Movie For Whom The Bell Tolls
Movie A Tale Of Two Citite
Saturday, 25 February 2012
Most important questions for paper M.A English(part 1)
Paper (1): Classical Poetry
1. Chaucer’s art of characterization
2. Irony and satire in the prologue
3. Treatment of Ecclesiastical characters
4. Chaucer’s style and narrative skill
5. The Prologue as a picture gallery
6. Critical Appraisals of characters: Knight, WIB, Pardoner, Summonor, Parson, Friar and Prioress
7. Wyatt’s Contribution/ Wyatt as poet or sonneteer
8. Surrey’s Contribution/ Surrey as poet or sonneteer
9. Critical Appraisals: The Long Love that in my thought I harbor, Is it possible? Madam Withouten many words, Wyatt’s Death, Prisoned in Windsor, Love that doth reign and lived in within my heart
10. Donne as a metaphysical poet
11. Donne as a love poet
12. Critical Appraisals of select poems: Death be not proud, The Sun Rising, A Valediction: forbidding Mourning, The Good Morrow, Twicknam Garden
13. Milton’s Grand Style
14. Paradise as a Renaissance Epic
15. Hero of Paradise Lost: Satan or Adam
16. Main Theme in PL: Justifying the ways of God
17. The Rape of the Lock as a Mock-Epic
18. The Role and Function of Machinery in ROL
19. Character of Belinda
20. ROL as a Social Satire.
Paper (2): Classical Drama
21. Oedipus’s Fate-Action/ Hamartia of Oedipus: hubris
22. Oedipus as a tragedy
23. Dramatic Irony in Oedipus Rex
24. Main Theme: Relationship between man and gods.
25. Dr. Faustus as an over-reacher/ Faustus as Icarus
26. The real sin of Doctor Faustus
27. Dr. Faustus as a tragic Hero
28. Renaissance Elements in Dr. Faustus
29. Othello as a tragic hero.
30. Othello as a (domestic) tragedy
31. Theme of Jealousy in Othello
32. Iago’s motives and Othello’s cause of destruction
33. Winter’s Tale as a tragic-comedy
34. Theme of Jealousy in Winter’s Tale
35. Pastoral elements in Winter’s Tale.
36. Importance of Being Earnest: theme of love, money, marriage and social status.
37. IBE: The title – its significance and value
38. A trivial comedy for serious people/ IBE as comedy
39. Oscar Wilde’s style: pun, wit, paradox & verbatism
40. IBE as a social satire
Paper (3): Novel
41. Pride and Prejudice: Title and significance
42. Character of Elizabeth in P&P
43. Theme of love and marriage in P&P
44. Jane Austen’s Irony
45. A Tale of Two Cities: Title and its value
46. The theme of resurrection & renunciation in ATC
47. Symbolism in A Tale of Two Cities
48. ATC is a social novel in political background
49. Sydney Carton and his sacrifice in ATC
50. Adam Bede and Psychological Realism
51. George Eliot’s art of characterization
52. Hetty’s suffering; its cause and redemption
53. Education and regeneration of Adam Bede
54. The Return of the Native as a tragedy
55. Egdon Heath as a character in TRN
56. Chance and Fate – Hardy as a novelist
57. The Cause of Eustacia or Clym’s tragedy in TRN
Paper (4): Prose
58. Bacon as an essayist/ his style and contribution
59. Bacon as a moralist
60. Swift as a satirist
61. Swift as a misanthrope
62. Describe the first and the last voyage G-Travels.
63. Popularity of Gulliver’s Travels
64. Seamus Heaney’s justification, functions and redressing effects of poetry.
65. What is culture and what is imperialism and how does Edward Said relate the two?
66. Why does Edward Said refer to various novelists to prove his thesis of imperialism?
67. Bertrand Russell as an essayist.
Paper (5): American Literature
68. John Ashbery as a modern poet
69. Major themes in Ashbery and Richard Wilbur
70. Major Themes in Adrienne Rich and Sylvia Plath
71. Adrienne Rich as a poet
72. Critical Appraisals: Aunt Jennifer’s Tigers, Diving into the Wreck, The Painter, Melodic Trains, Still Citizen Sparrow, After the Last Bulletins, You are! Ariel, Arrival of the Bee box and Final Notations
73. The Crucible: its title and significance
74. John Proctor as a tragic hero
75. Mass Hysteria and theme of evil in the Crucible
76. Relationship between individual & society in The Crucible/ Individual commitment in society
77. Character of Abigail Williams
78. For Whom the Bell Tolls: Main theme
79. Robert Jordon as a tragic hero
80. Justify Robert Jordon’s sacrifice
81. Robert Jordon as a code hero
82. Hemingway’s style – Fictional technique
83. Symbolic Significance of the title Jazz
84. City as a character in Jazz
85. Major themes in Jazz
86. Mourning Becomes Electra as a tragedy
1. Chaucer’s art of characterization
2. Irony and satire in the prologue
3. Treatment of Ecclesiastical characters
4. Chaucer’s style and narrative skill
5. The Prologue as a picture gallery
6. Critical Appraisals of characters: Knight, WIB, Pardoner, Summonor, Parson, Friar and Prioress
7. Wyatt’s Contribution/ Wyatt as poet or sonneteer
8. Surrey’s Contribution/ Surrey as poet or sonneteer
9. Critical Appraisals: The Long Love that in my thought I harbor, Is it possible? Madam Withouten many words, Wyatt’s Death, Prisoned in Windsor, Love that doth reign and lived in within my heart
10. Donne as a metaphysical poet
11. Donne as a love poet
12. Critical Appraisals of select poems: Death be not proud, The Sun Rising, A Valediction: forbidding Mourning, The Good Morrow, Twicknam Garden
