Kevin Pauls

Mrs. Bradley
AP Literature 2
December 8, 2016
Lucifers Downfall and Corruption
In Miltons work, Paradise Lost, the tale of Adam and Eves loss of Paradise, all because
of the efforts taken by the Devil. Lucifer is seen as the leader of what goes on down in Hell.
Mainly, Lucifer has to take on many roles in order to accomplish his tasks of breaking through
the bowels of Hell. Mainly, Lucifer uses many disguises like an archangel, a serpent, and a
toad. These disguises have a strong reasoning covering why the form was taken and for the
purpose to corrupt mankind.
In order to trick the guards of Heaven, Satan has to transform himself in order to break
through Heavens gates. To accomplish this, Lucifer disguises himself as a cherub, an angel
that is pictured as a naive infant. Uriel, the guard of the gates of heaven, is played by Satan
when he states that he had just came from Heaven. As Satan intended, Uriel falls for Satans
tricks and lets him through the gates of Heaven. The purpose of being disguised as a Cherub
allows Satan to possess the look he needed to get into Heaven, greatly providing him with an
advantage in his quest.
Following this, Satan continues his quest by heading towards the Garden of Eden. The
Tree of Life is the hallmark of Eden, being one of the tallest trees. Although this is one of the
tallest trees, it is forbidden and kept as a secret. To reach this destination, Satan must change
his look into a sea bird called a cormorant. This symbolizes Lucifers freedom from the shackles
and chains of Hell; he is now free from what Hell brings upon him. Birds have the ability to fly
wherever they may desire, so Satan takes this trait upon himself through his embodiment as a
cormorant.

When speaking to Eve, Lucifer adopts the role of a toad, but instead of holding an actual
conversation, Satan whispers into her ear. Satan does this in the form of a toad because toads
are quick and sly. They are able to do their tasks and jump away when finished. Also, toads are
typically seen as loathsome creatures, bringing vibes that share similarities with a witch. Since a
witchs goal is to cause distress on something, a toad falls in the same category.
At a point in the Devils life, he was one of the highest angelic figures and was able to
carry himself upon his outstanding achievements. Due to his goal to ruin his surroundings, he
had to respond by transforming into figures much less than that of an angel. Although these
transformations were dishonoring to his image, Satan ultimately uses them to tempt Adam and
Eve to commit sins and destroy mankind.