Milton Flashcards
Argument one, point one (Satan)
1) Blake – ‘Milton was of the devil’s party’
2) Lived shortly after the Renaissance when the classical myths of antiquity have been revived
3)Early in the poem Satan was endowed with certain attributes which are worthy of epic heroes, and which make him a sympathetic, almost tragic character.
“Better to rule in Hell then serve in Heaven”
4) Satan’s key argument “Not just not God”
Argument one, point two
1) Milton lived through a time of extreme civil unrest in England when the monarchy of Charles 2nd was deposed, and Oliver Cromwell took authority over England
2)Satan is meant to exemplify the character of Oliver Cromwell and the disobedience of his character in relation to God
3)The serpent the subtlest beasts of the field’
4) Sibilance – the acidic poison that Satan will transpose on humanity emphasised by his metamorphosis into a ‘serpent’ which is cunning and wily
-Repeated in Satan’s seduction of Eve to remind the reader of Satan’s foul nature
Argument one, point three
1) “Deceit” echoed throughout “slunk off into the thicket” echoes passive voice “the sun was sunk”
2) Satan is in control from the start to the end of the episode
Argument two (how both blinded by greed)
a fallen world – Eves’s disability to apply reason / Adam’s use of verbs may be a way in trying to seduce Eve to stay with him
Argument two, point one
1)C.s Lewis - felt Eve was motivated by evil after eating the apple
-She is
practically a murderer
2)Links to Chauvinistic view of Jewish Sage Jesus Ben Sirah “From a women sin had its beginning and because of her we must all die”
Argument two, point two
1) Could argue for as
2) From the outset Eve makes her decision to be autonomous as a matter of trust of her “firm faith and love” for Adam which might be seen as a use of feminine wiles
3) The fricative alliterative “firm faith” peaceful, soothing
Argument two, point three
1) Could disagree as Eve was oblivious to Satan’s deceit as Eden is of a place of goodness and where evil does not exist and only partly ‘overheard’ conversation
2) Not capable of death or pain’
3)Monosyllabic simplicity in description of “death” and “pain” portrays how Eve is oblivious to what they connote
Argument two, point four
1) Adam warns “we have a foe” and he will “seduce” by “fraud”
2)Eve should have known that due to her place on the Gchainofbeing (prevalent Christian belief in 17th Century England) she should have stayed with Adam
3)“seduce” “fraud” foreshadows forthcoming events and Satan’s plan
Argument three, point one (Eve and Adam’s fault)
1) Critic Gilbert states “she refuses to accept hierarchy,”
2) Women in the 17th Century were seen to be below men Romans “the law is written on our hearts” man intuitively knows not to trust women
3) Adam’s hamartia was not to trust in Eve and he should have known this yet places blame on Eve
4) “Would thou”
“Besought fee”
‘defaced’ ‘deflowered’ ‘to death devote’
5) Cold formality of tone lays blame on Eve
-Adam has self -pitying attempts to absolve himself
-Reinforces Eve’s offence with listing
6) Adma’s attempts to occupy moral ground by offering Eve’s transgression as a lesson to others – antagonises with his narrow, defensive/ sanctimonious censorious attitude
7) Adam “nothing more seemly than household good”
Argument three, point two
1) Eve only rejects hierarchy when it suits her
2) ‘Severe’
‘Lifeless rib’ – juxtaposes to Satan’s flattering
3) Structure demonstrates heated outpour of feelings
Monsyllablism ‘severe’ emphaises Eve’s infantile nature and h
4) “Celestial patroness”
“Sovereign mistress”
5) Eve: “lead then”
Argument four, point one (Fallen world/ how its both their faults)
1) Ricks notes that Paradise Lost is “a fierce argument about God’s justice”
2) Satan’s key argument ‘Not just not God’
3) “O much deceived, much failing, hapless Eve”
4) dramatic definitive, a mixture of sympathy and blame on Milton’s part
Argument four, point two
1) Yet as Adam poignantly states
2) Adam “God left free the will”
3) Simplistic monosyllabism makes it a definitive statement
Argument four, point three
1) And whilst Eve In her persuasive argument begins to reflect Satan Adam still chooses to put human love before God’s love – perhaps due to his Chauvinistic views that Eve is his and thus he cannot withdraw from his possessions
2) “Exceeding love”
3) Hyperbole – Eve is spurious and based on and no test while they lived in innocence – suggests she is learning the fraudulent ways of the serpent and copying his rhetorical/persuasive style
4) “On my experience Adam” / Contradicts Adam’s encompassing “I” as now Eve has taken charge – Chauvinistic view
Argument four, point four
1) Demonstrates how the libido has gone out of control but perhaps already happened
2) “in lust they burn” / ‘carnal desire’
3) Monosyllabic metaphor depicts how their desire of lust has overcome their ability to reason
