Kevin Smith Finally Reveals the Name of Dante's Dog in Clerks

Seen only in passing, Dante Hicks's dog was present at the birth of Kevin Smith's "View Askewniverse," but somehow over the years he has never been asked to name the pooch until now -- an oversight that he apparently has been eager to correct. Per his response to a Twitter inquiry, the dog featured in the very first shot of Clerks is named Virgil. And if you are a big literature nerd, the fact that Dante's dog is named Virgil probably tickles your funy bone a little. Virgil is technically named after the author of The Aeneid, but more than that, the classical author appears alongisde Dante in Inferno.

Per SparkNotes, "The only character besides Dante to appear all the way through Inferno, Virgil's ghost is generally taken by critics to represent human reason, which guides and protects the individual (represented by Dante/Everyman) through the world of sin. As befits a character who symbolizes reason, Virgil proves sober, measured, resolute, and wise. He repeatedly protects Dante from hostile demons and monsters, from Charon to the Centaurs; when he appears powerless outside the gates of the city of Dis in Canto VIII, his helplessness appears very ominous, signifying that Lower Hell offers far darker dangers than Upper Hell. Virgil's reliance on the angelic messenger in this scene also symbolizes the fact that reason is powerless without faith—an important tenet of Dante's moral philosophy and one that marks Inferno as a Christian poem, distinct from the classical epics that preceded it. In the fullest sense of the word, Virgil acts as Dante's guide, showing him not only the physical route through Hell but also reinforcing its moral lessons. When Dante appears slow to learn these lessons—such as when he sympathizes with sinners or attempts to remain too long in one region of Hell—Virgil often grows impatient with him, a trait that humanizes this otherwise impersonal shade."

Smith's Dante toiled away in retail Hell for years, but probably his worst day ever at work was the one seen in Clerks. Among other things, he was thrown out of a funeral for knocking over a coffin, had a fight with the clerk from the video store next door, and got fined for selling cigarettes to a minor (which he didn't actually do).

Dante Hicks, played since 1994 by Brian O'Halloran, will next appear in Jay and Silent Bob Reboot, due in theaters later this year.

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