An Epic to Surpass all Epics
The epic poem Paradise Lost by John Milton was written during a time of religious revolution in England. The subject matter of this epic poem, in the words of Milton, is "[o]f man's first disobedience" (line 1). In this blank verse, Milton refers to the story in Genesis where Eve tempts Adam to eat the "forbidden fruit." In the first five lines of the poem he describes the beginning of mortality, suffering, and man's restoration, as "the fruit [o]f that forbidden tree, whose mortal taste [b]rought death into the world, and all our woe, [w]ith loss of Eden, till one greater Man [r]estore us, and regain the blissful seat" (lines 1-5). "[D]eath" is human mortality, and "all our woe" is man's suffering (line 3). When he says "till one greater Man [r]estore us," Milton is referring to Christ, and how He came to regain man's seat in heaven. In the beginning, in the Garden of Eden, man, Adam, lived immortally in paradise with his wife, Eve. When they were corrupted by Satan, and ate from the "forbidden fruit," all was lost, introducing evil into the world. Milton's goal in writing Paradise Lost was to "justify God's ways to men" (line 26). He hoped to explain God's mysterious plan for humankind. Since John Milton purposely set out to write an epic, he used all of the elements which were expected such an undertaking.
When John Milton was thirty years old he "proclaimed himself [to be] the future author of a great English epic" ( Norton Anthology 1771). Thirty years later he self-consciously composed Paradise Lost. Epic poetry possesses three requirements; the poem starts in medias res (in the middle of things), the poet makes a call to a Muse, and the poem refers to and attempts to surpas...
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John Milton did not want his epic to be just a traditional one, a story of a nation or a people. Instead, he would make the entire story about the human race, therefore making his epic important to all mankind, not just to England. Milton loads the first twenty-six lines with references to classic literature and biblical references. Also in those lines he presents his proclaimed subject, identifies a muse, declares that his epic will surpass those epics written before, and states his goal in writing the poem. Milton, in addition to that, manages to personalize his poem with references to his blindness and political happenings in England in his day. Only a great poet could fit so graciously all this pertinent information into the first twenty-six lines of a twelve book poem. All these qualities insure that his epic will truly exceed all the rest.
Paradise Lost is John Milton’s epic poem about the battle between Satan and God. The poem is quite controversial due to the fact that this was written during the time period that the Catholic Church was facing major corruption. People were already having concerns about God and what was right from the Catholic Church; because of this and many other textual reasons Paradise Lost has a very controversial relationship with Christianity.
In the novel Frankenstein, Mary Shelley intertwines an intricate web of allusions through her characters' insatiable desires for knowledge. Both the actions of Frankenstein, as well as his creature allude to John Milton?s epic poem Paradise Lost. The legendary Fall of Adam and Eve introduced the knowledge of good and evil into a previously immaculate world. In one split second sin was birthed, and the perfection of the earth was swept away, leaving anguish and iniquity in its ramification. The troubles of Victor Frankenstein began with his quest for knowledge, and, end where both pieces end: death.
The seat of faith resides in the will of the individual and not in the leaning to our own reasoning, for reasoning is the freedom of choosing what one accepts as one’s will. In considering the will was created and one cannot accuse the potter or the clay, Milton writes to this reasoning, as “thir own revolt,” whereas the clay of humankind is sufficient and justly pliable for use as a vessel of obedience or disobedience (3.117). The difficulty of this acceptance of obedience or disobedience is inherent in the natural unwillingness in acknowledging that we are at the disposal of another being, even God. One theme of Paradise Lost is humankind’s disobedience to a Creator, a Creator that claims control over its creation. When a single living thing which God has made escapes beyond the Creator’s control this is in essence an eradicating of the Creator God. A Creator who would create a creature who the Creator would or could not control its creation is not a sovereign God. For who would not hold someone responsible for manufacturing something that could not be controlled and consider it immoral to do so? To think that God created a universe that he has somehow abdicated to its own devices is to accredit immorality to the Creator. Since the nucleus of Milton’s epic poem is to “justifie the wayes of God” to his creation, these ‘arguments’ are set in theological Miltonesque terms in his words (1. 26). Milton’s terms and words in Paradise Lost relate the view of God to man and Milton’s view to the reader. Views viewed in theological terms that have blazed many wandering paths through the centuries to knot up imperfect men to explain perfect God.
