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John Milton-Paradise Lost-Book I

Paradise Lost is an epic poem by the 17th-century English poet J ohn Milton. It was originally
published in 1667 in ten books and written in blank verse. A second edition followed in 1674,
redivided into twelve books (mimicking the division of Virgil's Aeneid) with minor revisions
throughout and a note on the versification. Its sequel is Paradise Regained.
L.192-202
Thus Satan talking to his neerest Mate With Head up-lift above the wave, and Eyes That sparkling
blaz'd, his other Parts besides Prone on the Flood, extended long and large Lay floating many a rood,
in bulk as huge As whom the Fables name of monstrous size, Titanian, or Earth-born, that warr'd on
J ove, Briareos or Typhon, whom the Den By ancient Tarsus held, or that Sea-beast Leviathan,
which God of all his works Created hugest that swim th' Ocean stream.
L.242-271
"Is this the region, this the soil, the clime," Said then the lost Archangel, "this the seat That we must
change for Heaven?this mournful gloom For that celestial light? Be it so, since he Who now is
sovereign can dispose and bid What shall be right: farthest from him is best Whom reason hath
equalled, force hath made supreme Above his equals. Farewell, happy fields, Where joy for ever
dwells! Hail, horrors! hail, Infernal world! and thou, profoundest Hell, Receive thy new
possessorone who brings A mind not to be changed by place or time.
The mind is its own place, and in itself Can make a Heaven of Hell, a Hell of Heaven. What matter
where, if I be still the same, And what I should be, all but less than he Whom thunder hath made
greater? Here at least We shall be free; th' Almighty hath not built 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 than serve in Heaven. But wherefore let we then our faithful friends, Th'
associates and co-partners of our loss, Lie thus astonished on th' oblivious pool, And call them not
to share with us their part In this unhappy mansion, or once more With rallied arms to try what may
be yet Regained in Heaven, or what more lost in Hell?" So Satan spake.
Vocabulary
Prone: in downward direction.
A rood =a rod: a unit of length equal to 5.03 m.
Bulk: large body.
Titanian: The story of Zeus's (J ove's) war with the giants, the Titans and Briareos in Ovid,
Metamorphoses. Titan: in Greek mythology, one of the twelve children of Uranus (ruler of the
heavens, husband of Gaia, and father of the Titans. He was dethroned by his son Cronus, father of
Zeus) and Gaia (personification of the Earth), supreme rulers of the universe until they were
overthrown by Zeus.
J ove: Zeus.
Briareos (Briareus or Aegaeon): the sea-goat, a giant of incredible strength and ferocity, even
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superior to that of the Cyclopes and the Titans, who he helped overthrow. Son-in-law of Poseidon.
Typhon: final son of Gaia, fathered by Tartarus, and is the most deadly monster of Greek mythology.
Typhon attempts to destroy Zeus at the will of Gaia, because Zeus had imprisoned the Titans.
Den: the hidden home of a wild animal. Place of crime, secret place.
Tarsus: city in southern Turkey, near the Mediterranean Sea. During Roman rule in the 1st century
bc it was one of the most prominent cities of Asia Minor.
Leviathan: in the Bible, a large beast or sea monster.
The clime =climate
The lost Archangel: Satan
Gloom: state of darkness.
Better to reign in Hell than serve in Heaven: Homer's Odysseus says that when he interviewed
Achilles in the underworld, Achilles expressed an attitude opposite to Satan's: "I would rather be a
paid servant in a poor man's house and be above ground than king of kings among the dead"
John Milton (1608-1674)
J ohn Milton was born on December 9, 1608, in London. J ohn Milton Sr. worked as a scrivener, a
legal secretary whose duties included preparation and notarization of documents, as well as real
estate transactions and money lending. Milton's father was also a composer of church music. The
family's financial prosperity afforded Milton to be taught classical languages, first by private tutors
at home, followed by entrance to St. Paul's School, in 1620. In 1625, Milton was admitted to
Christ's College, Cambridge. While Milton was a hardworking student, he was also argumentative
to the extent that only a year later, he got suspended after a dispute with his tutor. During his
temporary return to London, Milton attended plays. At his return to Cambridge, Milton was
assigned a new tutor. Life at Cambridge was still not easy on Milton; he felt he was disliked by
many of his fellow students and he was dissatisfied with the curriculum.
