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The character of satan in paradise lost
Critically the character of satan from paradise lost
The character of satan in paradise lost
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John Milton’s Paradise Lost is an epic poem that describes the fall of Satan and the expulsion of Adam and Eve from Paradise. Satan is the protagonist of Paradise Lost and has several characteristics in which readers may identify with him. Throughout the poem, Satan is not only a tragic hero but also the key character that drives the plot and portrays many flawed human qualities. As an angel fallen from the high esteem of God and a possessor of hubris that leads to his downfall, he represents a tragic hero but also a character in which readers may identify with.
Following the standards of classic tragic heroes, Satan is a determined leader with an extreme amount of hubris. He knows that God is the most powerful being and yet he still rises against him, wanting more than just God’s highest approval. As compared to most tragic and epic heroes, Satan begins in a position of supreme status but his tragic flaw leads to his downfall. In Book I, Milton describes Satan’s fatal flaw of hubris:
“Th’ infernal serpent; he it was, whose guile
Stirred up with envy and revenge, deceived
The mother of Mankind, what time his pride
Had cast him out from Heav’n with all his host
Of rebel angels, by whose aid aspiring
To set himself in glory above his peers,
He trusted to have equaled the Most High” (34-40)
Satan proves his leadership by managing to cause the fall of other angels as well. He has a legion of rebel angels that he has somehow convinced to join him in his revolt against God. The angels and he mistakenly believe him to be just as powerful as God (line 40). Perhaps his futile attempts to win are what attract the sympathy and understanding of human beings, for mankind is constantly trying to change things they will never be abl...
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...ubts himself, has jealousy, confidence and does not know he is wrong when he is; all of which a reader can identify with. Satan is in the same position as human beings under an omnipotent God who has foreseen their fate and yet argues that they possess free will. Both Satan and mankind have a choice to obey or do evil, and that is where they are similar.
Works Cited
Milton, John. Paradise Lost. Ed. William Kerrigan, John Peter Rumrich, and Stephen M. Fallon. New York: Modern Library, 2008. Print.
Wallace, Matt. "A Devil of a Problem: Satan as Hero in Paradise Lost." The Compleat Heretic. 08 12 2008. Web. 26 Oct. 2011. .
"Milton, John." Encyclopedia Britannica's Guide to Shakespeare. Encyclopedia Britannica, Inc., 2011. Web. 26 Oct 2011. .
Satan's three main characteristics; envy, deceit, and pride; are also a contributing factor in the relevance of...
Satan is very easy to sympathize because he is more like man than god is, he has more characteristics and feelings that god does not have. He has jealousy, fear, pride and he makes mistakes like we all do. His pride is what got him where he is today, thinking he could take over heaven for the better of the angels. But when has god ever made a mistake? He doesn’t because he’s so perfect. When one looks around it is clear every human around you is not perfect. We all make mistakes, regrets, but that does not mean we should be thrown away from earth. The way Satan thinks, feels, and acts is all very human and that’s one reason we can sympathize with him, because we’ve all been there at one point in time. At an all-time low, that’s we he ends up embracing his future like he should.
Satan frequently characterizes “the tyranny of heaven” and employs negative diction in his depictions of both heaven and God (I.124). His negative portrayals of God and his kingdom highlight his utter dissatisfaction with being subservient to God and, from that, his desire for autonomy. In the exposition of the text, Satan’s emotions toward God make themselves apparent when Satan “throws his baleful eyes / That witnessed huge affliction and dismay / Mixed with obdúrate pride and steadfast hate” (I.56-58). Satan reveals himself to be furious with his continued subjugation to God as well as his inability to truly revenge himself against his subsequent punishment. According to Satan, God’s dissimulation of his power tempted Satan and others to rise
Reichert, John. Milton's Wisdom: Nature and Scripture in Paradise Lost. Ann Arbor, The University of Michigan Press. 1992
Milton, John. Paradise Lost. The Norton Anthology of English Literature. 8th ed. Vol. A. gen
Anyone who has read a book about heroes knows that they go above and beyond to save the day which is kind of what Satan does in the eyes of the other outcast angels who look up to him. The readers being able to see Satan as a hero and leader in his own world full of villains enables them to view him as a hero in Gods
(Milton 1.245-47). This illustrates how Satan is going against God because he does not believe that God is just because he has made himself the ruler and decides what is right and what is
Sympathy for Satan: An Examination of the Representations of Good and Evil within Milton’s Paradise Lost The depiction of good and evil in Milton's Paradise Lost is fluid, both because it is inconsistent and because Milton makes the limits of human understanding – including his own – one of the text's central aspects. Initially, Milton's Satan is both sympathetic and compelling. The justification for his rebellion is persuasive, and even Milton's narrator acknowledges that ‘he pleas'd the eare' (2.117). As the narrative progresses however, and the reader moves closer to God, Satan's faults become increasingly apparent.
