Paradise Lost

Paradise Lost by John Milton

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This amusing retelling of the myth of Narcissus indicates that God made women naturally autoerotic and bisexual. Sadly, this never made it into modern Christianity, for some reason, but it does show the strength of Paradise Lost: Milton provides rhetorical support for every idea he explores, even those he did not side with. It is a great book of questions, and a book which demands the reader think and try to understand. We are supposed to sympathize with the Devil because he is heroic and dangerous, but we also know he is the Devil.

We know that to sympathize with him is wrong, and that he is supposed to be wrong. Milton here invented the concept of the Devil we cannot help but sympathize with, and who we must fight daily to overcome. He defined sin as doubt, but without realizing that doubt will always deconstruct an old answer and suggest a new one.

The fact remains that metaphysically, doubt can only injure us in a realm we cannot know exists. As the enemy of any tyranny--of men, of ideas--doubt is the helpmeet of all who struggle. The Devil is the father of doubt, and the final outcome of doubt is always accepting that we are fundamentally ignorant: He also uses the English language in an entirely idiomatic and masterful way, his is one of the few unique voices of English.

Reading him sometimes proves a challenge for those without a background in Latin, since his sentence structure and particularly his verb use are stripped-down and multipurpose, taking the form of metaphysical poets to its logical conclusion. He is also one of the most knowledgeable and allusive of writers, especially when it comes to the longer form. His encyclopedic exploration of myths, reinvention of scenes, and adoption of ideas make this work one of the most wide-reaching and interconnected in English.

This can make his work somewhat daunting for readers, who are often unwilling to read the books he references in preparation for tackling him, which I find rather ironic, since no one complains about having to read ten-thousand pages of Harry Potter before tackling the last book. Apr 28, Rakhi Dalal rated it it was amazing Shelves: Or is it an actual place somewhere in heaven which is the ultimate goal that humans wish to achieve?

As a child, I had a profound belief in the idea of God and heaven too. Yes, and perhaps the reason I wished to believe in him was the fact that world seemed a beautiful place, a place where everything was just as it should have been; Loving parents and siblings, affectionate neighbors, and an innocent belief, one which leads a child to trust even an unknown smiling stranger on the road.

But that was a long time ago. Times have changed faster since then. Faster than I could get a chance to put everything together and analyze the reason why it changed. It changed almost everyday since I grew big enough to understand that not every stranger could be trusted. The affectionate neighbors or relatives were not that amiable so as to forgive an innocent childhood indulgence, that parents were not the super humans, perfect and devoid of all faults, and that, nobody was perfect, not even me.

And then the whole world started to seem to be at disharmony. There were people belonging to different strata of society, people rich, and poor and in between, people belonging to different castes, creeds and countries, people fighting with each other over smaller issues like standing in a row to bigger issues like fighting for a territory in a country; Countries going at war, hatred and more hatred.

Slowly the faith started to crumble and ultimately it shattered. My Paradise was lost forever. At times it makes me shiver to consider that even my son, or for that matter any child, can go through the same experience. It is also a loss in the idea of necessity of human existence and of life itself.

For me, the title also signifies the loss of the world as seen from the eyes of a child. This is the reason why the work fascinated me and I picked it up. The book is a beautiful exploration into the biblical characters of Satan, Adam and Eve, their thoughts and conversations and their FALL. Satan falls when he tries to become equal to GOD and Adam and Eve fall when they eat the prohibited fruit.

Even if planted, was it necessary to warn them of the consequences of eating it? Oct 20, Foad rated it really liked it Shelves: View all 20 comments. Sep 05, James rated it really liked it Shelves: I've only read the first book in this series, but would like to read the second piece at some point. These are epic poems telling of the battle between Satan and God for control over the human soul. It's truly an introspective piece, as I believe Milton threw so much of himself, as well as people in general, into this work. It's captured the attention of so many people, and not ju Book Review 3.

It's captured the attention of so many people, and not just readers. It's the foundation of several films and television adaptions. Some argue it loses focus on the religious aspects; others praise it for being very open to different experiences. It's the kind of literature that pushes you to think about voice and characters.

