Samuel Coleridge's Poem Kubla Khan

Milton’s Paradise Lost Critics of the Romantic Period have claimed that John Milton was unconsciously allied with the forces of evil. In Paradise Lost Milton’s accounts of “Devils & Hell” are much more elaborate and awe inspiring than those of “Angels & God.” Hell and Satan are portrayed extensively whereas the reader is given brief and inconclusive glimpses of Heaven. The apparent dichotomy is explained by William Blake: “The reason Milton wrote in fetters when he wrote of Angels & Gods, and at liberty when of Devils & Hell, is because he was a true Poet and of the Devil’s Party without knowing it.” Milton’s adherence to orthodox views resulted in an uninspired portrait of Heaven. Hell, in contrast, was greatly developed; the vivid imagery of the volcanic and desolate terrain gave Hell a genuine ambience. Milton described Hell as a “lake of fire” (280) and commented on the “Floods and Whirlwinds of tempestuous fire” (77).

1-5). These lines create an aura of awe and majesty for Satan, showing his glory and splendor through material things, while at the same time inferring indirectly that this material show is all that Satan has, rather than real power or value. After this portrayal of Satan the epic hero in all his magnificence, the speaker (the heavenly muse) is very careful to bring down his image morally, despite the magnificent outward experience. The muse asserts that, by merit raised To that bad eminence; and from despair Thus high uplifted beyond hope, aspires Beyond thus high, insatiate to pursue Vain war with Heav'n, and by success untaught His proud imaginations thus displayed, (II. 5-10).

However, Milton does not want to be confused with the stereotypical puritan. Milton the poet, seems to celebrate the ideal of sex; yet, he deplores concupiscence  and warns against the evils of lust, insisting  lust  leads to sin, violence and death. From the beginning, Satan, like fallen humanity, not only blames others; but also makes comic and grandiose reasons for his evil  behavior. Yet, despite his reasoning to seek revenge against God, "his true motivation for escaping from hell and perverting paradise is, at least partly, something more basic: Satan needs sex" (Daniel 26). In the opening books of the poem, Satan is cast into a fiery hell that is not only is miserable, but devoid of sex.

By using part of the black-and-white Genesis story which paints Satan as evil and juxtaposing a narrative which paints Satan as a sympathetic hero, Milton raises a question about morality that largely define the audience’s reaction to the story: what is immoral? Two important things that make Satan a hero are identified in the beginning of Paradise Lost: an obstacle Satan is trying to overcome and flaws that Satan has. In the beginning of the poem, Satan falls into Hell, which sets up the en media res (starting with action in the middle of the story) narrative so that the reader does not know the circumstances under which Satan rebelled against God. Satan despairs at first at the thought of eternal damnation and debates making up with God, but decides that if he tried to redeem himself he would eventually rebel again. Instead, Satan decides to corrupt the rumored new race, the human race, that God has created and, with his host of demons, “reascend / self-raised, and repossess their native seat [in Heaven]” (1.633-634).

In John Milton’s Paradise Lost, the character of Satan is arrogant and villainous, yet heroic and complex, who crafts himself as the innocent victim, even though “Satan dared to hope he could be defeated.” Milton’s romanticising of Satan highlights and articulates the alluring aspect of a central character designed by Judeo-Christian belief to being menacing. The structure of Milton’s Satan, the romanticizing of this tragic hero and the defining of the character in paralleled response to Milton’s Paradise Regained, will be approached, highlighted and emphasized in this essay. The progression of Satan from Book One to Book Five of Paradise Lost recites Milton’s own poetic divinations and portrayals of him as an epic writer, through the use of developing the characters. This articulates the particulars of and gives the main characters more heroic qualities which make them strong for an epic structure. In Milton’s Paradise Lost, Heaven and Hell, both Judeo-Christian beliefs, are portrayed as themes of good and evil.

He rallies the other fallen angels and even inspires the readers to be moved by some of the things he states. Milton’s epic can be seen as a way to celebrate the evil character however, when one knows the background of the author it is obvious that this appearance of Satan as a hero is meant as a metaphor for the fact that Satan and his evil ways can seem appealing and how easily one can be caught in his trap. Milton uses his skill with words and literature to make the Devil appear endearing or heroic to the those reading his poem yet the poem symbolizes how one can mistake the evil of Satan for something good. Milton’s heroic Satan is only a symbol of the demon he truly is in disguise.

appearance lends horror to the play and reminds all that the higher powers will triumph over mortal evils. The curses of the female royalties add psychological and supernatural forces to drive the character?s actions, thus furthering the plot. Dreams, ghosts, and curses ? these supernatural elements all have a natural place in Richard III, for they weave together the fascinating horror in the storyline and ensure that the tyranny of a mortal man will not reign in the end. WORK CITED Shakespeare, William.

For Poe, reality and fantasy seem to be intrinsically entwined (Postema, 1991). He seems to view the scenario of jealous angels stealing his love away as incontrovertible fact, rather than simply a manifestation of his rage, which it so obviously is. When he writes, “For the moon never beams without giving me dreams Of the beautiful Annabel Lee”, he seems to be aware of the distinction between fantasy and reality, however this is his only lucid moment. In addition to its alluring content, the language of the poem also serves to immerse the reader into Poe's fantasy-like realm of the transcendent love he shared with his child bride. Throughout the poem, Poe writes primarily with “a combination of iambic and anapestic feet, alternating between tetrameter and trimeter”.

Shelley’s scathe theme of nature may be limitless creator of everything existing within the world, but nevertheless is still humble. Even the “King of kings” are outlasted by the “lone and level deserts.” This verse form looks to explain many various aspects, from telling a story, to a mask, to the stupendous decay within the large desert. However, reading it with the assonate rhyme scheme, the concepts unite. They come together and make a story, and not a single person could see the theme that’s conjointly inside the creating of the poem. Shelley is that creator who isn’t mentioned in his own poems, but is pictured by his concepts, which can oulive the “king of kings”.

Illusion can be defined as a distortion of the senses, of reality, and the perception of a dream like world that consumes us. James Baldwin author of the short story “Sonny’s Blues” uses the unique creativity of illusion to therefore draw in his readers. He uses several literary elements including characterization, plot, and setting to express his elaborate use of illusion in this story. Likewise Nathaniel Hawthorne author of the most controversial short story “The Birthmark” also uses illusion to draw attention to an almost magical setting of mystery and morality. Both of these authors use this theme in their works brilliantly, but in contrasting styles, which on the contrary makes their works masterpieces in distorting the beauty and truth in the world.