Satan in Paradise Lost
John Milton's epic work, Paradise Lost placed this remarkable 17th-century poet from England alongside Shakespeare, Homer, Virgil and Dante in world literature. A key character in the poem, Satan, failed in his revolt against Heaven's tyranny, which ended in him being thrown into the pits of Hell, and mankind's fall. Satan's numerous compelling traits make him an interesting character in the eyes of readers and literary critics. William Blake, P. B. Shelley William Hazlitt, and other pro-Satanists support him and consider him a grand hero. They underscore his defiance, pride, and nerve. Shelley feels he is quite different from evil's popular personification (Yang 31). Hence, this paper will examine the Miltonic Satan's attributes and how far they correspond to a hero's characteristics.

Discussion

Milton's Satan is a real, rather than superficial, hero. The image the poet creates is Satan's own creation, to some extent. It constitutes an element of….

Samson Agonistes and Paradise Lost compares the similarities and the differences between the character of Samson in Samson Agonistes and Adam in Paradise Lost based on pride, blindness, love, maturity and worldly understanding. The paper also highlights the specific text from each of the novels.
Comparison Between Samson Agonistes

And Paradise Lost

None of the English writers of the past have had more intrinsic alliance with the chronicle of their era then John Milton. Although some of his most eminent works have fallen into political controversy, but it is these works produced by him which not only throw light upon the coexisting events of his age but upon the present age as well. During his lifetime Milton had deep liking for prose writing. Most of his writings can be categorized under the heading of religion, Episcopacy, education, divorce, freedom of press and on the existing monarchy system of his time. Milton's work….

Knowledge makes one godlike, and so does the power of reproduction, according to Satan in Eve's dream. The reference to gods once again parallels the images and language Homeric epic, and the persistence of pagan spirits like Zephyr and Flora in Eden, and Lucifer makes an even cruder, tempting ploy about how reproduction creates new 'godlike' beings (i.e. children):

For Gods, yet able to make Gods of Men:

And why not Gods of Men, since good, the more

Communicated, more abundant growes,

The Author not impair'd, but honourd more?

The knowledge derived from eating from the apple is sexual in Satan's rendition in Eve's dream, not merely an awareness of sexual potential, and his wooing of Eve, much like Adam's waking of Eve, is also highly sexualized, suggesting Eve 'knows' about sexuality to understand the full implications of his temptation, at least in an unconscious level in her dream. Power and sexuality are conjoined, as….

He goes on to say that no punishment they receive for goibng to battle can be worse than their present situation.
8) What is Beliel's argument in Book II? Beliel, on the other hand, does not see any hope for victory -- indeed, even Moloch seems to think the odds were slim -- and so doesn't see a point in going to battle when they really aren't that bad off. He think they should wait and see what happens, which might include getting back into heaven: "since our present lot appeers / for happy though but ill, for ill not worst, / if we procure not to our selves more woe" (Milton, 223-5).

9) What is Mammon's argument in Book II? Mammon doesn't see a point in trying to get back into heaven at all, because no matter what God will always reign supreme in Heaven. He agrees that battle would….

This is obviously an escape in her dream from the societal norms and from the strict rules that are imposed in the garden and that govern her existence, as well as her role in this environment. Being able to escape them, even with help from Satan, is possible in Eve's dream.

Eve's road towards independence grows with each book in "Paradise Lost," some pointing out to the way her autonomy becomes more emphasized in the gardening scene. At this point, she wished to work by herself, without Adam, for a period of time. Not only has she distanced herself from Adam, but she is also at ease with her own individual identity, which means that she is confident about spending time on her own and, in fact, even wishing it.

However, her being alone also makes her vulnerable to temptation. Feminists will probably dwell significantly on this as an aspect of how….

Eve's dream is full of classical syntax and references to Classical mythology of goddesses, while Adam's dream has a more homely and humble status, and its beauty is of nature rather than divine images -- it seems, additionally, more consistent with the vision and character of the man, despite his protestations, unlike Eve who seems to directly dream Satan's dreams of light and lordliness over all the world and all the heavens.
Thus, the different qualities of male and female dreaming indicate not only the different ways in which men and women dream of power but also the greater ability of women to be impinged upon in their brains by evil. Adam's dreaming vision is more concrete, while Eve's is located in a lesser sense of physical reality, and lies in the highfalutin syntax and discourse of Satan's twisted mind. Eve experiences her dream almost as if her brain is….

Fall
Though in Paradise Lost it may appear that "the Fall" is synonymous with the act of disobeying God, a closer reading shows a certain paradoxical duality to the act of falling -- namely, that what is called the Fall is a forced physical and psychic humiliation and prostration which God enacts on those who refuse to willingly prostrate themselves in worship to him. Two opposing categories of fallenness exist, that of the body and that of the will. This duality is embodied in Satan's revolutionary proclamation, as he lies fallen in body and psychic placement: "What though the field be lost? All is not lost; the unconquerable Will... courage never to submit or yield...That Glory never shall his wrath or might Extort from me." (Book 1) In this quote, the reader clearly sees that the brokenness of the body does not necessitate a brokenness of spirit, and that even….

