Humanity's Fall in John Milton's Paradise Lost

Humanity's Fall in Paradise Lost

The original sin that led to humanity's fall in the Garden of Eden

is by far the worst sin committed by humankind. It is this sin that led to

future sins. This original sin must be emphasized by writers to depict

the evil involved in it. In writing Paradise Lost, John Milton recognizes

this fact and uses a variety of literary techniques to stress the evil in

the story over the good. The techniques used include a series of parallels

with the parallel between good and evil being first and foremost as well,

as symmetry to keep the poem in balance. Paradise Lost is a poem

essentially about the origin of sin and evil, as a result, Milton presents

evil in a more coercive manner than good.

Satan and his followers in Paradise Lost are presented as being

more evil than God and his disciples are good. God addresses the Son to be

in the likeness of himself in Book three by saying, "The radiant image of

his glory sat, his only Son."(Bk. 3, 63-64). Although this implies that

the Son is a model of perfection as is God, it does not clarify it by

stating it outright. Milton definitely portrays Satan's evil in Book four

by asserting that Satan is hell and that evil is his good because good has

been lost to him. (Bk. 4, lines 75, 108-110). Satan's moral state further

decays in Book nine as detailed in a soliloquy at the beginning of the book

by Satan. Satan recognizes his descent into bestiality after once being in

contention with the gods to sit on top of the hierarchy of angels. He is

unhappy with this "foul descent" and in turn wants to take out his grief on

humanity. Despite recognizing that revenge eventually becomes bitter,

Satan wants to make others as miserable as he is. It is i n destruction

that he finds comfort for his ceaseless thoughts. (Bk. 9, lines 129-130,

163-165). Satan is described at length in an epic simile that compares his

great size to that of mythical figures. This simile drags on for sixteen

lines of direct comparison. This comparison to mythical figures makes the

reader think more about the subject therefore invoking more thought about