Analysis Of John Milton s Paradise Lost - 1480 Words

Roberts 1 Jackson Roberts Dr. Marks AP English 11 Mar, 2015 Paradise Lost: A â€Å"Knotty Problem† In the world of literature, the most memorable characters are often those who are the most complex. Readers may sympathize with a character they find appealing, but the most enigmatic characters will stick out in their minds when they think back on their reading. In John Milton’s Paradise Lost, Satan provides an archetype for this sort of character. Throughout the poem, an obvious contradiction develops between the apparent heroism in Satan’s actions and his role as the poem’s main force of evil. First, it is clear that throughout the poem that Satan plays the role of the classic villain. It is often said that â€Å"actions speak louder than words†, and Satan’s actions in Paradise Lost are a continuous stream of dreadful deeds. One example of his evil doings that readers will be most revolted by is his incestuous impregnation of his own daughter, Sin. His resultant son/grandson, Death, then also im pregnates his mother, which also implies Satan’s evil genetics passing down through generations. When Sin surprises Satan by telling him that she is his daughter, rather than feeling remorse, Satan is glad, because he can use his kinship to Sin and Death to get free from the gates of Hell with sweet talk. When he tells Sin, â€Å"I come no enemy, but to set free/ From this dark and dismal house of pain,/ Both him and Roberts 2 thee† (2, 822-824), Satan further removes himself from theShow MoreRelatedAnalysis Of John Milton s Paradise Lost 1852 Words   |  8 Pagesliterary merit. Do not merely summarize the plot. (2010 AP Literature and Composition) Disobedience and Exile an Analysis of Satan from Milton’s Paradise Lost John Milton’s epic poem, Paradise Lost, has been the subject of criticism and interpretation through many years; these interpretations concur in that Adam and Eve are the sufferers of the poem, and it is their blight to lose Paradise because of their disobedience; however, their exile is merely a plight brought by Satan, and it is he who suffersRead MoreAnalysis Of John Milton s Paradise Lost Essay2201 Words   |  9 PagesEve’s story arc in Paradise Lost, by John Milton, is a bildungsroman, the German word for a â€Å"novel of education.† Eve develops through the five stages of a typical bildungsroman character, as demonstrated by several different works from the genre. It will be useful to discuss several different bildungsromans from different eras and regions to fully determine the necessary characteristics of a bildungsroman, like The Odyssey, To Kill a Mockingbird, David Copperfield, Adventures of Huckleberry FinnRead MoreAnalysis Of John Milton s The Of Paradise Lost 1122 Words   |  5 Pageshumankind could be considered heroic according to well-known author John Milton. Book IX of Paradise lost portrays this sense of heroism through the sins of Adam and Eve, but also creates a sense of controversy through the unexpected personality swap between Satan and of God. This literary work is a major contribution to biblical and literary history; therefore a reason why this work is still read today. The poem must turn tragic, and Milton asserts his intention to show this great fall is more heroic thanRead MoreAnalysis Of John Milton s Paradise Lost 1499 Words   |  6 Pagesbeing, an epic hero if that being has done what is required. In John Milton’s, â€Å"Paradise Lost†, the character of Satan presents itself as an epic hero, Milton tests that the character of Satan forces the reader to consider the possibility that Satan may actually be a hero, or at the very least, a character worth seeing in a more complex light. This along with the following examples are all showing how the character of Satan in â€Å"Paradise lost†, can be view and is viewed as an epic hero thought the novelRead MoreAnalysis Of John Milton s Paradise Lost 1071 Words   |  5 Pages Writing AP Exam Essays Advanced Placement English Literature Composition Name Juan Linares Major Work Data Page Paradise Lost Writer/Nationality John Milton/ UK 1608-1674 Theme/Meanings of the work as a whole Disobedience plays a key role in the unfolding of Milton’s poem. Satan disobeys God because God gave him free will, and causes Eve to disobey Adam, to disobey God. Justification of God. Death must happen to the world but because of the Son, DeathRead MoreAnalysis Of John Milton s Paradise Lost 1035 Words   |  5 PagesSatan is the first figure to speak in Milton’s poems in Paradise Lost. His words to Beelzebub are the sort of utterances a politician would make to his party members after a defeat. It combines convincement with the virtue of emotional manipulation. Satan’s words shift like a dream from expression of grief and sympathy to the restatement of united defiance, to which Beelzebub replies unconsciously. Milton creates this shift so subtly that it is hardly noticed and highlights through this that theRead MoreAnalysis Of John Milton s Paradise Lost 869 Words   |  4 PagesIn his epic, Paradise Lost, Milton entertains the reader with his version of how one of the greatest falls of humanity occurred. Although many would consider God or Adam and Eve as the main characters in a story like this, the main character of this epic is truly Satan. Satan is shown as a strong and powerful character who is completely overwhelmed with emotions which create a type of hell in his mind; even when he is in heaven, he cannot escape his true life. Satan’s desire for vengeance on God’sRead MoreAnalysis Of John Milton s Paradise Lost 1606 Words   |  7 PagesIn books one, two, four and nine of Paradise Lost, Milton portrays Satan as heroic, introducing freedom and reason to the minds and lives of humanity. Satan allows his subservient fallen angels, as well as Adam and eve to recognize authority, reason and the true meaning of freedom. The beginning of the story is told through Satan’s point of view, making him the first empathetic character the reader is introduced to. From the very beginning of Book One, Satan explains how him and other fellow angelsRead MoreAnalysis Of John Milton s Paradise Lost1442 Words   |  6 Pages(Name) (Instructor) (Course) (Date) Heroism in John Milton’s Paradise Lost There are many definitions of a hero, and establishing the hero in John Milton’s Paradise Lost has been object to scholarly debate. One definition of a hero is that by Aristotle, who defined a hero as a person who is divine and superhuman. However, other definitions encompass the aspect of virtue in heroism. Despite all the definitions for a hero, it remains factual that a hero would be someone that the readers would delightRead MoreAnalysis Of John Milton s Paradise Lost 1253 Words   |  6 Pages Students often read John Milton’s works with great difficulty; he is determined to have his audience know his goals and how important his writing is through epic metaphors and masterful language. In Paradise Lost, he tells his audience that this will the epic to end all epics and that this is the most important tale of all mankind: the fall of Man. Comparatively, Alexander Pope used the same style of epic not to tell an important tale, but to question much of the life of ar istocracy in his time