About different sides to a story and alternative opinions. How does it feel to agree with Satan? Do you accept being disappointed in something God says because it's something you thought was OK to do? So much in the words, but also the message is even more powerful. It's a lot to digest, but if you haven't read it, look up a few passages to see if the lyrical tone is something you can absorb while reading the words.

It may help give you some perspective on different aspects of life and death. About Me For those new to me or my reviews I read A LOT. I write A LOT. First the book review goes on Goodreads, and then I send it on over to my WordPress blog at https: Leave a comment and let me know what you think. Vote in the poll and ratings. Thanks for stopping by. Nov 20, Manny rated it it was amazing Shelves: Two middle-aged men are looking at a screen, currently empty: Show me what you've got.

We see the Garden of Eden. Nothing much is happening. Illumin, what is low raise and support; That to the highth of this great Argument I may assert Eternal Providence, And justifie the wayes of God to men. Tell me I'm not hearing this. Various bits bounce interestingly: Didn't she say you were like Hitler? Megan and I understand each other.

Mike, don't ever do that to me again. Well, this oughta pack in the Twilight fans. But are you sure we should be showing his Wait, is he sparkling? It's just the lights. We can fix that in post-editing. And I'm still not happy about the language. No one'll understand a word of it. Think Passion of the Christ. Yeah, yeah, yeah, but they had subtitles. Okay, we'll talk about that later. Show me some of the action sequences. Full soon Among them he arriv'd; in his right hand Grasping ten thousand Thunders, which he sent Before him, such as in thir Soules infix'd Plagues; they astonisht all resistance lost It was an ad lib.

We haven't decided yet if we're going to keep it. Do you think we should give him a halo?

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The religious right will like that. I'd say go with it. So I guess you have Dan Craig as Satan? Budget said we couldn't afford him. Let me show you what we came up with. She looks like a rather scarier version of Cruella de Vil: What thing thou art, thus double-form'd, and why In this infernal Vaile first met thou call'st Me Father, and that Fantasm call'st my Son?

I know thee not, nor ever saw till now Sight more detestable then him and thee. Who the fuck is she? I haven't read this since high school. Becam'st enamour'd, and such joy thou took'st With me in secret, that my womb conceiv'd A growing burden Research is working on that. We're thinking she could maybe boil Eve's bunny.

I'll show you another bit. Here we may reign secure; and in my choice To reign is worth ambition, though in hell: Better to reign in hell than serve in heaven. Yup, that's what we thought too. So how do we wrap this up? I remember it had a crap ending. View all 13 comments. Aug 27, Jason Koivu rated it it was amazing Shelves: Who but a blind man could so vividly write of the darkness of Hell? Paradise Lost is fire and passion. It is the pinnacle and the bottomless pit. It is the struggle for all that is good. It is the struggle within the evil of all evils. In the mids John Milton, aging and gone blind, dictated his most famous work, Paradise Lost , an epic poem that harkens back to Homer and Virgil.

It not only tells the so very well-known story of Adam and Eve, it also describes the downfall of Satan in dramatic Who but a blind man could so vividly write of the darkness of Hell? It not only tells the so very well-known story of Adam and Eve, it also describes the downfall of Satan in dramatic fashion.

The empathy shown for this most famous of fallen angels is, for me, one of the most outstanding sections of this early work of English literature. Epic is a laughably overused word these days. However, the depiction of Mammon and Beelzebub marshaling their demonic minions for the coming war is the stuff of ancient epics. Tolkien and Lewis most definitely borrowed heavily from these passages of Milton's when penning their own epics. The language has aged. Some of this is archaic and occasionally difficult to understand. But stick with it and you shall be rewarded.

View all 8 comments. Jan 07, Liz Janet rated it it was amazing Shelves: This is the story of the Fall of Man from Eden, the temptation of Adam and Eve by the fallen angel Satan, and the loss of their almost tangible relationship with God, however, later on, we realize the most beautiful story, is that of the fall of Satan, his descent into Tartarus, his role in the Angelic War, and his quest to destroy God's most precious creation, humanity.