In 1632, Milton took his M.A. at Cambridge, after which he retired to the family homes in London
and Horton for years of private study and literary composition. His poem, "On Shakespeare", was
published in the same year in the Second Folio. In April 1637, Milton was nearing the end of his
studies when his mother died and was buried at Horton. Only a few months later, in August,
Milton's friend Edward King died as well. The Civil War was brewing King Charles I invaded
Scotland in 1639, and the Long Parliament was convened in 1640. Milton began writing pamphlets
on political and religious matters. In 1642, Milton married Mary Powell, 17 years old to his 34, but
the relationship was an unhappy one, and Mary left him to visit the family home briefly thereafter,
and did not return. Matters were not improved when the Powells declared for the King in the Civil
War which broke out in August. In 1643, Milton published the Doctrine and Discipline of Divorce.
Milton had made plans to remarry, when Mary Powell returned. The two seem to have reconciled,
since their daughter Anne was born in 1646. The whole Powell clan moved in with the Miltons,
because Royalists had been ousted from Oxford. The year 1647 saw the death of both Milton's
father and his father-in-law. The Powells eventually moved out and the Miltons moved to the
neighborhood of High Holborn, where their daughter Mary was born in 1648.
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It is probable that Milton witnessed the public execution of Charles I on J anuary 30, 1649. Milton's
first son, J ohn, was born in March and the Miltons moved to Westminster. The year 1652 was one
of many personal losses for Milton. In February, Milton lost his sight. This prompted him to write
the sonnet "When I Consider How My Light is Spent." In May, 1652, Mary gave birth to a daughter,
Deborah, and died a few days later. In J une, one year-old J ohn died. In 1656, Milton married
Katherine Woodcock, but the happiness was short-lived. Milton's daughter Katherine was born in
late 1657, but by early 1658, both mother and daughter had passed away.
Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell died in October, 1658, and the days of the Commonwealth were
coming to a close. In early 1659, Milton published A Treatise of Civil Power and Ready and Easy
Way To Establish a Free Commonwealth. For his propaganda writings, Milton had to go into hiding,
for fear of retribution from the followers of King Charles II. In J une, 1659, both Defensio pro
populo Anglicano and Eikonoklastes were publicly burned. In early autumn, Milton was arrested
and thrown in prison, to be released by order of Parliament before Christmas. King Charles II was
restored to the throne on May 30, 1660.
In 1663, Milton remarried again, to Elizabeth Minshull, a match his daughters opposed. He spent
his time tutoring students and finishing his life's work, the epic, Paradise Lost. Among the greatest
works ever to be written in English, the feat is all the more remarkable for Milton's blindness he
would compose verse upon verse at night in his head and then dictate them from memory to his
aides in the morning. Paradise Lost finally saw publication in 1667, in ten books. It was reissued in
1668 with a new title-page and additional materials. The book was met with instant success and
amazement. History of Britain was published in 1670; Paradise Regain'd and Samson Agonistes
were published together in 1671. In summer 1674, the second edition of Paradise Lost was
published, in twelve books. Milton died peacefully in November, 1674, and was buried in the
church of St. Giles, Cripplegate.
Paradise Lost
The poem concerns the Christian story of the Fall of Man: the temptation of Adam and Eve by the
fallen angel Satan and their expulsion from the Garden of Eden. Milton's purpose, stated in Book I,
is to justify the ways of God to men and elucidate the conflict between God's eternal foresight and
free will. Milton incorporates Paganism, classical Greek references, and Christianity within the
poem. It deals with diverse topics from marriage, politics (Milton was politically active during the
time of the English Civil War), and monarchy, and grapples with many difficult theological issues,
including fate, predestination, the Trinity, and the introduction of sin and death into the world, as
well as angels, fallen angels, Satan, and the war in heaven. Milton draws on his knowledge of
languages, and diverse sources primarily Genesis, much of the New Testament, the
deuterocanonical Book of Enoch, and other parts of the Old Testament.