Satan states, “So farewell hope, and with hope farewell fear, / Farewell remorse: all Good to me is lost; / Evil be thou my good…” (Paradise Lost 4: 108-110). This shows Satan’s understanding of being the criminal; he becomes self-aware of his action being corrupt. Even though he wants to continue his rebellion, he understands that his actions were not justified.
The. “Paradise Lost.” The Norton Anthology of English Literature. Ed. Stephen Greenblatt, M.H. Abrams.
Satan demonstrates his leadership, intelligence, and traits valued by his fellow fallen angels within the first several books of Paradise Lost. Satan speaks eloquently throughout the entire work, which demonstrates both his intelligence and ability to manipulate others, “Powers and Dominions, Deities of Heaven!/For, since no deep within her gulf can hold/Immortal vigour, though oppressed and fallen,/I give not Heaven for lost...claim our just inheritance of old,/Surer to prosper than prosperity/Could have assured us, and by what best way, Whether of open war or covert guile,/We now debate; who can advise, may speak” (2.11-42). Satan beautifully addresses his peers and cunningly proposes a democracy, disguising his leadership and intentions of making the decisions himself. However, his companions in Hell blindly
Milton's introduction of Satan shows the reader how significant Satan is to Paradise Lost. He uses Satan's heroic qualities to his followers, and his ability to corrupt to show the thin line between good and evil. Satan was one of the highest angels in Heaven and was know as Lucifer, meaning, light bearer. This shows he was once a good angel. Milton makes the reader see him as a leader and a strong influence to all in his presence. He best describes Satan's ways when stating, "His pride/ had cast him out from Heaven, with all his host. / Of rebel angels, by whose aspiring/ To set himself in glory above his peers" (Milton Book I). Satan's pride was the main reason that God banned him from heaven. Satan always tried to be number one and a leader, instead of following in God's shadow. He would of lived a life in Paradise forever, but he had to follow his feelings as he states, "Better to reign in Hell than serve in Heaven" (Milton 31). This shows how strongly he felt about not being above everybody else.
Ask anyone to draw Satan and you 'll get a red snake-like figure with horns and a pitchfork. Satan, as introduced in the Hebrew bible is an unworthy adversary of God. His longing to be like God is quickly recognized and dealt with. God banishes him from Heaven and sends him to Hell. That 's the last we see of him until he talks with God about his faithful servant Job. In each interaction we see Satan in, we get only a glimpse of who he really is. Satan 's motive is not developed and we assume he does evil simply because he is evil
MacCaffrey, Isabel. "Satan’s Voyage". Modern Critical Views: John Milton . Bloom, Harold, ed. Chelsea House Publishers: New York, 1986.
Paradise Lost is one of the finest examples of the epic tradition in all of literature. In composing this extraordinary work, John Milton was, for the most part, following in the manner of epic poets of past centuries: Barbara Lewalski notes that Paradise Lost is an "epic whose closest structural affinities are to Virgil's Aeneid . . . "; she continues, however, to state that we now recognize as well the influence of epic traditions and the presence of epic features other than Virgilian. Among the poem's Homeric elements are its Iliadic subject, the death and woe resulting from an act of disobedience; the portrayal of Satan as an Archillean hero motivated by a sense of injured merit and also as an Odyssean hero of wiles and craft; the description of Satan's perilous Odyssey to find a new homeland; and the battle scenes in heaven. . . . The poem also incorporates a Hesiodic gigantomachy; numerous Ovidian metamorphoses; an Ariostan Paradise of Fools; [and] Spenserian allegorical figures (Sin and Death) . . . . (3)