The Fall Of Satan Research Paper

Milton’s Satan in Paradise Lost is a complex character meant to be the evil figure in the epic poem. Whenever possible Satan attempts to undermine God and the Son of God who is the true hero of the story. Throughout the story Milton tells the readers that Satan is an evil character, he is meant not to have any redeeming qualities, and to be shown completely as an unsympathetic figure. Satan’s greatest sins are pride and vanity in thinking he can overthrow God, and in the early part of the poem he is portrayed as selfish while in Heaven where all of God’s angels are loved and happy. Satan’s journey starts out as a fallen angel with great stature, has the ability to reason and argue, but by Book X the anguish and pain he goes through is

In the first book of Paradise Lost, created by Milton, it can most accurately be perceived as Milton attempting to give the reader a different perspective on Satan, the greatest lost angel. In the first book of Paradise Lost, Milton writes about how Satan was the closest angel to God. Milton’s attempt at making Satan a sympathetic character evolved after his original audience had seen it, because in modern times it is much easier to sympathize with Satan than it was many years ago. The perspective of Satan has changed a lot. In modern times, we view Milton’s retelling of Satan’s story as a story of struggling against great odds, Satan’s being spoon fed powers, and Satan and the Fallen Angels optimism for Hell.

Satan's predicament after he falls in Paradise Lost is utterly hopeless, yet he chooses to persevere. He reasons that he should continue to struggle, even though he is aware that it is entirely in vain. The process he follows to arrive at this choice is similar to the process Albert Camus will use to justify the unrelenting toil of his 'absurd man.' Before this becomes apparent, portions of Satan as a character must be eliminated from consideration, because they present an intractable set of problems. Prior to his rebellion, Satan is a divine being, who "stood'st in Heav'n, upright and pure," (IV, 936-37) like God and the other angels. We do not get a clear portrayal of this character, only Satan's and Raphael's memories and

Satan’s place in society is what pushes him to fall; his ideal of higher status is what fills him with pride and self-confidence: the second trait, his tragic flaw. Satan’s pride, along with ambition, is the cause of his tragedy. This is directly stated by saying, “how glorious once above thy sphere, / Till pride and worse ambition threw me down / Warring in heaven against heaven’s matchless king,” (Paradise Lost 4: 39-41). One of the most famous lines in Paradise Lost directly points to his excessive pride, where he says, "Better to reign in Hell, than serve in Heav’n" (Paradise Lost 1: 163).

Satan is a character that has been ridiculed and teased in our modern world because of his symbolization of evil, combined with the underlying hypothesis that good will always triumph over evil ultimately questioning and mocking his presence. In Paradise Lost John Milton frays from the typical view of Satan as the devil-on-your-shoulder by having the readers absorbed in the idea that they actually feel sympathetic towards this evil creature. Within lines 605-645 in Book 1 Milton humanizes Satan on a level that the readers can relate, which aids to their view of sympathy towards him. These lines establish a struggle within Satan and illustrate his banishment from Heaven, which brought him

Satan implies that he being as great as God in every way except for his power; the freedom of Hell; and that he rules his new kingdom of Hell is significantly more important than the reality that he has been banished from heaven. This information shows us that Satan is very stubborn, yet he is optimistic.

Satan loves himself rather than God. Once, he was the most beautiful Angel in heaven. Because of this, he loved himself more than he loved God. His love for himself made him not want to serve God. Therefore, because he did not want to serve God, he was condemned to the fiery abyss

Satan’s character changes significantly throughout the poem. In the beginning he is a great leader and strong figure but in the end Satan goes back to hell in the form of a serpent. Satan’s fall in Paradise Lost is shown by the different shapes he takes. He starts as a fallen angel of imposing presence then he is disguised as a cherub, then a bird, a toad, and finally a serpent. Not only does his shape change but his reason begins to fail. He begins to tell himself that the struggle he feels inside himself is a reason to do more evil. Satan believes that Earth is more beautiful than heaven he becomes demented and believes his own lies. Satan is presented in Paradise Lost as something that is not able to think morally and in the end all he is, is a fallen angel who is blind to God’s love and grace and is unable resolve his past due to his eternal punishment.