The Iliad and the Aeneid are the great epic poems of Greek and Latin, respectively, and Milton
emulates them because he intends Paradise Lost to be the first English epic. Milton wants to make
glorious art out of the English language the way the other epics had done for their languages. Not
only must a great epic be long and poetically well-constructed, its subject must be significant and
original, its form strict and serious, and its aims noble and heroic. In Miltons view, the story he will
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tell is the most original story known to man, as it is the first story of the world and of the first
human beings. Also, while Homer and Virgil only chronicled the journey of heroic men, like
Achilles or Aeneas, Milton chronicles the tragic journey of all menthe result of humankinds
disobedience. Milton goes so far as to say that he hopes to justify, or explain, Gods mysterious
plan for humankind. Homer and Virgil describe great wars between men, but Milton tells the story
of the most epic battle possible: the battle between God and Satan, good and evil.
Book I, lines 27722Summary: Lines 27722: Satan and Hell
Immediately after the prologue, Milton raises the question of how Adam and Eves disobedience
occurred and explains that their actions were partly due to a serpents deception. This serpent is
Satan, and the poem joins him and his followers in Hell, where they have just been cast after being
defeated by God in Heaven. Satan lies stunned beside his second-in-command, Beelzebub, in a lake
of fire that gives off darkness instead of light. Breaking the awful silence, Satan bemoans their
terrible position, but does not repent of his rebellion against God, suggesting that they might gather
their forces for another attack. Beelzebub is doubtful; he now believes that God cannot be
overpowered. Satan does not fully contradict this assessment, but suggests that they could at least
pervert Gods good works to evil purposes. The two devils then rise up and, spreading their wings,
fly over to the dry land next to the flaming lake. But they can undertake this action only because
God has allowed them to loose their chains. All of the devils were formerly angels who chose to
follow Satan in his rebellion, and God still intends to turn their evil deeds toward the good.
Once out of the lake, Satan becomes more optimistic about their situation. He calls the rest of the
fallen angels, his legions, to join him on land. They immediately obey and, despite their wounds and
suffering, fly up to gather on the plain. Milton lists some of the more notable of the angels whose
names have been erased from the books of Heaven, noting that later, in the time of man, many of
these devils come to be worshipped as gods.
Satans unrepentant evil nature is unwavering. Even cast down in defeat, he does not consider
changing his ways: he insists to his fellow devils that their delight will be in doing evil, not good. In
particular, as he explains to Beelzebub, he wishes to pervert Gods will and find a way to make evil
out of good. It is not easy for Satan to maintain this determination; the battle has just demonstrated
Gods overwhelming power, and the devils could not even have lifted themselves off the lake of fire
unless God had allowed it. God allows it precisely because he intends to turn their evil designs
toward a greater good in the end. Satans envy of the Sons chosen status led him to rebel and
consequently to be condemned. His continued envy and search for freedom leads him to believe that
he would rather be a king in Hell than a servant in Heaven. Satans pride has caused him to believe
that his own free intellect is as great as Gods will. Satan remarks that the mind can make its own
Hell out of Heaven, or in his case, its own Heaven out of Hell.
Satan addresses his comrades and acknowledges their shame in falling to the heavenly forces, but
urges them to gather in order to consider whether another war is feasible. Instantly, the legions of
devils dig into the bowels of the ground, unearthing gold and other minerals. With their inhuman
powers they construct a great temple in a short time. It is called Pandemonium (which means all
the demons in Greek), and the hundreds of thousands of demonic troops gather there to hold a
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summit. Being spirits, they can easily shrink from huge winged creatures to the smallest size.
Compacting themselves, they enter Pandemonium, and the debate begins.
Analysis
Throughout the first two or three books of Paradise Lost, Satan seems as if hes the hero of the
poem. This is partly because the focus of the poem is all on him, but it is also because the first
books establish his strugglehe finds himself defeated and banished from Heaven, and sets about
establishing a new course for himself and those he leads. Typically, the hero or protagonist of any
narrative, epic poem or otherwise, is a person who struggles to accomplish something. Milton plays
against our expectations by spending the first quarter of his epic telling us about the antagonist
rather than the protagonist, so that when we meet Adam and Eve, we will have a more profound
sense of what they are up against. But even when the focus of the poem shifts to Adam and Eve,
Satan remains the most active force in the story.
