Mapping Hell onto Eden: Symbolism in the Camps of RDR2

Each of the gang’s camps in RDR2 is based on a section of Hell as envisioned by Dante.

All articles on this site feature detailed discussion of literary allusions in Red Dead Redemption 2, and as such contain unmarked major and minor spoilers for the game, and occasionally the eventual fates of some characters in Red Dead Redemption. Read at your own risk.

As I began to discuss last week, the writers of RDR2 create a taut juxtaposition in the game by presenting the uncolonized natural world as Eden — but also basing each of the gang’s camps on a different aspect of hell, as imagined by Dante Alighieri in The Inferno.

The Inferno is the beginning of Dante’s Divine Comedy, which tells the story of Dante (as a character) journeying through hell, purgatory, and heaven. Dante’s hell is divided into circles — some of which have subsections — based on the sin being punished. The punishments are designed to fit the sin: brown-nosers, for instance, are in a pit of shit. Most circles are guarded by a demon or demons. The journey through hell is ever downward, with the sins getting worse the deeper we go. Here’s how artist Johannes Stradanus drew it:

Not every circle is represented in the game (although, given the amount of cut content, it’s possible that they were supposed to be). For the sake of orientation, I’ve included the names of all the circles, even if they aren’t shown in the game.

Another touch the writers made: the person who suggests the camp is always associated with the sin represented there.

0: The Neutrals

Not represented.

Circle 1

Limbo | Represented by: Horseshoe Overlook | Suggested by: Hosea Matthews

Limbo is where unbaptized babies and “virtuous heathens” (Hollander xx) end up. Dante describes it this way:

We came to the foot of a noble castle,
encircled seven times by towering walls,
defended round about by a fair stream.

Over this stream we moved as on dry land.
Through seven gates I entered with these sages
until we came to a fresh, green meadow.
…
When we withdrew over to one side
into an open space, high in the light,
we could observe them all.

IV.106-117

This describes the camp at Horseshoe quite well. Obviously there’s no castle, but the camp is set at the top of “towering walls” (the cliff), and the setting features a beautiful stream (river, in this case) and a green meadow. This is the mildest, least punishing section of Hell. Hosea is the one to suggest Horseshoe because he is, basically, a good person. He doesn’t like killing, and he tries to stop Dutch Van der Linde from making some of his worst decisions. At the same time, of course, he is still part of the gang and complicit in their crimes.

That Horseshoe represents Limbo indicates that the gang’s morals have begun to erode, but are not yet failing. It may even mean that the situation is somewhat salvageable. Certainly the gang couldn’t have carried on as they were, but if they made different choices, perhaps lives could have been saved.

This is the first place where we see Arthur Morgan’s picture of his mother, from which we learn her name: Beatrice. The woman Dante loved from afar was also named Beatrice. By the time he wrote The Inferno, she had passed away. Playing dominoes with Mary-Beth Gaskill, Arthur mentions that he keeps the small flower by his bed because his mother liked them. When Beatrice’s spirit comes to speak to Dante, she tells him to show courage and make the journey through Hell. In a famous simile, Dante describes the effect her encouragement has on him:

As little flowers, bent and closed
with chill of night, when the sun
lights them, stand all open on their stems,

such, in my failing strength, did I become.

II. 127-130

Arthur’s flower matches this description, with the small blooms standing upright and open. Mary-Beth — who, again, is the one Arthur tells about the flower — has a similar encouraging effect on him, especially in their last Companion Talk at Beaver Hollow. He’ll remember what she tells him then on his final ride if he has high honor.

Arthur’s flower is Dudleya farinosa¹, which has been heavily targeted by greedy poachers to sell on the black market (“Protect California Dudleya”). If you like, you can donate in Arthur’s name to conservation groups working to protect the plant.

Circle 2

Sin: Lust

Not represented.

Circle 3

Sin: Gluttony | Guarded by: Cerberus

Not represented.