Everyone knows the basic story of the fall of Adam and Eve. Adam and Eve both lived in the Garden of Eden in paradise until Eve was tempted by Satan disguised as a serpent. Satan tempted Eve to eat the forbidden fruit and in return, Eve tempted Adam as well. In Milton’s epic poem, Paradise Lost, we get a closer look into the entire Genesis story. We also get a deeper look into what was going on in the mindsets of each of the characters. One of the characters that we get a specifically closer look at is Satan. In Paradise Lost, we are able to see a different side of Satan than what the bible and normal stories tell us. We all think of Satan as the villain, but Milton gave us a different view of him in Paradise Lost.

Satan and his interactions with God partially reveal the overall theme of the epic. Satan is viewed as sinful, devious, the king of hell, the devil, and a Demon. Ironically, as bad as Satan may seem, he originated out in heaven. Satan gained his negative titles because of the evil actions he planned out in heaven. John Milton begins his epic by stating “Of Mans First Disobedience, and the Fruit

The universe that Milton portrays in Paradise Lost with Heaven at the top, Hell at the bottom, and Earth in between is hierarchical. Satan seeks to destroy this hierarchy. God sat at the top of this hierarchy and was expected to be obeyed. Satan attempted to rebel against authority, claiming that the fallen angels’ goal in the new life they were given is to be evil: “To do ought never will be our task, / But ever to do ill our sole delight” (1.159-60). They are virulent towards God and want to act out in spite of him. Satan wants to gather more fallen angels to plan and

Throughout biblical and mythical texts Satan is always perceived as the evil willed and tempting character. It is just how he is viewed because of what he is believed to be and what he has done, but in “Paradise Lost”, Milton portrays him to slightly be a hero and if not that than simply, someone trying to find a more complex grasp on the light he is trying to seek. As the plot unfolds, the reader can comprehend with Satan’s disappointments and greedy desires. Though in the novel, Milton introduces a God who is wrathful and

When the name Satan comes to mind it is an insulting description of a person or an evil temptation, and Milton writes in Satan as the hero of his essay; giving more background to him than the traditionally holy. Satan was the first angel created by God to have a sinful thought and fall from heaven. Being the first to fall from heaven to hell, it makes Satan figuratively the ruler or king and he uses this at his advantage when speaking to his people, “Satan in three separate roles- an archangel, before and during the war in heaven; a Prince of Devils in the council in hell; a serpent-tempter in the garden,”(Carey 162). To play these different roles Satan uses his manipulative and powerful

The first quarter of Milton’s great epic truly revolves around Satan’s emotions and desires. Milton does his best to help the reader find love for an evil character; he even mentions Satan crying in hopes of having the reader feel sympathy for him. Satan’s emotions are not only triggered by his feeling of being below God but also his belief of being lower than The Son as well. The huge role the devil plays throughout the story can be observed in one of the first descriptions of the beast. Milton compares the size of the sinner to an island by describing that, “The pilot of some small night-foundered skiff, deeming some island, oft, as seamen tell (Pg 15 lines 204-206).” Not only is Satan a giant, but he also has a strong personality which can be observed in his actions. After falling from heaven, Satan even makes a bold statement stating “ ‘To do aught

Adhering to as well as challenging the conventions of the epic genre, Milton portrays Satan as heroic, determined to form a new equilibrium for himself and his followers. Declaring “For this eternal pit shall never hold” (Milton 2008), Satan presents God as a ruthless tyrant – entrapping Satan and the devils – and inspires morale with the idea that they’re more powerful than the confines subjected to them. The epic hero traditionally serves as an inspiration to his followers. Additionally, Satan leaves Pandemonium “Hurling defiance towards the vault of Heaven”(Milton 2008); Milton imagines Satan as a mighty force who defies his enemy in the face of adversity to avenge his mistreatment. As Milton’s early audiences would’ve been aware of Satan’s infamy as a religious figure, his decision to display Satan as heroic subverts the idea of the morally driven epic protagonist. Furthermore, Milton’s presentation of Satan has proved contentious, “For roughly three centuries, readers have demanded justice