As a literary device, a foil is a character that contrasts and emphasizes the qualities of another character, generally the protagonist. True foils always have a number of things in common with the other foil, but differ enough that both characters become more interesting—usually they have different world views or temperaments.

In Inferno, Dante has no foil. He is the author, the point of view character, the protagonist, and the lover of the story. It would be difficult for any single character to have enough in common with him that their differences become engaging. It is also difficult for Dante to have a foil since he is traveling through different circles of Hell, not stopping for too long at any one. He meets a large swath of characters, but the reader does not get enough time with any of them to form a deeper sense of their world views.

If Dante did have a foil in Inferno, it would be Virgil. Virgil is his guide through hell and the one character—besides Dante himself—who the reader gets to spend a lot of time with (Beatrice does not factor in more prominently until Purgatorio and Paradiso). Virgil is a poet like Dante, and he is clearly one whom Dante admired. The reason Virgil is not allowed to go into Heaven is because he was a Roman poet and therefore a pagan.

If Virgil is Dante’s foil, then the lesson to be learned from contrasting them might be that where and when a person is born can make a tremendous difference in their life—and afterlife.