13. Milton’s Grand Style
14. Paradise as a Renaissance Epic
15. Hero of Paradise Lost: Satan or Adam
16. Main Theme in PL: Justifying the ways of God
17. The Rape of the Lock as a Mock-Epic
18. The Role and Function of Machinery in ROL
19. Character of Belinda
20. ROL as a Social Satire.
Paper (2): Classical Drama
21. Oedipus’s Fate-Action/ Hamartia of Oedipus: hubris
22. Oedipus as a tragedy
23. Dramatic Irony in Oedipus Rex
24. Main Theme: Relationship between man and gods.
25. Dr. Faustus as an over-reacher/ Faustus as Icarus
26. The real sin of Doctor Faustus
27. Dr. Faustus as a tragic Hero
28. Renaissance Elements in Dr. Faustus
29. Othello as a tragic hero.
30. Othello as a (domestic) tragedy
31. Theme of Jealousy in Othello
32. Iago’s motives and Othello’s cause of destruction
33. Winter’s Tale as a tragic-comedy
34. Theme of Jealousy in Winter’s Tale
35. Pastoral elements in Winter’s Tale.
36. Importance of Being Earnest: theme of love, money, marriage and social status.
37. IBE: The title – its significance and value
38. A trivial comedy for serious people/ IBE as comedy
39. Oscar Wilde’s style: pun, wit, paradox & verbatism
40. IBE as a social satire
Paper (3): Novel
41. Pride and Prejudice: Title and significance
42. Character of Elizabeth in P&P
43. Theme of love and marriage in P&P
44. Jane Austen’s Irony
45. A Tale of Two Cities: Title and its value
46. The theme of resurrection & renunciation in ATC
47. Symbolism in A Tale of Two Cities
48. ATC is a social novel in political background
49. Sydney Carton and his sacrifice in ATC
50. Adam Bede and Psychological Realism
51. George Eliot’s art of characterization
52. Hetty’s suffering; its cause and redemption
53. Education and regeneration of Adam Bede
54. The Return of the Native as a tragedy
55. Egdon Heath as a character in TRN
56. Chance and Fate – Hardy as a novelist
57. The Cause of Eustacia or Clym’s tragedy in TRN
Paper (4): Prose
58. Bacon as an essayist/ his style and contribution
59. Bacon as a moralist
60. Swift as a satirist
61. Swift as a misanthrope
62. Describe the first and the last voyage G-Travels.
63. Popularity of Gulliver’s Travels
64. Seamus Heaney’s justification, functions and redressing effects of poetry.
65. What is culture and what is imperialism and how does Edward Said relate the two?
66. Why does Edward Said refer to various novelists to prove his thesis of imperialism?
67. Bertrand Russell as an essayist.
Paper (5): American Literature
68. John Ashbery as a modern poet
69. Major themes in Ashbery and Richard Wilbur
70. Major Themes in Adrienne Rich and Sylvia Plath
71. Adrienne Rich as a poet
72. Critical Appraisals: Aunt Jennifer’s Tigers, Diving into the Wreck, The Painter, Melodic Trains, Still Citizen Sparrow, After the Last Bulletins, You are! Ariel, Arrival of the Bee box and Final Notations
73. The Crucible: its title and significance
74. John Proctor as a tragic hero
75. Mass Hysteria and theme of evil in the Crucible
76. Relationship between individual & society in The Crucible/ Individual commitment in society
77. Character of Abigail Williams
78. For Whom the Bell Tolls: Main theme
79. Robert Jordon as a tragic hero
80. Justify Robert Jordon’s sacrifice
81. Robert Jordon as a code hero
82. Hemingway’s style – Fictional technique
83. Symbolic Significance of the title Jazz
84. City as a character in Jazz
85. Major themes in Jazz
86. Mourning Becomes Electra as a tragedy
Friday, 10 February 2012
characters in adam bede
Adam Bede
The hero of this novel is an upright and moral carpenter. He is Seth's brother and Lisbeth's daughter. He is a great friend of the Captain, who makes him steward of his estate. Adam is in love with Hetty Sorrel.
Seth Bede
Seth Bede is Adam's younger brother. He is also a carpenter, but, unlike his brother, he is a Methodist. Seth is very patient with his mother, and he is in love with Dinah Morris.
