Essay on John Milton’s Paradise Lost and the War in Heaven

Paradise Lost and the War in Heaven From the beginning of go for 1 the war in heaven facems more than a simple, accurate event. In reality, we have the authorized imposing side presented the war was ambitious, impious, proud, vain, and resulting in ruin. matchs first speech implies that there was another side-even later we have partly discounted the personal tones of the defeated leader who speaks of the good obsolescent lost cause, hazard in the Glorious Enterprise. That too is a formal side, presented by the losing actor in the drama. Then Satan goes on, to reveal, before he can pull himself together in defiance, something more Into what Pit molarity impinge onst From what highth faln, so much the stronger provd He with his thunder and then who knew The force of these terrible Arms? (I, 91, ff) A little later the surprise has been bolstered with a cordial of indignation But still his strength conceald Which tempted our attempt, and wrought our fall. (I, 641 f.) We soon learn that we cannot get answers in hell, but we begin to see certain questions, and the possibility that their answers may be when we see the actual hammy presentation of the rebellion. For one thing, Satans innumerable force receives a definite tally later- it is only one third of the angels. And this fact give look different when we learn that God opposes the enemy force with an be number only, and then puts a fixed limit on the person strength of the contestants, and then sends only the Son against the rebels, and with His strength limited too. Satan puts so much concentration on having shaken the throne of god, against His maximum power-Who from the terrour of this Arm so late/... ...s and then the gigantic nicety of the detail that pictures the mountains, pulled up by the tops, coming bottom side up toward them. In between we are forced to look away, to separate ourselves from the action, and see it as a spectator, not as a participator. In the rarefied finale of physical ridicule the rebels are again left uncovered to laughter by the interrupted point of view. Never do they appear so ridiculous, not even as a timorous flock, as when they are caught isolated between the before and the behind. This is to be understood metaphorically, as the climax of their physical humiliation. It does not last, any more than their later down metamorphosis into serpents, with which this is parallel. But it is a punishment, on the material level, for the material spirit of their sin. If they regain their form in hell, that is because they regain free will.