Samson Most of the Events

Samson

Most of the events that Milton describes in Samson Agonistes are established in Judges 16. Milton embellishes the Biblical tale and more importantly, presents psychological motives and character inferences. The play assumes the audience may already be familair with the story, whereas the tale is told in Judges as if heard for the first time. Milton's Samson Agonistes does not so much retell the Biblical story of Samson and Delilah as enhance it with further detail.

One of the key similarities between Milton's play and the Biblical story of Samson and Delilah is Samson's character. In both stories, Samson is endowed with superhuman strength that is bestowed by God. Milton, however, downplays the spiritual origin of Samson's strength. "That Heroic, that Renown'd, / Irresistible Samson? whom unarm'd / No strength of man, or fiercest wild beast could withstand; / Who tore the Lion, as the Lion tears the Kid, / Ran on embattelld Armies clad in Iron, / and weaponless himself, Made Arms ridiculous," (lines 125-131).

Here, Milton basically summarizes Biblical passages that testify to Samson's strength using allegory. For example, the story of the lion was Samson's first feat. The lion encounter also proved to Samson himself that his strength was superhuman: "The Spirit of the LORD came powerfully upon him so that he tore the lion apart with his bare hands as he might have torn a young goat. But he told neither his father nor his mother what he had done," (Judges 14:6).

Whereas the Bible does stress the divine root of Samson's power, Milton makes the story more like a Greek myth in which Samson plays the role of a demigod. Milton does occasionally allude to God: "His Godlike presence, and from some great act / or benefit reveal'd to Abraham's race?" (lines 28-29).

Another similarity between Milton's story and the tale told in Judges is that Samson struggled against all odds especially being held prisoner by the Philistines. In fact, Milton opens the play with Samson in shackles. Milton's description is told more from Samson's point-of-view than the Biblical story. In the Bible, the description of the imprisonment is objective or told more from the Philistine perspective: "Binding him with bronze shackles, they set him to grinding grain in the prison," (Judges 16:21).

On the other hand, Milton makes it clear that Samson's imprisonment is one of psychological as well as physical torture: "The Dungeon of thy self; thy Soul / (Which Men enjoying sight oft without cause complain) / Imprison'd now indeed, / in real darkness of the body dwells, / Shut up from outward light," (lines 156-160).