Lisbeth Bede
Lisbeth is married to Thias Bede, mother of Adam and Seth. She has a fretful personality and is always worrying, particularly about her oldest son. She is worried about either of her sons getting married because she is afraid that this will render her useless in the household.
Thias Bede
Thias is Adam's and Seth's father. He used to be a very good father and taught his boys carpentry, but towards the end of his life he became an alcoholic. He dies by drowning in a stream early in the novel.
Gyp
Adam Bede's faithful dog.
Mr. Martin Poyser (the elder)
Martin Poyser's grandfather lives with the Poyser family on their large farm. He generally just watches the action, being too old to participate.
Mr. Martin Poyser (the younger)
This dairy farmer is a jolly man whose only hard words are reserved for farmers who do not do their jobs well. Hetty is his niece, and, being very fond of Adam Bede, Martin hopes that the two might marry.
Mrs. Poyser
Mrs. Poyser is an excellent dairy farmer. She speaks her mind quite strongly and can be hard on her family, but generally she is fairly wise.
Hetty Sorrel
Hetty lives on Mr. Poyser's dairy farm becuase she is his niece. She is an extremely pretty girl, admired by Mr. Craig and Adam Bede as well as the Captain. She does not have many attractive personal qualities, however, and is very vain.
Dinah Morris
Dinah is a quiet, pious young woman who is a Methodist preacher. At the beginning of the novel, she lives at the Poyser Farm because she is Mrs. Poyser's niece. Despite the fact that she is an attractive woman, she seems to show no signs of self-consciousness while she preaches.
Totty
Totty, whose real name is Charlotte, is the Poysers' youngest child. She is a fat toddler who is quite spoiled.
Marty
A nine-year-old son of the Poysers.
Tommy
A seven-year-old son of the Poysers.
Arthur Donnithorne (the Captain)
The Captain is the heir to the estate of his grandfather and therefore is the future landlord of many of the characters in the novel. At only twenty-one, he is a healthy, attractive boy who has very little self-control. He is in love with Hetty Sorrel.
Squire Donnithorne (the old Squire)
The old Squire is the Captain's grandfather. He is a formal old man who dislikes his grandson and who is disliked by most of his tenants because he manages the land badly.
Miss Lydia
Miss Lydia is a formal woman who is Arthur's aunt. Arthur surmises that his grandfather will cut her off in his will to improve Arthur's inheritance, despite the fact that Miss Lydia has waited on the old Squire for his whole life.
Mr. Casson
A stout man, Mr. Casson has been a butler for the Donnithornes for fifteen years.
Mr. Craig
Mr. Craig is the Donnithornes' gardener. He is in love with Hetty Sorrel, but his first love is hot house plants. He is vaguely Scottish; Eliot says that this is because "all French teachers are Parisian and all gardeners are Scottish."
Parson Irwine (the vicar)
The old vicar is a comfortable sort of person who has remained a bachelor for his whole life. He is not religious in an intense way, and he is respected and well liked by his parishioners. He takes very good care of his mother and invalid sister.
Mrs. Irwine
The parson's mother is a stately old woman. One can see her good breeding in the noble cut of her face and chin. She has no patience for unattractive people. She encourages her godson, Arthur, to marry a "handsome" woman.
Miss Anne
The vicar's invalid sister has a very small role in the novel, usually being too sick to leave her bed.
Mr. Jonathan Burge
Mr. Burge is the master carpenter whom Adam Bede works for. Many people expect Adam to marry Mary Burge so that he can become partners with her father.
Mary Burge
Mary is in love with Adam Bede. She is a sallow-faced, unremarkable girl.
