What Impression Do We Gain Of Satan In Paradise Lost: Book 1?

What impression do we gain of Satan in Paradise Lost: Book 1?

Paradise Lost is an epic poem and therefore it is assumed that it contains a heroic figure. In a poem narrating the fall of Satan, the creation of the world and the subsequent fall of man, one would be justified in assuming the hero is God. However, when taking a typical descri ption of a hero (the chief male character in a book, play, or film, who is typically identified with good qualities, and with whom the reader is expected to sympathize1, for example), it can be argued that God does not fulfil this criteria, and the Satan we are introduced to in Book 1 of Paradise Lost is far more suited to be given this title.

To see Satan as a hero we must see him as more than simply an evil and antagonistic monster. Milton realises this tension between evil and heroism, and plays with it, portraying Satan in some ways as a very admirable character and God as a wrathful and distanced one. This is obvious from the start, with Milton stating his aim to "justify the ways of God to men." This makes God the opposition, and sets up Paradise Lost as a theodicy to justify God, not to adore or worship him. With Satan on the other hand we are immediately meant to identify with his desires and disappointments, and notice that Satan is "Vaunting aloud, but racked with deep despair." In fact the very title "Paradise Lost" is focusing on Satan's loss of Heaven and his success of tricking Adam and Eve into losing Eden, and not God's grace and attempt to combat this. One of the causes for Satan's fall from Heaven and subsequent despair was his pride, and attempt to "equal the most High"; an impossible task. Whilst this task is impossible, it is also one that he is persistent in, and this is where his heroic qualities originate from.

Aristotle's theory of hamartia (an injury committed against another person in ignorance) can be applied to the traditional heroic archetype, and therefore show that heroes can have flaws whilst having the right intentions. Satan's flaw is that he is misguided, and follows what he believes to be true: "The mind is its own place, and in itself/Can make a Heaven of Hell, a Hell of Heaven. What matter where, if I shall be the same". This makes Satan's pride and subsequent challenge of God in Heaven not deceptive but an act of curiosity. However, when analysing the above quotation we see that the first of these lines is iambic pentameter, and is said with ease. However, the second line stops this iambic rhythm. It still has five stresses, but the feet are not iambs and therefore the line steps out of this speech-rhythm and the line is harder to read. The dactyl on "Heaven on" and the feminine ending of the line makes Satan's speech stumble at this point, portraying his lack of conviction in his own words. Satan's intention was to make him and the world better, and even gives a voice to what we think ourselves. He (and by connection Milton) offers the legitimate question: is it wrong for humans to think they are equal to God, since we were after all made in God's own image? This questioning does imply arrogance and self-pride, but it makes Satan's motivation separate from his subsequent actions. If he was merely curious, his curiosity could be satisfied with a conversation with God, and the jump from curiosity to attempting to overthrow God shows a non-heroic flaw in his character. Whilst Satan obviously does not reach his goal, he still acknowledges the reality of his circumstances: "Better to reign in Hell than serve in Heaven" and this acceptance of conditions is, however, moving towards the heroic. Satan had doubts and questions just like any human, and the hateful and rebellious nature he, admittedly, does have, only comes after his exile. However, these actions cannot be justified solely by his curiosity, and there must be supplementary sources of evil within him.

However, there are of course other aspects of Satan's character which are also unappealing. Satan is said to speak "with bold words", and it is thought Milton did not intend this to be a virtue, but actually a sort of arrogance, speaking with words such as "dubious battle" and "tyranny of Heaven" that are unjustified claims which Satan has no authority to make. The rhetoric in lines 106-109 add to this bold nature. Whilst these lines are blank verse, the rhetorical parallelism in the repetition of "And" make his statement that more impressive is one again to mask his despair. These parallel phrases also contain illogical contradictions, such as "immortal hate" which shows the juxtaposition between their previous angelic, immortal nature and their now immortal anguish. Satan also turns some of God's virtues into vices, by a political manipulation of the truth. He turns God's grace into weakness by claiming that God "[has] left us this our spirit strongly to suffer and support our pains", claiming that God is weak and therefore 'bad', but of course God is omnibenevolent and this idea of God creating ways for himself to be graceful implies almost an empowering of God. Power is exactly what Satan fought against, and whilst this can be read in a heroic 'fighting for a cause' view, there are some obvious resentful and rebellious aspects to Satan's motivation which are far less appealing.

