Paradise Lost Critical Quotations Flashcards
What did the Lord God command man regarding the tree of the knowledge of good and evil?
You must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die.
How was woman created according to the Book of Genesis?
The Lord God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep, took one of his ribs, and made a woman from it.
In Genesis, what did the woman see about the fruit of the tree?
The fruit was good for food, pleasing to the eye, and desirable for gaining wisdom.
Who said, ‘Peace if possible; truth at all costs’?
Martin Luther in Germany (Wittenberg) in the 1500s.
What does John Milton state about innocence in ‘Areopagitica’?
We bring not innocence into the world, we bring impurity.
What does Milton argue about kings in ‘The Tenure of Kings and Magistrates’?
Kings may be lawfully deposed and punished if they turn to tyranny.
According to Milton, what is the worst sort of tyranny?
Monarchy unaccountable.
What is the primary assertion made by John Milton in ‘Eikonoklastes’ regarding Charles I?
His flattering was Charles I’s destruction.
What does Milton conclude about justice in ‘Eikonoklastes’?
Justice is and ought to be the strongest; it is the strength, power, and majesty of all Ages.
How does Milton describe supporters of the Restoration in ‘The Ready and Easy Way to Establish a Free Commonwealth’?
As a misguided and abused multitude.
What was the purpose of Milton’s poem written in 1667?
To justify the ways of God to man.
What did Aristotle say about tragedy?
Tragedy has the power to raise pity and fear to purge the mind of those passions.
Who claims that Satan is the hero because he defeats Adam?
John Dryden in 1697.
What does Voltaire say about the God of Milton?
The God of Milton is always a father, a creator, a judge.
What is Voltaire’s criticism of Milton in ‘Candide’?
He describes Milton as a slovenly imitator of the Greeks who disfigures the creation.
How does Samuel Johnson describe the experience of reading Milton?
We read Milton for instruction, retire harassed and overburdened, and look elsewhere for recreation.
What does William Blake suggest about Milton’s alignment in 1790?
Milton was of the Devil’s party without knowing it.
According to Mary Shelley in ‘Frankenstein’, what is ‘Paradise Lost’ about?
An omnipotent God warring with his creatures.
How does Mary Shelley’s creature compare himself to Adam?
He sees himself as wretched, helpless, and alone, unlike Adam who was perfect and prosperous.
What does Percy Shelley assert about Milton’s Devil in 1821?
Milton’s Devil as a moral being is as far superior to his God.
What does C. S. Lewis state about Eve’s actions in 1942?
Through giving Adam the fruit, Eve commits ‘murder’.
According to C. S. Lewis, how did Adam fall?
By uxoriousness (excessive attachment to, or dependence on, a wife).
What is the opinion of Kester Svendsen regarding Adam’s soliloquy?
It is a catharsis as a process of discovery.
What does Empson argue about Milton’s God in 1961?
There is something ‘badly wrong’ about Milton’s God.
How does Chambers describe the material chaos in ‘Paradise Lost’?
It is unmistakably opposed to God.
What does Gilbert argue about Milton’s Eve in 1978?
Milton’s Eve is usually excluded from God’s sight and often drugged and silenced by divinely ordained sleep.
What does Auerbach say about Earth’s wound in relation to Milton’s work?
Milton insists that the wounded Earth is a matter of cosmological fact.
What does Murphy claim about ‘Paradise Lost’ in 2018?
It sought to bring Christianity from a cosmic to a personal level.
Fill in the blank: Milton’s epic is predominantly about _______.
[knowing and choosing]
Fill in the blank: In Milton’s Eden, Adam and Eve are expected to cultivate and control their _______.
[own sometimes wayward impulses and passions]