Wiry Ben
Wiry Ben is a joker who works in the shop with the Bede brothers. He thinks that his solo dancing is very good.
Chad Cranage
Chad, the town blacksmith, has an extremely silly wife.
Chad's Bess
Chad's wife is extremely buxom and red cheeked. Like Hetty, she is extremely vain and wears gaudy earrings, which Dinah's preaching convinces her to take off temporarily.
Joshua Rann
The village shoemaker is very proud of his skills on the fiddle and plays at the Chase while Wiry Ben dances.
Timothy's Bess
Timothy's Bess should really be called after her husband, who is Sandy Jim. She is the cousin of Chad's Bess.
Sandy Jim
Sandy Jim is a local man who also works in Mr. Burge's shop.
Judith
Mrs. Poyser's dead sister, Dinah's aunt. She was also a Methodist. Dinah strongly reminds Mrs. Poyser of Judith.
Will Maskery
A contentious wheelmaker, Will Maskery was a lot less responsible until he "found" Methodism.
Molly
Molly is the Poysers' housemaid.
Gawaine
This young nobleman is a friend of Arthur Donnithorne's, whom he often dines with.
Mrs. Pomfret
Mrs. Pomfret is Miss Lydia's lady's maid. Hetty has tea with her every Thursday and is learning from her how to knit lace.
Mrs. Best
Mrs. Best is the Donnithornes' housekeeper.
Bartle Massey
Bartle Massey is the slightly lame schoolmaster. He is a confirmed bachelor, but he only moved to Hayslope twenty years before, so it is unclear whether he was married previously. He teaches Adam Bede at night school.
Vixen
Vixen is Bartle Massey's female dog, which has just had pups.
Mr. Thurle
A possible new tenant for the old Squire.
Colonel Towley
This magistrate rides through Hayslope and hears Dinah preach there.
The hero of this novel is an upright and moral carpenter. He is Seth's brother and Lisbeth's daughter. He is a great friend of the Captain, who makes him steward of his estate. Adam is in love with Hetty Sorrel.
Seth Bede
Seth Bede is Adam's younger brother. He is also a carpenter, but, unlike his brother, he is a Methodist. Seth is very patient with his mother, and he is in love with Dinah Morris.
Lisbeth Bede
Lisbeth is married to Thias Bede, mother of Adam and Seth. She has a fretful personality and is always worrying, particularly about her oldest son. She is worried about either of her sons getting married because she is afraid that this will render her useless in the household.
Thias Bede
Thias is Adam's and Seth's father. He used to be a very good father and taught his boys carpentry, but towards the end of his life he became an alcoholic. He dies by drowning in a stream early in the novel.
Gyp
Adam Bede's faithful dog.
Mr. Martin Poyser (the elder)
Martin Poyser's grandfather lives with the Poyser family on their large farm. He generally just watches the action, being too old to participate.
Mr. Martin Poyser (the younger)
This dairy farmer is a jolly man whose only hard words are reserved for farmers who do not do their jobs well. Hetty is his niece, and, being very fond of Adam Bede, Martin hopes that the two might marry.
Mrs. Poyser
Mrs. Poyser is an excellent dairy farmer. She speaks her mind quite strongly and can be hard on her family, but generally she is fairly wise.
Hetty Sorrel
Hetty lives on Mr. Poyser's dairy farm becuase she is his niece. She is an extremely pretty girl, admired by Mr. Craig and Adam Bede as well as the Captain. She does not have many attractive personal qualities, however, and is very vain.
Dinah Morris
Dinah is a quiet, pious young woman who is a Methodist preacher. At the beginning of the novel, she lives at the Poyser Farm because she is Mrs. Poyser's niece. Despite the fact that she is an attractive woman, she seems to show no signs of self-consciousness while she preaches.
Totty
Totty, whose real name is Charlotte, is the Poysers' youngest child. She is a fat toddler who is quite spoiled.
Marty
A nine-year-old son of the Poysers.
Tommy
A seven-year-old son of the Poysers.
Arthur Donnithorne (the Captain)
The Captain is the heir to the estate of his grandfather and therefore is the future landlord of many of the characters in the novel. At only twenty-one, he is a healthy, attractive boy who has very little self-control. He is in love with Hetty Sorrel.
Squire Donnithorne (the old Squire)
The old Squire is the Captain's grandfather. He is a formal old man who dislikes his grandson and who is disliked by most of his tenants because he manages the land badly.
