The link between Muhammad and Arius proposed in the reading is interesting. I still don't understand how Arius died, as his death was described in a hyperbolic way. Dante compares Arius's death to Muhammad indirectly, by plating the image of Arius in the reader's head (and the reader already knows about Arius), and when Dante gets to Muhammad the reader sees his suffering and then draws conclusions based on how Arius is described. The fact that Muhammad is in the eighth circle of hell with the dividers tells us the people Dante was with and the culture he was familiar with viewed Muhammad as a threat, but a threat from the outside. Plus, Dante's stake on Muhammad turns the prophet into either a misinformed irrational person at best, and a conniving compulsive liar at worst. If his goal was to undermine Islam, he succeeded.
I wonder how Arius actually died. Without an autopsy no one knew back then, and surely no one will ever know. It would e interesting to hear some theories. He could've been poisoned, and that seems probable considering his work fostered many enemies.
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