Paradise Lost
In Paradise Lost, John Milton gives great eminence to the character of Satan. The author divides the characters in his epic poem into two sides: one side under God representing good and eternal providence, and the other side under Satan, representing evil and sin. This creature went from a beautiful, perfect being named Lucifer, living in the light and glory of heaven, to Satan, the prince of darkness who was banished to the earth. Essentially, Satan became the representative of all evil who allied with the fallen angels that aided in his revolt against God. Not only is Satan given the most important role in Milton's famous epic, but the author draws upon the psychological states of Satan. The reader is able to identify and sympathize with Satan as he appears to be very attractive, intelligent, and manipulative. Nonetheless, Satan is an endlessly intriguing character who possesses the complexity of humanistic features as his emotions and attitudes are explored by the author. One of Satan's most prominent characteristics is deception. In Paradise Lost, he manages to make other people believe and furthermore, trust in him. Deception is the most obvious weapon that Satan utilizes to persuade some of the characters in the poem. Ne
On the whole, Satan has been portrayed as a richly conniving deceiver and manipulator. However, Milton characterizes Satan in a different view at the beginning of Another distinguished feature of Satan is his power of persuasion. He tries to use logical explanations to accumulate the trust and faith of his legions of angels in order to help him fight to regain Heaven. Satan persuades them to go to war in his speech where he argues that he has "established in a safe unenvied throne" (Book II - 23). According to him, it seems as though the misery of the rebels is complete, therefore no one would actually envy the throne of Satan. Every improvement in Heaven's state must tend to weaken Hell's authority, and since every misery is its basis, then to exhaust the firmness of Satan's union is the very ground required for Heaven's hope of victory. Satan says, "With this advantage...we now return/ To claim our just inheritance of old,/ Surer to prosper then prosperity/ Could have assured us; and by what best way,/ Whether of open Warr or covert guile" (Book II, 35-41). The aim of Satan's speech is to instill a mood and to cheer spirits as he makes Hell seem almost a haven. Satan's false spontaneous reasoning was meant solely to serve as one of his methods to influence the minds of his fellow followers. In Paradise Lost, Milton is successful in portraying humanistic features in the character of Satan, thereby enabling readers to identify with him and to see the contrast between good and e
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Approximate Word count = 1007
Approximate Pages = 4 (250 words per page double spaced)
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