Miss Lydia
Miss Lydia is a formal woman who is Arthur's aunt. Arthur surmises that his grandfather will cut her off in his will to improve Arthur's inheritance, despite the fact that Miss Lydia has waited on the old Squire for his whole life.
Mr. Casson
A stout man, Mr. Casson has been a butler for the Donnithornes for fifteen years.
Mr. Craig
Mr. Craig is the Donnithornes' gardener. He is in love with Hetty Sorrel, but his first love is hot house plants. He is vaguely Scottish; Eliot says that this is because "all French teachers are Parisian and all gardeners are Scottish."
Parson Irwine (the vicar)
The old vicar is a comfortable sort of person who has remained a bachelor for his whole life. He is not religious in an intense way, and he is respected and well liked by his parishioners. He takes very good care of his mother and invalid sister.
Mrs. Irwine
The parson's mother is a stately old woman. One can see her good breeding in the noble cut of her face and chin. She has no patience for unattractive people. She encourages her godson, Arthur, to marry a "handsome" woman.
Miss Anne
The vicar's invalid sister has a very small role in the novel, usually being too sick to leave her bed.
Mr. Jonathan Burge
Mr. Burge is the master carpenter whom Adam Bede works for. Many people expect Adam to marry Mary Burge so that he can become partners with her father.
Mary Burge
Mary is in love with Adam Bede. She is a sallow-faced, unremarkable girl.
Wiry Ben
Wiry Ben is a joker who works in the shop with the Bede brothers. He thinks that his solo dancing is very good.
Chad Cranage
Chad, the town blacksmith, has an extremely silly wife.
Chad's Bess
Chad's wife is extremely buxom and red cheeked. Like Hetty, she is extremely vain and wears gaudy earrings, which Dinah's preaching convinces her to take off temporarily.
Joshua Rann
The village shoemaker is very proud of his skills on the fiddle and plays at the Chase while Wiry Ben dances.
Timothy's Bess
Timothy's Bess should really be called after her husband, who is Sandy Jim. She is the cousin of Chad's Bess.
Sandy Jim
Sandy Jim is a local man who also works in Mr. Burge's shop.
Judith
Mrs. Poyser's dead sister, Dinah's aunt. She was also a Methodist. Dinah strongly reminds Mrs. Poyser of Judith.
Will Maskery
A contentious wheelmaker, Will Maskery was a lot less responsible until he "found" Methodism.
Molly
Molly is the Poysers' housemaid.
Gawaine
This young nobleman is a friend of Arthur Donnithorne's, whom he often dines with.
Mrs. Pomfret
Mrs. Pomfret is Miss Lydia's lady's maid. Hetty has tea with her every Thursday and is learning from her how to knit lace.
Mrs. Best
Mrs. Best is the Donnithornes' housekeeper.
Bartle Massey
Bartle Massey is the slightly lame schoolmaster. He is a confirmed bachelor, but he only moved to Hayslope twenty years before, so it is unclear whether he was married previously. He teaches Adam Bede at night school.
Vixen
Vixen is Bartle Massey's female dog, which has just had pups.
Mr. Thurle
A possible new tenant for the old Squire.
Colonel Towley
This magistrate rides through Hayslope and hears Dinah preach there.
Tuesday, 7 February 2012
Books Movies Links
with these links you can watch online movies that are created according to the text of the book
Gulliver's travel..... you can select any link
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h7Q6Mf2Cx74
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kL3qbC3sKFM
http://www.youtube.com/movie?v=988iuXXMCvs&feature=mv_sr
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P3gX5G6AzIc
Oedipus Rex full movie free download
http://torrentz.eu/e98a6a64fbfa2a9464aeea9a95be4ee01b1fb028
Doctor Faustus
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b4DXV8OTUEk
pride and prejudice
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w3axsojjUhE
a tale of two cities
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tmob9tICKIw
for whom the bell tolls
http://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&feature=endscreen&v=KH--pX40FEY
Gulliver's travel..... you can select any link
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h7Q6Mf2Cx74
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kL3qbC3sKFM
http://www.youtube.com/movie?v=988iuXXMCvs&feature=mv_sr
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P3gX5G6AzIc
Oedipus Rex full movie free download
http://torrentz.eu/e98a6a64fbfa2a9464aeea9a95be4ee01b1fb028
Doctor Faustus
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b4DXV8OTUEk
pride and prejudice
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w3axsojjUhE
a tale of two cities
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tmob9tICKIw
for whom the bell tolls
http://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&feature=endscreen&v=KH--pX40FEY
General Links
these links will provide you online information
English to Urdu dictionary and translation:
http://www.englishtourdutranslation.com/
writing topics
http://thewritesource.com/writing_topics/
English to Urdu dictionary and translation:
http://www.englishtourdutranslation.com/
writing topics
http://thewritesource.com/writing_topics/
Monday, 6 February 2012
Brief story of adam bede
Adam Bede is a young workman of twenty-six in the town of Hayslope in Loamshire. He is the foreman of a carpentry shop where his brother, Seth, also works. The novel opens in the workshop with an argument among the men about religion. We learn that Dinah Morris, a Methodist preacher with whom Seth is in love, will speak in the village that evening.