One important way in which the narrator develops our picture of Satanand gives us the
impression that he is a herois through epic similes, lengthy and developed comparisons that tell
us how big and powerful Satan is. For example, when Satan is lying on the burning lake, Milton
compares him to the titans who waged war upon J ove in Greek mythology. Then, at greater length,
he compares him to a Leviathan, or whale, that is so huge that sailors mistake it for an island and fix
their anchor to it. In other epics, these sorts of similes are used to establish the great size or strength
of characters, and on the surface these similes seem to do the same thing. At the same time, however,
the effect of these similes is to unsettle us, making us aware that we really do not know how big
Satan is at all. No one knows how big the titans were, because they were defeated before the age of
man. The image of the Leviathan does not give us a well-defined sense of his size, because the
whole point of the image is that the Leviathans size generates deception and confusion.
The devils in Paradise Lost are introduced to the story here in Book I in almost a parody of how
Homer introduces great warriors in the Iliad. The irony of these descriptions lies in the fact that
while these devils seem heroic and noteworthy in certain ways, they just lost the war in Heaven. As
frightening and vividly presented as these creatures are, they did not succeed in killing a single
angel. In Book I, Milton presents Satan primarily as a military hero, and the council of devils as a
council of war. In doing so, he makes Paradise Lost resonate with earlier epics, which all center
around military heroes and their exploits. At the same time, Milton presents an implicit critique of a
literary culture that glorifies war and warriors. Satan displays all of the virtues of a great warrior
such as Achilles or Odysseus. He is courageous, undaunted, refusing to yield in the face of
impossible odds, and able to stir his followers to follow him in brave and violent exploits.
Ultimately he attempts to show that the Christian virtues of obedience, humility, and forbearance
are more important.
Satan
Some readers consider Satan to be the hero, or protagonist, of the story, because he struggles to
overcome his own doubts and weaknesses and accomplishes his goal of corrupting humankind.
Head of the rebellious angels who have just fallen from Heaven. As the poems antagonist, Satan is
the originator of sinthe first to be ungrateful for God the Fathers blessings. He embarks on a
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mission to Earth that eventually leads to the fall of Adam and Eve, but also worsens his eternal
punishment. His character changes throughout the poem. Satan often appears to speak rationally
and persuasively, but later in the poem we see the inconsistency and irrationality of his thoughts. He
can assume any form, adopting both glorious and humble shapes.
Adam
Adam is a strong, intelligent, and rational character possessed of a remarkable relationship with
God. In fact, before the fall, he is as perfect as a human being can be. He has an enormous capacity
for reason, and can understand the most sophisticated ideas instantly. He can converse with Raphael
as a near-equal, and understand Raphaels stories readily. But after the fall, his conversation with
Michael during his visions is significantly one-sided. Also, his self-doubt and anger after the fall
demonstrate his new ability to indulge in rash and irrational attitudes. As a result of the fall, he loses
his pure reason and intellect. Adams greatest weakness is his love for Eve. He falls in love with her
immediately upon seeing her, and confides to Raphael that his attraction to her is almost
overwhelming. Though Raphael warns him to keep his affections in check, Adam is powerless to
prevent his love from overwhelming his reason. After Eve eats from the Tree of Knowledge, he
quickly does the same, realizing that if she is doomed, he must follow her into doom as well if he
wants to avoid losing her. Eve has become his companion for life, and he is unwilling to part with
her even if that means disobeying God. Adams curiosity and hunger for knowledge is another
weakness. The questions he asks of Raphael about creation and the universe may suggest a growing
temptation to eat from the Tree of Knowledge. But like his physical attraction to Eve, Adam is able
to partly avoid this temptation. It is only through Eve that his temptations become unavoidable.
Eve
Created to be Adams mate, Eve is inferior to Adam, but only slightly. She surpasses Adam only in
her beauty. She falls in love with her own image when she sees her reflection in a body of water.
