humanizing Satin

In Milton’s Paradise Lost, Milton characterizes himself as a prophet in order to encourage us to listen to God’s order and turn away from our evil. As one becomes aware of Milton’s prophetic intentions, one recognizes how Milton uses Satan and his reaction to his downfall with God as a way to lead us to think of our own human sins and experience. Milton’s characterization of Satan’s envious, jealous, prideful and rebellious nature while battling God allows us to see Satan as mirror reflection of our own selves. By characterizing Satan, an evil icon, as a being with human flaws, Milton encourages us to see our own weaknesses in order to turn away from these sins.

Through Satan’s opinions on God, we can both acknowledge Satan’s pride and how it reflects our own prideful tendencies. We can recognize Satan’s prideful nature through his conversation Beezelub regarding their descent into hell:

Here for his envy, will not drive us hence:

Here we may reign secure, and in my choice

To reign is worth ambition though in Hell:

Better to reign in Hell, then serve in Heav'n. (insert lines)

From the beginning of this text, when Satan stresses “His envy,” we become aware that Satan believes God truly envies him. Typically, one only has envy for someone who is on his or her level or superior to him or her. By believing that God envies him, Satan argues that God sees him as equal to him. Not only does Satan think God believes they are on the same level, but Satan himself is also convinced that they are equals: In Satan’s mind, God would be incapable of envying him if he was not on his level. The fact that Satan can put himself in the same position of God, an almighty creator, proves that he is prideful. We can continue to grasp Satan’s pr...

... middle of paper ...

...see from his statement, “Can else inflict, do I repent or change”. Rather than repenting, Satan continues to propose another plan for attack. Satan refuses to be the lower person, giving up his battle with God, and thus the thought of repenting does not even enter his mind. As Satan does not consider repentance to be an option, we also gain a sense of his stubborn nature. Satan’s refusal to repent also highlights his prideful nature, since it is his inner pride which does not allow him to consider repenting to be an option. Through Satan’s refusal to repent, we become reminded of ourselves and the times we have refused to submit ourselves to being guilty. Our human nature immediately discourages us from repenting and surrendering to the situation; Instead, we strive to attain the status of being the defeater and not the defeated, which is exactly what Satan is doing.