Seth goes to the prayer meeting and afterwards proposes to Dinah, who refuses him. Meanwhile, Adam has gone home and found out from his mother, Lisbeth, that his father, Thias, has gone off drinking instead of finishing a coffin he had contracted for. Working all night, Adam finishes the coffin, and he and Seth deliver it in the morning. On their way home, they find the drowned body of their father in a brook.
Joshua Rann, the parish clerk, informs Mr. Irwine, the local Anglican clergyman, that the Methodists are stirring up dissension in Hayslope. Mr. Irwine and Arthur Donnithorne, grandson and heir of the local landowner, ride over to see Dinah at the Hall Farm, a place tenanted by the Poysers, Dinah's uncle and aunt. Mr. Irwine speaks to Dinah and is impressed by her religious sincerity. Meanwhile, Arthur flirts with another of the Poysers' nieces, Hetty Sorrel, and she is greatly flattered by his attentions.
Mr. Irwine informs Dinah of Thias Bede's death, and she goes to the Bedes' cottage and comforts Lisbeth. Arthur learns on the same occasion that Hetty will be at the Chase, his manor, in two days' time, and he places himself so as to meet her in a grove on the grounds. After talking with her, he is ashamed of himself for being attracted to a mere farm girl, but he cannot break the spell and later that day intercepts her again in the same grove and kisses her. Ashamed of his behavior once more, he decides to tell his troubles to Mr. Irwine, hoping that confession will cure his passion. But when he speaks to the clergyman at Broxton parsonage the following morning, he loses his nerve and says nothing about Hetty. Meanwhile, Dinah has encouraged Hetty to come to her if she ever needs help, but Hetty, a thoughtless little thing who feels that no trouble will ever come to her, repulses the offer. Dinah leaves for her home in Snowfield, Stonyshire, the next day.
Thias Bede is buried, and Adam reflects that now he can begin to look forward to marriage; he is in love with Hetty. He goes to the Hall Farm and finds that Hetty seems more friendly towards him than in the past; he doesn't realize that her thoughts are all of Arthur, and his hopes rise. While visiting Bartle Massey, the local schoolmaster, that evening, he learns that the keeper of the Chase woods has had a stroke and that the job may be offered to him. Adam's marriage prospects look bright indeed, both from a financial and an emotional viewpoint.
Arthur's twenty-first birthday arrives, and all the tenants of the estate gather for a grand celebration. There is a round of toasts at dinnertime and everyone wishes the popular Arthur well. Adam is offered the job as keeper of the woods and he accepts it. There are games in which the townspeople compete in the afternoon and a dance in the evening. At the dance, Adam discovers by accident that Hetty is wearing a locket which looks like a lover's token, but he dismisses the thought that she is interested in another man. The locket, of course, is a gift from Arthur; he and Hetty are carrying on a secret affair.
About three weeks later, Adam happens to be passing through the grove on the Chase grounds when he finds Arthur and Hetty in an embrace. He is furious, starts a fight with Arthur, and knocks him out. When Arthur revives, Adam forces him to promise to write a note to Hetty breaking off the relationship. After much soul-searching, Arthur composes the note and gives it to Adam to deliver. He then leaves to join his regiment in the south of England. Adam delivers the note, trying to soften the blow to Hetty as much as possible. Before she reads the letter, Hetty refuses to believe that Arthur wants to break off the relationship; she is convinced that Arthur will marry her. After she reads it, she is in despair. She wants to leave home and go into service as a maid, but the Poysers won't let her. Finally she begins to feel that marrying Adam wouldn't be such a bad idea after all. Meanwhile, Dinah has written a friendly letter to Seth from Snowfield, and Mrs. Poyser has verbally routed Squire Donnithorne, Arthur's grandfather, who was bent on making a sharp deal with respect to the Poyser's farm.