This is similar to the oppositional voices of conscience and desire that occur in man's mind, and that is further represented by the God/Satan juxtaposition in the poem
IV. The Conflict

A. In Book Four of the poem, Satan's conflict with God becomes direct and physical when he is discovered by Gabriel, but even here there is a greater sense of internal struggle

B. Satan has doubts regarding his actions and even the possibility of redemption, and he even becomes self-righteously angry when Gabriel accuses him of wrongdoing without proof -- Satan is still a creature that desires good, in some

ways, but it is being denied to him

C. Similarly, the voices of temptation and desire in humans are not pure evil, but they are in conflict with man's better nature (represented by God)

V. Conclusion

A. From the initial external frame of the poem, through Satan's uncertainty, and even in the direct conflict between….

Paradise Lost, Book I Analysis
Use of Imagery in Paradise Lost -- Book I

Paradise Lost offers an introduction to the story of original sin. Milton uses powerful imagery and allegory to relay the Biblical account of the fall of Adam and Eve in the Book of Genesis and forfeiture of the Garden of Eden. The story of good and evil is presented in a unique and interesting narrative form. In Book I, we are introduced to Satan the Devil (also referred to as the Serpent) who fancies himself equal to God and declares war against him. Many angels chose to follow Satan and all are cast out of Heaven by God. Book I takes us on the journey of Satan and his ban of fallen angels as they are face their exile and torment in Hell. Chaos, as Hell is referred to, is a dark and unclean place. Much of the….

Paradise Lost Book II begins with the assembled devils holding their council in Hell. It begins with a general address by Satan, who says "I give not Heav'n for lost" (II.14). In other words, Satan considers war against God to still be a possibility, and he begins the discussion by asking whether the war should be an outright attempt to take Heaven, or whether it should be conducted, surreptitiously, as a guerilla-style or espionage campaign: "by what best way, / whether of open Warr or covert guile, / we now debate" (II.40-2). What follows are four arguments from four of the chief devils under Satan's rule in Hell -- Moloch, Belial, Mammon and Beelzebub. These are easily summarized.
Moloch speaks first, on behalf of an outright attack on God: "My sentence is for open Warr" (51). Moloch's argument concentrates on their present situation in Hell: "what can be worse / Then….

332-333, 336-337). The fallen angels' response to Satan's call is the final confirmation of his character, because it demonstrates how he is able to maintain the respect and interest of his followers even though it appears as if they have been stripped of everything. In this sense, Satan is a kind of idealized revolutionary leader, outmatched by the "Almighty" but unwilling to give up, all the while maintaining the respect and loyalty of his followers.
In Paradise Lost, it seems almost inevitable that Milton, whether intentionally or not, was on the Devil's side, even if the narrator of the poem was explicitly not. This is evidenced by the discrepancies between the narrator's account of Satan's character and what is revealed in Book I, when Satan first interacts with the other fallen angels. here the narrator suggests that Satan's actions were born out of vanity and greed, Satan argues otherwise, claiming that….

Tests will follow. Continue to cultivate by day, and sleep by night, for even the Nightingale sings of golden slumbers. No want or will of evil haunts this Heavenly hour or dare awakens conscience. Do not act in haste for the fate of humankind has not yet been marbled in stone.
According to Milton, Satan's persuasive speech advices Eve that her eyes will be open and that "Millions of spiritual creatures walk the earth/Unseen, both when we awake, and when we sleep; / " Satan's speech has many subtle implications about God's rule over humankind as slavery. Additionally, the slavery manifests itself in Adam and Eve's limited sensory abilities to see all things. Milton utilizes Pagan elements to portray Satan's attempt to tantalize Eve with sensual desire. Hence have the passage, / All things to man's delightful use; the roof/O thickest covert was inwoven shade,/Laurel and myrtle, and what higher….

And so, Kenton goes on, given this schism between East and est, it is his theory that the schism was perhaps symbolized through the interactions between God and the Devil. The freedom of the individual to find his way to God "through Scripture...coincided with Milton's commitment to symbolically unify East and est as proof of the regeneration," Kenton wrote (p. 17). Indeed, Milton's Christian background "necessitates" the need for "transgression in order to justify the salvation of all mankind" - hence, if a reader buys into Kenton, that need for "transgression" is played out dramatically and symbolically through God's punishment and the Devil's power to disrupt.
orks Cited

Brittan, Jillisa; & Posner, Richard a. "Classic Revisited: Penal Theory in Paradise Lost."

Michigan Law Review vol. 105 (2007): pp. 1049-1059.

Carnes, Valerie. "Time and Language in Milton's Paradise Lost." ELH 37.4 (1970): 517-539.

Kenton, illiam G. III. "English Liberty and Turkish Tyranny: The Symbolic Function….

Journal Two: God's Will?

The issue of God's omniscience vs. The supposed free will of man has plagued theologians for millennia, and it is doubtful that I will solve it in this half page response. Milton's version of the tale does not really seem to support this reading, however. Though God was ultimately responsible for Satan's being in the right (or wrong) place at the wrong (or right) time, he clearly shows Adam making a conscious decision to eat the fruit despite the consequences. This seems to suggest that free will can operate regardless of God's desires, as long as He doesn't directly intervene. Whether or not He wanted them to eat the fruit is an unanswerable question, and largely pointless. It is certain that He didn't want to stop them from eating the fruit badly enough to intervene, despite his omniscience and omnipotence. The rest was up to Adam, Eve,….

459). Such an encounter is the mainstay of Book 9 since both Eve and Adam are chastened by God and are forced to reason with Him in order to confess to their sin and accept the punishment required in order to 'multiply and replenish' the earth as they had been commanded. They knew the reason behind such a commandment, and they also knew that in the long run, what they had done, was what had to happen. According to Milton, both Adam and Eve had accepted that reasoning in Heaven before they were even placed on earth, and with that acceptance were blessed with the capability to reason over earthly circumstances that perhaps they would not have been capable of otherwise.
orks Cited

Besserman, L. (2007) Encounters with God in medieval and Early Modern English poetry, the Sixteenth Century Journal, Vol. 38, No. 2, pp. 459 -460

Bradburn, E. (2006) Theatrical wonder,….

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