Paradise Lost Research Paper

The great debate whether Satan is the hero of Milton’s Epic Poem, Paradise Lost, has been speculated for hundreds of years. Milton, a writer devoted to theology and the appraisal of God, may not have intended for his portrayal of Satan to be marked as heroic. Yet, this argument is valid and shares just how remarkable the study of literature can be. Milton wrote his tale of the fall of man in the 1674. His masterpiece is an example of how ideas of a society change with time. This is because it wasn’t until the 1800’s during the Romantic era, that people no longer saw the hero of literary works as perfect in every way. It started to become more popular to develop the flawed character similar to the ones written in the classics. A literary

The Fall of Man utilizes the social function of a myth. In this story, the social function of the myth tells how society should be organized and who should have control. God said Adam and Eve could not eat the fruit from the tree of knowledge in the middle of the Garden of Eden. The serpent tempted Eve and she ate from the forbidden tree. Adam then committed the same sin. By sinning, their eyes were opened to the world of sin and evil. They now could feel guilt and shame. Through disobedience to God, Adam and Eve gained an awareness of good and evil. An example of this can be seen when they first realize they are naked after they have eaten from the forbidden tree. In Gn. 3:16, Yahweh says, "He (the husband) shall be your master. " This quote in Genesis demonstrates that a man had complete control over his wife in a marriage which was the standard in ancient times. A misconception people saw was that this was not God's divine plan forever. Women being controlled by men was the consequence of sin. Other punishments were Adam had to work for a living and Eve experienced pain in childbirth. This myth could also explain why we wear clothes. This story demonstrates the idea that in inequality between

Genesis 3 exposes the serpent, also known as the devil. The serpent asks Eve to

‘Old scores could be settled on a plane of heavenly combat between Lucifer and the Lord; suspicions and the envy of the miserable toward the happy could and did burst out in the general revenge.’

   Satan's primary operational problem in Paradise Lost is his lack of obedience. The fundamental misunderstanding which leads to Satan's disobedience is his separation of free will from God's hierarchical power. In the angel Raphael's account, Satan tells his dominions, "Orders and Degrees/Jarr not with liberty" (5.792-93). Tempting as this differentiation seems, Satan is mistaken. Free will and hierarchical power are not mutually exclusive, as Satan suggests, but overlapping concepts. Even though Satan has been created with sufficient freedom to choose to disobey, he tacitly acknowledges God's sovereignty when he exercises his choice. Satan is constrained existentially, from the outset, by

Even though this event is mentioned often within the Holy Bible Milton expounds upon it and dedicates the first two books of Paradise Lost entirely to a description of hell and Satans plan to tempt humanity. It can be assumed that Milton basses his arguments on one of the more detailed descriptions of Satan that can be found in the book of Isaiah, chapter 14:12. How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! 13 For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God 14 I will ascend above the heights of the clouds: I will be like the most High.

John Milton’s epic poem, Paradise Lost, has been the subject of criticism and interpretation through many years; these interpretations concur in that Adam and Eve are the sufferers of the poem, and it is their blight to lose Paradise because of their disobedience; however, their exile is merely a plight brought by Satan, and it is he who suffers exile before any others. Satan changes from Book I of the poem to Book XII; his introduction is heroic and grand, appearing as a hero rebelling against an unjust God. But by the finalization of Milton’s poem, Satan is a burnt shell of himself and, though ruler of Pandemonium, he sits in a throne in the lowest pit from God’s light. Satan’s exile brings forth the salvation of mankind and his own regressive transformation; tying in with the theme of disobedience, Satan’s exile gives

      2-It is through free-will that man chose to fall, ie. "...they themselves decreed/Thir own revolt, not I".  This is covered in lines 111-119;

Companionship is evident in many novels, movies, poems and plays. Companionship is also resembled in everyday life. However, when did companionship begin? Was it created within our human nature? Or, was the knowledge of companionship developed over time? John Milton presents his knowledge of companionship in his poem, Paradise Lost. The poem presents many situations in which companionship is present in our human nature. He also presents other situations in which companionship is unobtainable due to certain circumstances. In a sense, companionship is inevitable, even if it is unnecessary or unequal.

"In the forefront of the battle, where we expect him, is Milton's Satan, the great rebel of Paradise Lost" (Hamilton 7). Hamilton also introduces the idea of an underdog, describing Satan as a person fighting against an inferior power, with extreme odds against a victory for his side (14). In the scenes around the battle in heaven, Milton shows how Satan is viewed as a leader by the other fallen angels.

Satan cannot stand the idea of subjection, and this also leads to his fall. It is a thoroughly Satanic idea that gratitude to God for creation is an immense debt (4.52), and this also was present before his fall. Satan reasons that repentance is futile, and neither possible by him or allowable by God (4.103-4). Satan says that if he were pardoned, it would not take him long to "unsay / what feigned submission swore," because reconcilement cannot grow where hate resides so deeply (4.95-99). Therefore, even if given a second chance, Satan would choose to fall once more. This ties in with the meaning of second soliloquy, presented later.

     In Paradise Lost, the consequences of the fall and the change in relations between man and nature can best be discussed when we look at Milton's pre-fall descriptions of Eden and its inhabitants. Believing that fallen humans could never fully understand what life was like in Eden and the relationships purely innocent beings shared, Milton begins his depiction of Paradise and Adam and Eve through the fallen eyes of Satan:

Paradise Lost is a story of Genesis told as it normally would be, but with a protagonist focus on Satan. The story is told largely with Satan being favorably portrayed and God having little presence other than cursing things, which convinces the audience that Satan’s view of God as a tyrant may not be too far off. Still, Satan is portrayed as the villain of the story. However, he has characteristics of a classical hero; including flaws that make the audience relate to and feel sympathy for him. By using part of the black-and-white Genesis story which paints Satan as evil and juxtaposing a narrative which paints Satan as a sympathetic hero, Milton raises a question about morality that largely define the audience’s reaction to the story:

As Satan later claims, “To reign is worth ambition .. /Better to reign in hell than serve in heaven.” (PL, I: 262-63, p.156) His statement suggests that his fatal flaw might be his ambition, his desire to become even more powerful than he once was. This image of Satan having a 'fatal flaw', something that drives him into destruction, connects him with the idea of Aristotle's hamartia, and connects him to the imagery of the other a 'good person' who has fallen from grace, but is nonetheless a hero. Satan is also connected to Aristotle's idea that “heroic virtue is superhuman, godlike, and divine”5, when he is described to be “stretched out huge in length” (PL, I: 209, p.155) across the lake, further imprinting the image of his heroic status.

The concept of revenge has prevailed as an integral component of literature, exemplified in Paradise Lost written by John Milton among other works. In Paradise Lost, Satan acts as the main proponent of revenge. The actions of his character create the basis for a Miltonic ideal of revenge, later modified by Emily Brontë and Mary Shelley. Wuthering Heights written by Brontë presents Heathcliff as a modernization of Satan. The characters share the experience of evolving from their lives as outcasts within their societies by means of revenge. The monster in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein romanticizes the Miltonic concept of revenge found in Paradise Lost. Although the creation and experiences of Satan and the monster differ, their premises for revenge become similar as the monster realizes his contempt toward his position within society and desires to retaliate. While the revenge exemplified in Paradise Lost shares similarities with both Wuthering Heights and Frankenstein, the origins of the desire for revenge, as well as its function within each book, differ due to changing life and literary styles following the writing of Paradise Lost. While the roots of the revenge of Satan lay in a desire for power, Heathcliff and the creature use revenge as a means to chase love and companionship.