When Adam notices that Hetty's friendly attitude toward him does not change, he concludes that there had really been nothing serious between Arthur and her. He proposes to her, she accepts, and the wedding is set for the following spring. Adam is deliriously happy and spends the next three months making preparations. Hetty, meanwhile, has fits of depression and contemplates suicide; she is pregnant by Arthur. She decides to run away and go to Arthur; telling the Poysers that she is going to visit Dinah in Snowfield for a week or two, she sets out.
After traveling for seven days, Hetty arrives sick, exhausted, and penniless, at Windsor. Here she is befriended by an innkeeper and his wife who inform her that Arthur's regiment has left for Ireland. Hetty faints in despair, but the next day her courage revives, she gets some money from the innkeeper in exchange for the jewelry Arthur had given her, and she heads back north, intending to go to Dinah in Snowfield. After five days of traveling, though, her spirits give out, and she leaves her coach and wanders out into the open fields. She spends part of a night by a pond but can't summon the courage to kill herself and so resumes her journey on foot towards Stonyshire.
When Hetty does not return in the expected time, Adam decides to go to Snowfield and bring her back. He discovers, of course, that she has never been there, and he tries to trace her but to no avail. Realizing that she has probably gone to Arthur, he resolves to go to Ireland. He stops at the parsonage to tell Mr. Irwine his plans and is shocked to learn that Hetty is in prison in Stoniton for the murder of her baby. He and Mr. Irwine go to Stoniton; Mr. Irwine returns the next day to break the bad news to the Poysers, while Adam rents a room and stays. Meanwhile, Arthur's grandfather has died and Arthur has set out for home from Ireland.
As the trial begins, Adam sits in his room in despair. Mr. Irwine and Bartle Massey (who has come to stay with Adam) bring news of how the trial is progressing; Hetty's guilt seems certain, though Adam refuses to believe it. Finally he goes to the courtroom himself. Two witnesses give evidence against Hetty, the jury returns the verdict of guilty, and the judge pronounces the death sentence. Meanwhile, Arthur has returned home, found a note from Mr. Irwine explaining the situation, and left for Stoniton.
On the evening after the trial, Dinah comes to the prison and gains admittance; she has been away and has just returned to the area. She gets Hetty to confess her guilt, which the girl had refused to do before, and induces her to pray. Dinah then goes and asks Adam to come and see Hetty before she dies. He comes the following morning, the day of the execution, and gives Hetty the forgiveness she asks for. Then Hetty is taken away to the place of execution. But at the last instant, Arthur comes riding up with a reprieve; Hetty's sentence has been commuted to "transportation" (exile). The next day, Adam and Arthur meet by chance in the grove where they had fought. Arthur is repentant and plans on going off to the wars. He asks Adam's forgiveness, and Adam, after a short struggle with his pride, agrees to shake hands.
Eighteen months later, Adam visits the Hall Farm to ask Dinah, who is visiting her relatives again, to come and comfort his ailing mother. Dinah goes back to the cottage with him and stays overnight to help Lisbeth. She blushes when Adam speaks to her. After she leaves, Lisbeth tells Adam that Dinah loves him; Adam is taken by surprise, but when he thinks about it he realizes that he loves her too. That afternoon he goes to the Hall Farm and proposes; Dinah wants to say yes, but her sense of duty stops her. She says she will return to her work among the poor and think about it. Adam reluctantly agrees and Dinah leaves. It is harvest time at the farm, and the harvest supper takes place with great gaiety.
After a month or so, Adam becomes anxious to know Dinah's decision and goes to Snowfield. He meets her atop a hill and she accepts his proposal. After another month has passed, they are married amid great rejoicing.
Some years later, Dinah and Seth are at home with Dinah's two children. Adam comes home; he has been to see Arthur, who has been away all this time and has returned a changed man. We learn that Hetty is dead, and then the novel ends on a note of domestic contentment.
Seth goes to the prayer meeting and afterwards proposes to Dinah, who refuses him. Meanwhile, Adam has gone home and found out from his mother, Lisbeth, that his father, Thias, has gone off drinking instead of finishing a coffin he had contracted for. Working all night, Adam finishes the coffin, and he and Seth deliver it in the morning. On their way home, they find the drowned body of their father in a brook.
Joshua Rann, the parish clerk, informs Mr. Irwine, the local Anglican clergyman, that the Methodists are stirring up dissension in Hayslope. Mr. Irwine and Arthur Donnithorne, grandson and heir of the local landowner, ride over to see Dinah at the Hall Farm, a place tenanted by the Poysers, Dinah's uncle and aunt. Mr. Irwine speaks to Dinah and is impressed by her religious sincerity. Meanwhile, Arthur flirts with another of the Poysers' nieces, Hetty Sorrel, and she is greatly flattered by his attentions.
