hear,

So too I look but make out nothing at all
From where we are." "I'll give no other response,"
He said, "but do it, for fitting petitions call

For deeds, not words."

Dante has an unwavering trust in Virgil that seems unwarranted at times. Although Virgil can be considered trustworthy, Dante doesn't know Virgil well enough to put his life, so completely, into Virgil's hands.

As they venture through hell, there comes a point where Dante can neither make out the sounds that he hears around him nor see the things around him clearly. Yet, Dante is led down further into hell by Virgil's goading hand.

The type of trust that Dante has for Virgil is analogous to the type of trust you have to have in someone who is supposed to catch you when you fall back. However, this type of trust is about ten times more meaningful. It would be the same thing as Dante falling backwards close to the edge of a cliff, whereas if his Virgil doesn't catch him, he will fall to his death. Dante, in all of his intelligence, seems to trust Virgil too much and too quickly. Almost to the point where he is making himself even more vulnerable.