Discuss Milton’s presentation of Satan in Paradise Lost
There has been considerable critical interest in the figure of Satan in Paradise Lost,
and in the possibility that he may be the true hero of the epic poem. The opening of
the poem finds Milton in a tough spot: writing an epic poem without an epic hero in
sight. In order to achieve a rationally balanced poem, he wants to let the first half rise from Hell through Chaos and towards Heaven, thereby balancing the fall of
humankind in the following Garden scenes. Since Satan is the only point of view
(other than God above) that witnesses all of these early scenes, he must be
transformed into the hero for the first few books. Besides allowing Milton to add new
scenes to the story which is crucial, since all his readers already know the general idea
of it, making Satan temporarily heroic makes his subsequent evil deeds that much
more appalling to the reader.
One of Milton’s early biographers, his nephew Edward Phillips, asserted that
it was Milton’s original intention to write a tragic drama on the subject of the fall. He
claims to have seen a speech by Satan (now Book IV lines 32-41) some years before
the publication of Paradise Lost. The attractiveness of Satan and the genesis of
Paradise Lost as a drama are to some extent interwoven. It is a critical fact that in
drama, the audience is lead to believe in the first voice they hear, especially if that
voice speaks directly to the audience. R.C. Jones (1986: P.56) demonstrates how this
principle operates in Renaissance plays such as Shakespeare’s Richard III. One
reason why there is any case for regarding Satan as the hero of the poem is that we
learn his version of events first, and by the end of Book II, w...
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...t all the characters Milton needs to the proper places at the proper
time in the narrative. The delicate way in which he holds the character of Satan
poised between heroic and villainous acts during his physical ascent and spiritual fall
makes use of the full gamut of poetic devices, including allusion, metaphor,
hyperbole, diction, and more a tricky juggling act of character development, until he
is ready to let the ball drop.
Bibliography
Bradley, S.A.J. (1992). Anglo-Saxon Poetry. Everyman.
Burden, Dennis. (1967). The Logical Epic. Routledge.
Jones, R.C. (1988). Engagement with Knavery. Duke University Press. Durham. England.
Milton, John. (1998). Paradise Lost. Penguin. England.
Waldock, A.J.A. (1947). Paradise Lost and its Critics. Cambridge University Press.
Wittreich, Joseph, ed. (1970). The Romantics on Milton. Cleveland Press. USA.
At times he becomes torn with conflicting emotions. His inner debates and self-criticism reveal him as a dynamic being. Satan flows through his heroic story, allowing himself to be the anti-hero the story. The authors believes that Satan is created as “an example of the self deception and the deception of others which are incident to the surrender of reason to passion.”
Historically, it has been the character of Satan who is defined as the hero of Milton's epic, one who was defined by the Romantics as a 'tragic-hero'. At the beginning of the poem he is presented as one with an iron fast will, who will overcome his challenges in order to gain a victory, like the heroes of the classical epics. Upon waking up, cast out of Heaven by God, Satan's first action is to attempt to rally his troops, defiantly proclaiming that they can “make a heav...
Across these three works Satan was transformed from a seductive, but flat, character, to a suffering monster, to a complex, multidimensional antagonist. Within the Christian world, Satan provides an interesting representation of evil. He can be used to demonstrate the charms of sin or its consequences. The these three works demonstrate a changing and increasingly complex understanding of evil and sin.
...s Online - Harvard Theological Review - Abstract - The Social History of Satan, the "Intimate Enemy": A Preliminary Sketch. Harvard Theological Review, 1991. Web. 21 Mar. 2014.
Hero can be distinct as an individual who is accepted or idealized for bravery, exceptional accomplishment, or dignified traits. On the other hand, Satan is known as the leader of all wickedness. With these descriptions in mind, one can determine that John Milton’s character, Satan, in Paradise Lost, is in fact the epic’s hero. Although non-traditional, one can determine that Satan is the epic hero because of textual evidence found in all twelve books of Paradise Lost. The implications implied throughout the twelve books of Paradise Lost entail Satan as the hero because of the information Milton provides to the reader about Satan’s actions and results thereof.
