Alexis Ajello
Mr. Junjulas
Relg. Film Per. 4
14 October 2014 Essay for Passion of the Christ
Satan is usually depicted as a giant red monster with horns; The Passion of the Christ is able to create a brand new image for the devil in everyday life. Mel Gibson does this by portraying the devil as a woman with the voice of a man. This catches the attention of the viewer and shocks their initial thought of what the devil is. Throughout this movie the viewer discovers what the devil actually is, he is neither man nor woman. Satan is not a human. He can take on the shape and form of any being, but he is not true body and soul. However, Satan is displayed as an androgynous figure in The Passion of The Christ. I believe Mel Gibson tried to convey
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Satan can only influence people to make the immoral and unrespectable decisions. Which delays Christians from joining
God in everlasting life and eternal happiness in the kingdom of heaven. The devil never accepts defeat and does not quit from its objective to disrupt the good on earth. A viewer can see this when Jesus takes his last breath and speaks his last words on the cross. The camera is looking down on the devil as it screams in agony. The devil assumed it triumphed when Jesus was crucified, but in fact Jesus opened the gates of heaven and saved all of humanity. In this moment the devil knew that Jesus was the chosen Son of God. This is why throughout the Bible and the
Passion of The Christ the devil tries its very best to tempt Jesus into leaving his father’s side and persuade him that evil is the righteous way. Yes, Jesus is all powerful and he could have called down every angel in heaven to save him from his bloody and gruesome death. However, he did not, which demonstrates Jesus love for humanity because he suffers and dies to save everyone from their sin. Jesus also lets the devil torment him. This is proven during the scrounging.
By being one of God’s most illustrious angels, Satan proves his devotion towards God by serving him. He is so zealous that he desires to be God’s only second in command. Similarly, Satan’s dedication to God is like the Grand Inquisitor’s. The Grand Inquisitor served God as a follower and preacher of his word. “It’s long— eight centuries— since we have been on his side and not on Thine” (Dostoevsky, 238) The Grand Inquisitor, like the Church’s predecessors, followed God’s word and Jesus for a long time before they abandoned God an...
The devil's speech asks the people to awaken to the reality that virtue isn't possible, that Evil is man's true nature. By welcoming them to the "communion of your race" he emphasizes that people are unified under the fact that everyone is evil. The devil figure is like a puritan minister trying to tell everyone that they are evil, but he tells them to accept it, that "Evil must be your only happiness." People can live happily if they only realize that evil is the way we are meant to be, trying to fight it is futile. The congregation accepts his welcome "in one cry of despair and triumph.
The source of all evil, a terrifying entity, and the adversary of God in an eternal war for the souls of mankind, Satan is often put forward as a powerful “other,” having little in common with those he tempts and torments. For example, in Dante’s Inferno, Satan is massive, strong and beast-like, chained like Cerberus in Hell for the punishment of mankind, chewing on the bodies of history’s greatest traitors like a vicious dog. Milton's relatable, human-like Satan is on the other end of the spectrum. He is depicted as the underdog, one who must overcome tremendous obstacles, causing the reader to see him as a tragic hero and to feel sympathy for the fallen angel. Satan soon begins a transformation of both his mind and physical appearance, not only making his true nature apparent to the reader, but also causing the reader to realize that he or she may have more in common with Satan than previously thought.
Christianity believed that the Devil could give his worshipers special powers to harm others in
Satan aspires to rise above God in power, yet his ambition makes him unable to recognize the impossibility of such desires. Satan’s lofty position as God’s second-in-command raises his ambition: “lifted up so high/ I sdeined subjection, and thought one step higher/ Would set me highest” (Milton 4.49-51). The angel’s ambition drives his hope for absolute power and convinces him that he could fulfill such grandiose desires. However, God is unequalled in supremacy and can never be defeated; his absolute dominance renders Satan’s hopes futile. The angel will never be able to challenge God’s power, let alone defeat the omnipotent. Still, Satan is overly ambitious and thus blind to the impossibility of defeating God. Satan’s ambition parallels to the monster’s desperation for love in Shelley’s Frankenstein. As the monster observes the daily lives of the cottagers, he develops an ardent longing to enjoy the love and sympathy of mankind. He knows his desires are impossible to fulfill, but his desperation drives him to feign ignorance: “I persuaded myself that when they should become acquainted with my admiration of their virtues they would compassionate me and overlook my personal deformity” (Shelley
...e after all, he is the most sinister. The irony of this situation is compelling once we are told that Satan is in fact the “…soul that suffers the most.” (Canto XXXIV. Line 61).
