Paolo and Francesca suffer the punishment in the hell because of lust. Since they are addicted to the temporary pleasure of the flesh in life and are unable to control the internal love regardless of morality, they are not permitted to love each other in the hell even if their bodies tangle together. However, Cante shows a permissive attitude towards their love story.
In Canto 5, we can see that in the conversation between Cante and Francesca, most of words come from Francesca and Cante listen to her in patience. Francesca expresses her strong love to Paolo, saying “Love, that can quickly seize the gentle heart… Love, that releases no beloved from loving… Love led the two of us unto one death” Then, at Cante’s request, she tells him how they fall in love and are sentenced to hell with great human feeling and sensual language, which shows a miserable but romantic story for us.
The reason why Cante expresses his sympathy to Paolo and Francesca is related to his own experience. As we know, most of Cante’s life is marked by a deep but implicit love; that is, his love for Beatrice. In pursuit of true love, Cante cannot resist the charm of love and understands the sorrow of this couple, which makes Dante become more lenient in the punishments he assigns for lust. However, Cante believes in spiritual interaction rather than carnal love, just like his platonic love for Beatrice. So, Francesca and Paolo are judged as the sinners of hell.