It’s puzzling that the Braithwaite Turkoman is named Cerberus (“Horse Flesh for Dinner”). Stretch as I might, I can’t find a reading of this circle that I’m satisfied fits the Braithwaites or the area. Of course, Cerberus is one of the most famous mythological creatures, and the game may be alluding to another work in which he’s found.

Circle 4

Sin: Avarice & Prodigality | Represented by: Clemens Point | Suggested by: Micah Bell

Although Charles Smith and Arthur happen to find a better place to camp, it’s only because Micah originally suggests Dewberry Creek. One of Micah’s strongest attributes is avarice, which is why he’s the one who Dutch says suggested the camp even if the player hasn’t completed “An American Pastoral Scene” and Micah is still over near Monto’s Rest. The symbolic value connecting Micah to the camp is more important than the plot hole this creates. Micah is constantly talking about the Blackwater money (even as early as “Who the Hell is Leviticus Cornwall?,” Arthur is sick of hearing him ask about it). He also frequently complains about anyone who he thinks isn’t doing their share.

Dewberry Creek is where the German family gives Arthur a gold ingot in gratitude after he saves the father — who was taken to Clemens Point by greedy kidnappers in order to ransom him, further cementing the camp’s connection to avarice. Gold is a key element throughout the Clemens Point chapter. The rumors of gold entangle Dutch and Hosea in a mess they have no business being part of: the feud between the Grays and Braithwaites. In Dante’s 4th circle, two groups are locked in eternal battle: the prodigal and the avaricious. While one group castigates their foes for hoarding and the other scolds them right back for squandering, they’re essentially exactly the same, just as the Grays and Braithwaites are.

In the “Faded Letter,” we learn that Braithwaite ancestor Lucille stole gold from her family to give to abolitionists. The letter is to her secret lover, Douglas Gray. She mentions the “avarice” of both their families. The letter can be found by following the clue “WHERE THE DEATH ADDER SPITS,” which is carved into a tree at Braithwaite Manor. This hint points to a lockbox hidden on the ground to the south of Copperhead Landing. In The Inferno, we see snake imagery, secrets, and money linked as well: Virgil says Fortune’s judgment is “as secret as a serpent hidden in the grass” (VII.84).

Circle 5

Sin: Anger & Sullenness/Wrath | Represented by: Shady Belle & Lakay | Suggested by: Arthur Morgan & Sadie Adler

The camp at Shady Belle (and the temporary camp at Lakay) represent the 5th circle, where anger and sullenness are punished. Naturally, these camps are suggested by Arthur and Sadie, two of the angriest people in the gang. (The bayou is also where Agnes Dowd’s ghost is located. In the events she relives she’s often frighteningly angry, and according to her headstone, she eventually killed people.)

This circle is a “swamp called Styx” (VII.108), a “bog” (VII.110) where the wrathful beat and bite each other. When Dutch lets his anger rule him, he drowns Bronte in the swamp. Virgil says,

How many now above who think themselves
great kings will lie here in the mud, like swine,
leaving behind nothing but ill repute!

VIII.49-51

In “Urban Pleasures,” Arthur says of Bronte, “I guess he thinks he’s the king ‘round here.” A sinner in Dante’s swamp who thought himself a great king gets “torn to pieces” (VIII.58), as Bronte will by the alligators.

Here’s our journey so far:

Next week, we’ll finish our descent through the RDR2 camps — and beyond.

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1. Arthur says that his flower only grows in Oregon and California, like this one (“Dudley farinosa [Bluff Lettuce]”). Note the pink or red cup-shaped rosettes at the base, red stems, and small yellow flowers with red bases. Arthur’s plant may actually more closely resemble other Dudleya varieties, but this is the one that grows in the areas Arthur mentions. (For instance, Arthur’s flower has a smooth stem, unlike that of Dudleya farinosa, but this is probably due to poly count.) ↩︎

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