John Milton’s Paradise Lost is filled with fantastical tales from the depths of Hell, extravagant descriptions of the fallen angels, and a curious recitation of the council of demons in their new palace. How did Milton dream up such vivid depictions of such horrible demons as the ones we see in Book I? Most of his fallen angels originate in the form of Pagan gods condemned by the Bible, with actual historical backgrounds which Milton cites in his lengthy descriptions.
Milton’s Theodicy (An analysis on Milton’s Theodicy used in Paradise Lost) Part 1: What is Milton’s Theodicy? Theodicy can be described as, the vindication of divine goodness and providence in view of the existence of evil. In Milton’s Paradise Lost, the entire story is about good and bad. Depending on a person’s point of views would determine which one Satan or God is good or evil.
Paradise Lost is an epic poem portraying John Milton’s theological standpoints. The theme is knowledge and the fall of man. Milton uses his poem to state some of his theological beliefs and his personal reflections. Milton wrote Paradise Lost in the 17th century but uses influence from classic poets. Milton’s epic is an extremely important piece of literature. The excerpt used in this commentary takes on the subjects of sin and the punishment with regards to the atonement from God’s point of view. Milton’s states many of his own theological opinions but wants the reader to know that God is justified in everything that he does, and also wants them to know that man has free will.
Steadman, John M. Milton's Epic Characters: Image and Idol. Chapel Hill, The University of North Carolina Press. 1968
In the opening lines of Paradise Lost, Milton wastes no time conveying to his readers what his purpose in writing the epic is. He writes in the beginning that he intends to “assert Eternal Providence, / and justifie the wayes of God to men” (I. 25-26). What exactly does this mean though? In order to be able to clearly judge and evaluate what these lines imply, it is important that one understands what exactly Milton’s thoughts we regarding “Eternal Providence” and the “wayes of God”. Stemming from this idea, it is important to also realize how the idea of free will intertwines with the omniscience of God. For Milton, God’s omniscient did not constrain the free will of Adam and Eve. However, this idea presents the reader with a paradoxical situation that Milton as an author was fully aware of. Paradise Lost presents the reader with eternal providence and free will as being part and parcel of each other, neither constrains the other, and it is these two aspects, along with that of knowledge that lay the groundwork in understanding Paradise Lost.
There have been many different interpretations of John Milton's epic, Paradise Lost. Milton's purpose in writing the epic was to explain the biblical story of Adam and Eve. Although the epic is similar to the Bible story in many ways, Milton's character structure differs from that of the Bible's version. Through-out the epic Milton describes the characters in the way he believes they are. In book II of Paradise Lost, Milton portrays Satan as a rebel who exhibits certain heroic qualities, but who turns out not to be a hero.
Milton took the book Genesis and wrote it more about Satan then God, Adam and Eve and called it Paradise Lost. Some say that he was worshipping the devil without even knowing it. Milton’s life wasn’t the easiest. This could have been the reason why he thought God wasn’t all that people think He is. Milton wrote more about Satan than God in his story for this reason. You will find out why Milton wrote this book and the reasons why he wrote Paradise Lost.
Milton, John. ‘Paradise Lost.’ 1674. Norton Anthology of English Literature. 7th ed. 2 vols. New York: Norton, 2000, 1: 1817-2044.
The regularity with which Milton frequently conforms to principles of epic structure make his occasional (but nevertheless fundamental) variations on the epic tradition all the more striking by contrast. The most important departures from epic decorum--the rejection of a martial theme, and the choice of an argument that emphasizes the hero's transgression and defeat instead of celebrating his virtues and triumphs--are paradoxically conditioned by concern for the ethical and religious decorum of the epic genre. On the whole, Milton has retained the formal motifs and devices of the heroic poem but has invested them with Christian matter and meaning. In this sense his epic is . . . something of a "pseudomorph"--retaining the form of classical epic but replacing its values and contents with Judeo-Christian correlatives. (Epic and Tragic Structure . . . 20)
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.
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.
Guibbory, Achsah. "Milton and English Poetry." A Companion to Milton. Thomas N. Corns, ed. Blackwell Publishing, 2003.