Satan is the main protagonist, the protagonist of one of the greatest poems, not just of English literature, but of all time. This is not to say that it is his sole story, nor that this was Milton's purpose, but to the regular man, Satan represents most of what humanity is, a brash, arrogant, confident, flawed, curious, courageous, hypocritical, mostly all that encompasses the human experience.

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For his desire for more, his need to be appreciated over God's flawed creation, leads him to befall to the darkest pit of Hell, and he vows revenge, and boy does he get it. The second strength of this poem, aside Satan, comes from the magnificent black verse in which it is written.

Hail horrours, hail Infernal world, and thou profoundest Hell Receive thy new Possessor: One who brings A mind not to be chang'd by Place or Time. What matter where, if I be still the same, And what I should be, all but less then he Whom Thunder hath made greater? Here at least We shall be free; th' Almighty hath not built Here for his envy, will not drive us hence: Here we may reign secure, and in my choyce To reign is worth ambition though in Hell: Better to reign in Hell, then serve in Heav'n.

And then we remember it is because of him that many horrid things happen and we feel good that he is where he is again. Which has led many to question: Why does Satan have a political reason to rebel against God? Why was God such a barbarian? Why is Satan our temptation still?

Why is Gabriel such a do-gooder and butt-kisser? Why does he give Adam and Eve such vague hope, "a paradise within thee, happier far"? I am not sure we get the answers to these questions unless we look very close, I am of those that rather remain with the questions. The debate is left to us, we make the final choice, and choosing wrong will lead us down a similar path to Lucifer. Now look at this description of God's creation: Book Reviews did an incredible review, it is my favourite for this book so far: View all 6 comments.

Jul 05, Michael rated it it was amazing. I still have my old grad school copy of this work, earnestly annotated with references to Ovid and Homer and once Terminator 2. But through all that Milton's words shine forth, depicting the struggle between good and evil, which is a struggle precisely because Satan is so alluring and interesting by far the most interesting character here, which of course didn't escape the notice of later Romantic writers who were themselves drawn to the anti-hero.

But the struggle isn't just between mythic I still have my old grad school copy of this work, earnestly annotated with references to Ovid and Homer and once Terminator 2. But the struggle isn't just between mythic forces, but within the human heart itself, which is what gives the work its under-girding of tender sadness--like the outcry of the "Portress of Hell Gate," who laments in Book II: Still, this is a work that can be enjoyed on its own terms--a self-consciously grand epic. View all 4 comments. If you're into stuff like this, you can read the full review.

Thus, the apple on the tree of knowledge was imo something a religious-minded white Portuguese male would regard as sinful. As it stands, the sin no longer applies. It is , eating the If you're into stuff like this, you can read the full review. It is , eating the apple amounts to doing just that; eating an apple. Unless you have the apple representing something else, i. View all 5 comments. Mar 27, Elie F rated it really liked it Shelves: Adam and Eve lived a comfortable yet boring married life that pleased Adam well, but Eve was unhappy with the inequality in the marriage: Why is he enjoying conversations with angels and proximity with God while I stay at home preparing dinner?

She enjoyed the love of Adam but gradually she became ever more disinterested in Adam and would rather talk to her own image mirrored in lake. Then one day the unhappy housewife encountered sexy, in Paradise Lost: Then one day the unhappy housewife encountered sexy, intelligent Satan in the form of a serpent who encouraged her to eat the forbidden fruit which would elevate her intelligence and make her marriage with Adam more equal.

After tasting the fruit herself, she felt that "Adam shall share with me in bliss or woe" so she brought the fruit to Adam who was devastated by his wife's transgression but chose to side with his wife over God, side with domestic happiness over socio-political duties. But soon Adam regretted the transgression and blamed it on Eve: O why did God, creator wise, that peopled highest heaven with spirits masculine, create heaven with spirits masculine, create at last this novelty on earth, this fair defect of nature, and not fill the world at once with men as angels without feminine, or find some other way to generate Mankind?