This hateful and rebellious nature is down mainly to the fact that even in Hell; Satan is still subservient to God. Milton's comparison of Satan with Leviathan, a sea-monster, stresses the fact that it is only with God's permission that the devils quite the lake: "high permission of all-ruling Heaven left him at large to his own designs.that he might heap on himself damnation". It is important to note that Milton's use of the epic simile in the comparison is something originally saved for descri ptions of the classical heroes in epic poetry. At the same time, the effect of these epic similes is also to unsettle us, making us unaware of how big Satan is at all. The image of Leviathan does not give us a well-defined sense of his size, because the whole point of the image is that the Leviathan's size generates deception and confusion, as sailors confuse it for an island and try and anchor next to it. Satan is also seen as subservient as Milton also gives us an image of a cruel God, who spared the rebelling angels simply so that they could suffer more and ultimately his grace would be even more amazing and that he "might see how all his malice served but to bring forth infinite goodness, grace and mercy." This is known as felix culpa or fortunate fall, and gives God an egocentric nature, only caring about how graceful he can appear to be.

Satan's heroism is also seen in his democracy. At the end of Book 1, Satan creates Pandemonium and calls his followers, and makes a plan together. He acknowledges how much his companions have changed: "If thou beest he; but O how fallen! How changed from him", and like the true politician he is, unites his followers in their discomfort. The principal aspect of his political rhetoric is to recognise God's great power as the "potent Victor" but spinning this to say that now they know how powerful God is; the unknown has become the known: "Since through experience of this great event/In arms not worse, in foresight much advanced". Again, the first line of this quotation does not fit into the iambic pentameter norm of the poem, and is another indication of Satan not believing his defeat to be "great". He even stresses his unchanged attitude to this "potent Victor" and that "All is not lost" because Satan will never submit to God. With this political attitude also comes lies and dishonesty. Satan does not show his true feelings to his followers and uses rhetoric, as already mentioned. Overall however, we have to see this confidence and commitment, whilst being spin and overly optimistic, are certainly versions of classically heroic traits.

There are other political aspects to Satan as well. The assembly of his devils is very militaristic, and the descri ption of devils, all based on angels, harks back to their original form. Satan being moved by their loyalty with "signs of remorse and passion to behold the fellows of his crime", is a sign of his goodness corrupted, his "darkness visible". In front of his companions he is a great orator, making shrewd political comments such as "None save the Almighty could match their strength", and these promises do make sense; it is hard to believe fallen angels will not re-ascend to Heaven. Of course the paradox with what he has already said means Satan himself probably does not believe this. Satan even goes so far as to blame God for their rebellion, claiming that God hid his "true strength" so to tempt the rebels. This is akin to the other views of God mentioned earlier as egotistical and concerned with the fortunate Fall. Finally, we see Satan accepting that he won't be able to destroy God completely; he simply is too strong. However, he does mention the rumour of a new world, a new Creation, and thinks that destroying or perverting this would be just as effective as destroying God himself. This can be seen as an overtly cowardly act, but in relation to all of his other political shrewdness it can also be argued that this is simply Satan being cunning in his attempt to keep his pride after the Fall.

Another popular interpretation of Paradise Lost is a careful critique of the monarchy. The poem essentially argues that the consequences of the Fall prevent use from attaining a 'republican' perfection here on earth, and that we must struggle with imperfect social institutions. There are parallels to be drawn between Oliver Cromwell and the Satan, and the monarchy and God. Like Cromwell, Satan is a natural leader. He quells his own personal fears and projects public confidence to his followers, converting oppression into opportunity. This gives more evidence for Pandemonium as a parody of Parliament, but one that is effective and far more alluring than the Godlike monarchy. Luckily for Milton, after the restoration of the monarchy in 1660, he was not executed for treason, as Charles II is said to have remarked "he is too old, and too smelly!"

Overall, looking at the book as a whole and its context, even God cannot be classified as a hero. He could even be seen as the most anti-heroic character and is presented in such a way that readers fear, or even resent him, much like the God of the Old Testament. God does not seek intimacy with his followers like Satan does; he is simply a powerful ruler who bestows blessings to those who follow his will and offers damnation to those who don't. The fact that God needs no explanation is why he is so anti-heroic. We do not need to agree with Satan's ideology, but we can see his position and attitude and see that heroes persist against all the odds, recognise risks but act anyway. Hamartia shows that a hero does not need to be wholly good, but be one who is willing and acknowledges their complexity, and someone who faces challenges of life regardless of obstacles. These are all qualities that we can apply to Satan, and the Satan we are introduce to in Paradise Lost: Book 1 certainly has traits of a heroic character.