Ironically, her greatest asset produces her most serious weakness, vanity. After Satan compliments
her on her beauty and godliness, he easily persuades her to eat from the Tree of Knowledge. Aside
from her beauty, Eves intelligence and spiritual purity are constantly tested. She is not unintelligent,
but she is not ambitious to learn, content to be guided by Adam as God intended. As a result, she
does not become more intelligent or learned as the story progresses, though she does attain the
beginning of wisdom by the end of the poem. The one instance in which she deviates from her
passive role, telling Adam to trust her on her own and then seizing the fruit of the Tree of
Knowledge, is disastrous. Eves strengths are her capacity for love, emotion, and forebearance. She
persuades Adam to stay with her after the fall, and Adam in turn dissuades her from committing
suicide, as they begin to work together as a powerful unit. Eve complements Adams strengths and
corrects his weaknesses. Thus, Milton does not denigrate all women through his depiction of Eve.
Rather he explores the role of women in his society and the positive and important role he felt they
could offer in the divine union of marriage.
God
An omniscient, omnipresent, and omnipotent character who knows everything before it happens.
Attempting to present such an unimaginable character accurately, Milton appropriates several of
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Gods biblical speeches into his speeches in Paradise Lost. God loves his creation and strongly
defends humankinds free will. He presents his love through his Son, who performs his will justly
and mercifully. God, in Paradise Lost, is less a developed character than a personification of
abstract ideas. He is unknowable to humankind and to some extent lacks emotion and depth. He has
no weaknesses, embodies pure reason, and is always just. He explains why certain events happen,
like Satans decision to corrupt Adam and Eve, tells his angels what will happen next, and gives his
reasoning behind his actions in theological terms. God allows evil to occur, but he will make good
out of evil.
The Son
For Milton, the Son is the manifestation of God in action. While God the Father stays in the realm
of Heaven, the Son performs the difficult tasks of banishing Satan and his rebel angels, creating the
universe and humankind, and punishing Satan, Adam and Eve with justice and mercy. The Son
physically connects God the Father with his creation. Together they form a complete and perfect
God. The Son personifies love and compassion. After the fall, he pities Adam and Eve and gives
them clothing to help diminish their shame. His decision to volunteer to die for humankind shows
his dedication and selflessness. The final vision that Adam sees in Book XII is of the Sons (or
J esus) sacrifice on the crossthrough this vision, the Son is able to calm Adams worries for
humankind and give Adam and Eve restored hope as they venture out of Paradise.
The Hierarchical Nature of the Universe
Paradise Lost is about hierarchy as much as it is about obedience. The layout of the universewith
Heaven above, Hell below, and Earth in the middlepresents the universe as a hierarchy based on
proximity to God and his grace. This spatial hierarchy leads to a social hierarchy of angels, humans,
animals, and devils: the Son is closest to God, with the archangels and cherubs behind him. Adam
and Eve and Earths animals come next, with Satan and the other fallen angels following last. To
obey God is to respect this hierarchy. Satan refuses to honor the Son as his superior, thereby
questioning Gods hierarchy. As the angels in Satans camp rebel, they hope to beat God and
thereby dissolve what they believe to be an unfair hierarchy in Heaven. When the Son and the good
angels defeat the rebel angels, the rebels are punished by being banished far away from Heaven. At
least, Satan argues later, they can make their own hierarchy in Hell, but they are nevertheless
subject to Gods overall hierarchy, in which they are ranked the lowest. Satan continues to disobey
God and his hierarchy as he seeks to corrupt mankind. Likewise, humankinds disobedience is a
corruption of Gods hierarchy. Before the fall, Adam and Eve treat the visiting angels with proper
respect and acknowledgement of their closeness to God, and Eve embraces the subservient role
allotted to her in her marriage. God and Raphael both instruct Adam that Eve is slightly farther
removed from Gods grace than Adam because she was created to serve both God and him. When
Eve persuades Adam to let her work alone, she challenges him, her superior, and he yields to her,
his inferior. Again, as Adam eats from the fruit, he knowingly defies God by obeying Eve and his
inner instinct instead of God and his reason. Adams visions in Books XI and XII show more
examples of this disobedience to God and the universes hierarchy, but also demonstrate that with
the Sons sacrifice, this hierarchy will be restored once again.