Despite mutual dissatisfaction, the marriage continued, but the abyss between them was evident: View all 12 comments. People who like reading about the devil. Let's face it, John Milton was a closet devil-worshiper. Satan here is presented so sympathetically it's hard to think otherwise. He has the best lines, and even his actions would be laudable by most Christian standards excepting, of course, starting a war in heaven. He never gives up, he fights for what he believes in, he's really clever, and he even pities humans for having to be his tools to get back at God.

The good angels come off as such sissies and are always really smug and self-satisf Let's face it, John Milton was a closet devil-worshiper. The good angels come off as such sissies and are always really smug and self-satisfied and say things like, "Yeah Satan, I know you're a lot better than me at everything, but remember my dad is God and if you hit me he's going to kick your ass. This book is incredibly awesome but a litle dense.

It's super sweet and kick ass but you have to sit down and really spend some time with it, and you'll have to read it pretty slow. The poem concerns the biblical story of the Fall of Man: Milton's purpose, stated in Book I, is to "justify the ways of God to men". The biographer John Aubrey —97 tells us that the poem was begun in about and finished in about However, parts were almost certainly written earlier, and its roots lie in Milton's earliest youth.

Leonard also notes that Milton "did not at first plan to write a biblical epic". However, in the edition, Paradise Lost contained twelve books. Having gone totally blind in , Milton wrote Paradise Lost entirely through dictation with the help of amanuenses and friends. He also wrote the epic poem while he was often ill, suffering from gout , and despite the fact that he was suffering emotionally after the early death of his second wife, Katherine Woodcock, in , and the death of their infant daughter. The poem is divided into "books" ten originally, twelve in Milton's revised edition of The Arguments brief summaries at the head of each book were added in subsequent imprints of the first edition.

The poem follows the epic tradition of starting in medias res Latin for in the midst of things , the background story being recounted later. Milton's story has two narrative arcs, one about Satan Lucifer and the other following Adam and Eve. It begins after Satan and the other rebel angels have been defeated and banished to Hell , or, as it is also called in the poem, Tartarus. Belial and Moloch are also present. At the end of the debate, Satan volunteers to corrupt the newly created Earth and God's new and most favoured creation, Mankind.

He braves the dangers of the Abyss alone in a manner reminiscent of Odysseus or Aeneas. After an arduous traversal of the Chaos outside Hell, he enters God's new material World, and later the Garden of Eden. At several points in the poem, an Angelic War over Heaven is recounted from different perspectives.

Satan's rebellion follows the epic convention of large-scale warfare. The battles between the faithful angels and Satan's forces take place over three days. At the final battle, the Son of God single-handedly defeats the entire legion of angelic rebels and banishes them from Heaven. Following this purge, God creates the World , culminating in his creation of Adam and Eve.

While God gave Adam and Eve total freedom and power to rule over all creation, he gave them one explicit command: The story of Adam and Eve's temptation and fall is a fundamentally different, new kind of epic: Adam and Eve are presented as having a romantic and sexual relationship while still being without sin.

They have passions and distinct personalities. Satan, disguised in the form of a serpent, successfully tempts Eve to eat from the Tree by preying on her vanity and tricking her with rhetoric. Adam, learning that Eve has sinned, knowingly commits the same sin. He declares to Eve that since she was made from his flesh, they are bound to one another — if she dies, he must also die. In this manner, Milton portrays Adam as a heroic figure, but also as a greater sinner than Eve, as he is aware that what he is doing is wrong.

After eating the fruit, Adam and Eve have lustful sex. At first, Adam is convinced that Eve was right in thinking that eating the fruit would be beneficial. However, they soon fall asleep and have terrible nightmares, and after they awake, they experience guilt and shame for the first time. Realizing that they have committed a terrible act against God, they engage in mutual recrimination.

