Gluttony–like lust–is one of the seven capital sins (sometimes called “mortal” or “deadly” sins) according to medieval Christian theology and church practice. Dante, at least in circles 2-5 of hell, uses these sins as part–but only part–of his organizational strategy. While lust and gluttony were generally considered the least serious of the seven sins (and pride almost always the worst), the order of these two was not consistent: some writers thought lust was worse than gluttony and others thought gluttony worse than lust. The two were often viewed as closely related to one another, based on the biblical precedent of Eve “eating” the forbidden fruit and then successfully “tempting” Adam to do so (Genesis 3:6). Based on the less than obvious contrapasso of the gluttons and the content (mostly political) of Inferno 6, Dante appears to view gluttony as more complex than the usual understanding of the sin as excessive eating and drinking.
 
Bron: danteworlds.laits.utexas.edu