John Milton’s Paradise Lost is a religious work, and is in many ways an autobiography of Milton’s own life. John Milton was raised catholic and converted to Protestantism. Later in life he became a Calvinist. His strong Calvinists beliefs can be seen throughout Paradise Lost. It was Milton’s desire to be a great poet, but he did not believe that was his purpose in life. He believed that he had been put here to serve God, and that any thing that he wrote should be in one way or another related to that purpose. In this way Milton felt that in writing Paradise Lost not only was he writing the epic poem he had always wanted to, but also fulfilling his godly purpose here on earth.
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 more reason for him to follow an evil path instead. Even so, Milton uses literal and figurative imagery in the description of Satan’s character to manipulate the reader’s response to the possibility that Satan may actually be a heroic figure. As the plot of the story unfolds there are moments where the reader can identify with Satan’s desires and relate to his disappointments.
Gardner, Helen. “Milton’s ‘Satan’ and the Theme of Damnation in Elizabethan Tragedy.” Milton: Modern Essays in Criticism. Ed. Arthur E. Barker. New York: Oxford University Press, 1965. 205-217. Print.
Milton uses many events like the ones listed above to encourage the reader to view Satan as a hero. "Satan is described to be the brightest and most important angel" (McColley 32). These traits of Satan show how one might recognize Satan as the second in power right below God, who was the highest power of all. Before Satan decides to give up what he has and to rebel against God, he was one of the wisest and most beautiful of all the angels in heaven (McColley 24). Although Satan was beautiful, the most important trait that makes him fit into the hero category is that he was the most powerful angel in heaven.
In conclusion, Paradise Lost can be seen through a historically contextual lens that allows us to see the parallels between Milton’s life and experiences during the reign of Charles I, and the predominant themes in his epic poem. Many of the themes in Paradise Lost, from the broader situational occurrences to the behavior of individual character’s and their attitudes toward the situations in which they find themselves can be seen as directly influenced by Milton’s time as a Parliamentarian in 17th century England.
Although the epic poem centers around the story of the fall of man, it is interesting that Milton intertwines in this story the fall of Satan from heaven and the consequences it has not only for Satan himself, but for Adam, Eve, and the world as a whole. Milton allows the reader to see the fall from the point of view of Satan, God, as well as Adam and Eve. Because Milton gives insight into these characters feelings regarding the fall, it is no surprise that he uses “eternal providence” in conjunction with the stories of Satan, Adam, and Eve. The providence being described here is the knowledge of good and evil. However, ev...
In Milton's Paradise Lost, he writes the story of the fall of Satan, his followers, and mankind. Many critics often view Satan as the unlikely or tragic hero of the epic poem. Satan is, obviously, the main character throughout most of the poem, but not necessarily the hero. Satan's main purpose is to fight G-d, and try to be on the same level as Him. The important thing is to realize that Satan is sin, and being humans, who are all born into sin, we can easily relate to a sinful character. G-d is holy and perfect. This is something which we, being fallible humans, cannot begin to comprehend. Satan does, at the beginning, follow many of the attributes which coincide with Aristotle's definition of a tragic hero; however, after the first few Books, Satan looses his status as a tragic hero rather rapidly. Along with this, Satan's thoughts parallel the idea of "Evil, be thou my good," (p76, line 110) which is the opposite of what G-d intends.
MacCaffrey, Isabel. "Satan’s Voyage". Modern Critical Views: John Milton . Bloom, Harold, ed. Chelsea House Publishers: New York, 1986.
Throughout Paradise Lost, Milton uses various tools of the epic to convey a traditional and very popular Biblical story. He adds his own touches to make it more of an epic and to set forth new insights into God's ways and the temptations we all face. Through his uses of love, war, heroism, and allusion, Milton crafted an epic; through his references to the Bible and his selection of Christ as the hero, he set forth a beautifully religious Renaissance work. He masterfully combined these two techniques to create a beautiful story capable of withstanding the test of time and touching its readers for centuries.
It is important, before continuing with an examination of Paradise Lost and its epic characteristics and conventions (specifically, those in Book I), to review for a moment exactly what an "epic" is. Again, according to Lewalski, "Renaissance critics generally thought of epics as long poems treating heroic actions or other weighty matters in a high style, thereby evoking awe or wonder" (12).