Meanwhile, Satan returns triumphantly to Hell, amidst the praise of his fellow fallen angels. He tells them about how their scheme worked and Mankind has fallen, giving them complete dominion over Paradise. As he finishes his speech, however, the fallen angels around him become hideous snakes, and soon enough, Satan himself turned into a snake, deprived of limbs and unable to talk. Thus, they share the same punishment, as they shared the same guilt. Eve appeals to Adam for reconciliation of their actions. Her encouragement enables them to approach God, and sue for grace, bowing on supplicant knee, to receive forgiveness.

In a vision shown to him by the angel Michael , Adam witnesses everything that will happen to Mankind until the Great Flood. Adam is very upset by this vision of the future, so Michael also tells him about Mankind's potential redemption from original sin through Jesus Christ whom Michael calls "King Messiah". Adam and Eve are cast out of Eden, and Michael says that Adam may find "a paradise within thee, happier far".

Adam and Eve also now have a more distant relationship with God, who is omnipresent but invisible unlike the tangible Father in the Garden of Eden. Satan , formerly called Lucifer , is the first major character introduced in the poem. He was once the most beautiful of all angels, and is a tragic figure who famously declares: Satan's desire to rebel against his creator stems from his unwillingness to be subjugated by God and his Son, claiming that angels are "self-begot, self-raised," [13] and thereby denying God's authority over them as their creator.

Satan is deeply arrogant, albeit powerful and charismatic. He argues that God rules as a tyrant and that all the angels ought to rule as gods. According to William McCollom, one quality of the classical tragic hero is that he is not perfectly good and that his defeat is caused by a tragic flaw, as Satan causes both the downfall of man and the eternal damnation of his fellow fallen angels despite his dedication to his comrades.

In addition, Satan's Hellenic qualities, such as his immense courage and, perhaps, lack of completely defined morals compound his tragic nature. Satan's status as a protagonist in the epic poem is debated. Milton characterizes him as such, but Satan lacks several key traits that would otherwise make him the definitive protagonist in the work.

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One deciding factor that insinuates his role as the protagonist in the story is that most often a protagonist is heavily characterized and far better described than the other characters, and the way the character is written is meant to make him seem more interesting or special to the reader. By some definitions a protagonist must be able to exist in and of himself or herself and that the secondary characters in the work exist only to further the plot for the protagonist.

Satan's existence in the story involves his rebellion against God and his determination to corrupt the beings he creates in order to perpetuate evil so that there can be a discernable balance and justice for both himself and his fallen angels. Therefore, it is more probable that he exists in order to combat God, making his status as the definitive protagonist of the work relative to each book.

Following this logic, Satan may very well be considered as an antagonist in the poem, whereas God could be considered as the protagonist instead. Satan's status as a traditional hero in the work is similarly up to debate as the term "hero" evokes different meanings depending on the time and the person giving the definition and is thus a matter of contention within the text. According to Aristotle, a hero is someone who is "superhuman, godlike, and divine" but is also human.

While Milton gives reason to believe that Satan is superhuman, as he was originally an angel, he is anything but human. Therefore, according to Aristotle's definition of a hero alone, Satan is not a hero. Torquato Tasso and Francesco Piccolomini expanded on Aristotle's definition and declared that for someone to be considered heroic one has to be perfectly or overly virtuous.

Paradise Lost is an attempt to make sense of a fallen world: But these biographical aspects should not downplay the centrality of theology to the poem. Milton the Puritan spent his life engaged in theological disputation on subjects as diverse as toleration, divorce and salvation. Free, and to none accountable, preferring Hard liberty before the easy yoke Of servile Pomp. Like Cromwell, Milton believed his mission was to usher in the kingdom of God on earth.

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View image of William Blake's illustrations for Paradise Lost. Although discussion of Paradise Lost often is dominated by political and theological arguments, the poem also contains a tender celebration of love. When she does succumb, Adam chooses to join her: How can I live without you, how forgo Thy sweet converse and love so dearly joined, To live again in these wild woods forlorn?

When Paradise Lost was published in London in , Milton had fallen out of favour.

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