Defining a character such as Satan, or Lucifer, is extremely difficult because of the sheer amount of emotion, and the immense personality that he portrays. Most think he is simply an evil being that was never really capable of feeling or doing good things. What most do not think about is that he was once an archangel and was amongst the top ranks of the angels. Satan's personality traits are very deep, but yet his motivations seem so childish. He is thrown from Heaven with his legions because he started a war over Christ.
Satan frequently characterizes “the tyranny of heaven” and employs negative diction in his depictions of both heaven and God (I.124). His negative portrayals of God and his kingdom highlight his utter dissatisfaction with being subservient to God and, from that, his desire for autonomy. In the exposition of the text, Satan’s emotions toward God make themselves apparent when Satan “throws his baleful eyes / That witnessed huge affliction and dismay / Mixed with obdúrate pride and steadfast hate” (I.56-58). Satan reveals himself to be furious with his continued subjugation to God as well as his inability to truly revenge himself against his subsequent punishment. According to Satan, God’s dissimulation of his power tempted Satan and others to rise
Satan is an allegorical representation of God the Father. Both Satan and God are seen as Father figures; God as the Father of all that is virtuous, and Satan as the Father of all that is wicked. Just as God is the King of heaven, Satan claims himself King of Hell. God is the originator of Goodness, as Satan is the originator of Evilness. All in all, Satan is a perverse representation of God.
When a person hears Satan, a streak of fear, and the thought of evil, arises. People fear Satan, and think of him as evil, but in John Milton’s Paradise Lost, he displays a thought of the Father being the evil being, and Satan a tragic hero. In Paradise Lost, Book 1 and 2, the minor areas where God is shown, He is displayed as hypocritical. He contradicts himself by creating the humans to be of free will, but when Satan displays free will, he is shunned. Satan can be described in many terms, and by many people, but all can be disputed.
In scripture, we can see that more than once Jesus cast out demons from people and had the power to shut their mouths. In Luke 11:14 one can see the power of Christ over demons, “And He was casting out a demon, and it was mute; when the demon had gone out, the mute man spoke; and the crowds were amazed.” Another place in scripture that we can see where evil gets its power from is in the book of Job. Satan had to ask for God’s permission to torment Job. We know by this that any authority Satan has, has been given to him by God. God has given him the authority over worldly things as mentioned in John 14:20; however, it is important to remember that Satan cannot do anything that is outside of God’s will and purposes. In 1 John 4:4 we are reminded that as long as we have Christ in us, we ...
Ask anyone to draw Satan and you 'll get a red snake-like figure with horns and a pitchfork. Satan, as introduced in the Hebrew bible is an unworthy adversary of God. His longing to be like God is quickly recognized and dealt with. God banishes him from Heaven and sends him to Hell. That 's the last we see of him until he talks with God about his faithful servant Job. In each interaction we see Satan in, we get only a glimpse of who he really is. Satan 's motive is not developed and we assume he does evil simply because he is evil
Before any of this happens, Satan is kicked out of heaven. Satan betrays God by raising up an army against Him and Satan is gone. This is an indication of Satan’s bad temper, jealousy, and envy. Satan had been put in charge of so much, but he was always coveting the top position. It was the position with all the power and he wanted it. The day that Satan was kicked out of heaven was the true beginning of the fall that would ruin God’s creation forever. Satan revolted from God and created his own army of ...
middle of paper ... ... Not only is he a heroic figure, but he also possesses characteristics of which mankind can identify with. Satan also doubts himself, has jealousy, confidence and does not know he is wrong when he is; all of which a reader can identify with. Satan is in the same position as human beings under an omnipotent God who has foreseen their fate and yet argues that they possess free will.
Satan is the core of Milton’s master piece and no matter how he is interpreted; the overall complexity of his character cannot be overlooked.