John Milton (Paradise Lost)
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Last time we started Milton and we talked about the problems that faced him on writing this poem. As we said it's divided into different books and we have an argument in book one before the poem.
BOOK I
This first book proposes, first in brief, the whole subject: man's disobedience and the loss thereupon of Paradise wherein he was placed; then touches the prime cause of his fall, the serpent, or rather Satan in the serpent, who, revolting from God and drawing to his side many legions of angels, was by the command of God driven out of heaven with all his crew into the great deep. Which action past over, the poem hasts into the midst of things, presenting Satan with his angels now fallen into hell—described here, not in the center (for heaven and earth may be supposed as yet not made, certainly not yet accursed) but in a place of utter darkness, fitliest called chaos. Here Satan with his angels lying on the burning Lake, thunder-struck and astonished, after a certain space recovers, as from confusion; calls up him who, next in order and dignity, lay by him; they confer of thir miserable fall. Satan awakens all his legions, who lay till then in the same manner confounded. They rise; their numbers, array of battle, their chief leaders named, according to the idols known afterwards in Canaan and the countries adjoining. To these Satan directs his speech, comforts them with hope yet of regaining heaven, but tells them lastly of a new world and new kind of creature to be created, according to an ancient prophesy or report in heaven; for that angels were long before this visible creation, was the opinion of many ancient fathers. To find out the truth of this prophesy, and what to determine thereon, he refers to a full council; what his associates thence attempt. Pandemonium, the palace of Satan, rises, suddenly built out of the deep; the infernal peers there sit in counsil.
Book one speaks about the main subject which is man's disobedience to God and how Adam disobeyed God tempted by the serpent which is a snake and it is always linked to Satan or any person who is doing something wrong making anybody make a mistake, we say that he is like a serpent.
Here we have the main cause of the fall. Satan disobeyed God and God decided to send him out of heaven and Satan took with him some of his followers who are known as the fallen angels. He made a sort of army from those angels to fight man whom he considers the cause of punishment for Satan as he refused to bow to Adam. That's why he hated Adam and all his descendants and he decided to spend the time until Doomsday to fight man to make him disobey God and commit sins to go to hell with him.
Milton cannot present Satan in hell now because there is no hell or heaven, so instead he is describing him in a place of deep darkness a place called Chaos which means complete disorder. He uses his imagination. He imagined that Satan comes with his fallen angels like a defeated army and they are scattered around the lake.
Usually lakes in literature are parts of heaven and beautiful nature. But these are fallen angels who are supposed to be punished by God, so it is a lake of fire. They are like thunderstruck. They are burning and they are astonished. They were promised by Satan something. They followed him as man followed her for a promise good life, pleasure. This is what we call temptation like he tempted Adam and eve and that's why they are astonished.
They were exhausted coming back from battles lying down around this lake. So he comes and tries to encourage and revive them to continue fighting.
He started as a good leader and this is a human quality. He is trying to encourage his followers. He is trying to talk to the leaders showing to each one what he is going to do and how to perform it. He is promising them if you follow me, you will go to heaven again but before doing, so they should fight the new creature who has been born and settled in the new world which is man on earth.
He is telling them that this creature is new and you are created before him. In order to go to heaven he must be expelled from heaven. This is his argument. This creature is promised to go to heaven if he obeys. Satan says it's our chance to go to heaven again only if this creature is forbidden from going to heaven.
So this will be their job preventing them from going to heaven making him sinful and disobeying. In order to show his followers how to do, so he's going to have war against man. For this war he is going to make a council. The heads of his army are now sitting in the council in the place where Satan lives which is called Pandemonium and it is made of infernal. From there starts the poem.
Of Man's first disobedience, and the fruit
Of that forbidden tree whose mortal taste
Brought death into the World, and all our woe,
With loss of Eden, till one greater Man
Restore us, and regain the blissful seat,
Sing, Heavenly Muse, that, on the secret top
Of Oreb, or of Sinai, didst inspire
That shepherd who first taught the chosen seed
In the beginning how the heavens and earth
Rose out of Chaos: or, if Sion hill
Delight thee more, and Siloa's brook that flowed
Fast by the oracle of God, I thence
Invoke thy aid to my adventurous song,
That with no middle flight intends to soar
Above th' Aonian mount, while it pursues
Things unattempted yet in prose or rhyme.
And chiefly thou, O Spirit, that dost prefer
Before all temples th' upright heart and pure,
Instruct me, for thou know'st; thou from the first
Wast present, and, with mighty wings outspread,
Dove-like sat'st brooding on the vast Abyss,
And mad'st it pregnant: what in me is dark
Illumine, what is low raise and support;
That, to the height of this great argument,
I may assert Eternal Providence,
And justify the ways of God to men.
Milton Starts with the story of disobedience of man when he ate from the forbidden tree, this was his mistake that brought death into the world. In heaven he wouldn't have died.
Man is going to regain heaven if he obeys God and according to Christianity through the crucifixion of Christ who regained his feet back in heaven. So he is telling us the story and he refers to the story of creation.
In line 25
Milton is telling us what he's going to do in this poem and what is his intention in writing this poem.
I may assert Eternal Providence,
And justify the ways of God to men.
He is giving man assurance of the providence of god and he is telling man why and what are the reasons for god's ways why did God create man and why didn't he prevent him from committing a sin. He began with the story of Satan and how be tempted some of the fallen angels to follow him and how he came back to see them scattered around a lake and how he tries to make them rise again.
Remember the problem of having a tragic hero. In order to present Satan as a hero he is giving him heroic characteristics showing him as a great leader having great qualities he must be better than all his followers. He is presented as being taller than all and stronger he is showing us how he is a very huge creature able of leading his followers.
Line 270
So Satan spake; and him Beelzebub
Thus answered:--"Leader of those armies bright
Which, but th' Omnipotent, none could have foiled!
If once they hear that voice, their liveliest pledge
Of hope in fears and dangers--heard so oft