Dante Alighieri: A Poetic Descent into Metaphorical Hell "Abandon all hope, ye who enter here" Only through a journey into hell can we hope to attain paradise... His Early Life: Dante Alighieri was born under the sign of Gemini, he was thought to be born on May 29, but this is not certain. He was born in Florence, the son of Alighiero II, his family was one of lower nobility. His mother died when he was a child and his father when he was eighteen. According to him, the most profound event in his youth was when in 1274 he met Beatrice, whom scholars believe to be Beatrice Portinari, a noble woman. It really matter's not who