Mr. Irwine informs Dinah of Thias Bede's death, and she goes to the Bedes' cottage and comforts Lisbeth. Arthur learns on the same occasion that Hetty will be at the Chase, his manor, in two days' time, and he places himself so as to meet her in a grove on the grounds. After talking with her, he is ashamed of himself for being attracted to a mere farm girl, but he cannot break the spell and later that day intercepts her again in the same grove and kisses her. Ashamed of his behavior once more, he decides to tell his troubles to Mr. Irwine, hoping that confession will cure his passion. But when he speaks to the clergyman at Broxton parsonage the following morning, he loses his nerve and says nothing about Hetty. Meanwhile, Dinah has encouraged Hetty to come to her if she ever needs help, but Hetty, a thoughtless little thing who feels that no trouble will ever come to her, repulses the offer. Dinah leaves for her home in Snowfield, Stonyshire, the next day.
Thias Bede is buried, and Adam reflects that now he can begin to look forward to marriage; he is in love with Hetty. He goes to the Hall Farm and finds that Hetty seems more friendly towards him than in the past; he doesn't realize that her thoughts are all of Arthur, and his hopes rise. While visiting Bartle Massey, the local schoolmaster, that evening, he learns that the keeper of the Chase woods has had a stroke and that the job may be offered to him. Adam's marriage prospects look bright indeed, both from a financial and an emotional viewpoint.
Arthur's twenty-first birthday arrives, and all the tenants of the estate gather for a grand celebration. There is a round of toasts at dinnertime and everyone wishes the popular Arthur well. Adam is offered the job as keeper of the woods and he accepts it. There are games in which the townspeople compete in the afternoon and a dance in the evening. At the dance, Adam discovers by accident that Hetty is wearing a locket which looks like a lover's token, but he dismisses the thought that she is interested in another man. The locket, of course, is a gift from Arthur; he and Hetty are carrying on a secret affair.
About three weeks later, Adam happens to be passing through the grove on the Chase grounds when he finds Arthur and Hetty in an embrace. He is furious, starts a fight with Arthur, and knocks him out. When Arthur revives, Adam forces him to promise to write a note to Hetty breaking off the relationship. After much soul-searching, Arthur composes the note and gives it to Adam to deliver. He then leaves to join his regiment in the south of England. Adam delivers the note, trying to soften the blow to Hetty as much as possible. Before she reads the letter, Hetty refuses to believe that Arthur wants to break off the relationship; she is convinced that Arthur will marry her. After she reads it, she is in despair. She wants to leave home and go into service as a maid, but the Poysers won't let her. Finally she begins to feel that marrying Adam wouldn't be such a bad idea after all. Meanwhile, Dinah has written a friendly letter to Seth from Snowfield, and Mrs. Poyser has verbally routed Squire Donnithorne, Arthur's grandfather, who was bent on making a sharp deal with respect to the Poyser's farm.
When Adam notices that Hetty's friendly attitude toward him does not change, he concludes that there had really been nothing serious between Arthur and her. He proposes to her, she accepts, and the wedding is set for the following spring. Adam is deliriously happy and spends the next three months making preparations. Hetty, meanwhile, has fits of depression and contemplates suicide; she is pregnant by Arthur. She decides to run away and go to Arthur; telling the Poysers that she is going to visit Dinah in Snowfield for a week or two, she sets out.
After traveling for seven days, Hetty arrives sick, exhausted, and penniless, at Windsor. Here she is befriended by an innkeeper and his wife who inform her that Arthur's regiment has left for Ireland. Hetty faints in despair, but the next day her courage revives, she gets some money from the innkeeper in exchange for the jewelry Arthur had given her, and she heads back north, intending to go to Dinah in Snowfield. After five days of traveling, though, her spirits give out, and she leaves her coach and wanders out into the open fields. She spends part of a night by a pond but can't summon the courage to kill herself and so resumes her journey on foot towards Stonyshire.
When Hetty does not return in the expected time, Adam decides to go to Snowfield and bring her back. He discovers, of course, that she has never been there, and he tries to trace her but to no avail. Realizing that she has probably gone to Arthur, he resolves to go to Ireland. He stops at the parsonage to tell Mr. Irwine his plans and is shocked to learn that Hetty is in prison in Stoniton for the murder of her baby. He and Mr. Irwine go to Stoniton; Mr. Irwine returns the next day to break the bad news to the Poysers, while Adam rents a room and stays. Meanwhile, Arthur's grandfather has died and Arthur has set out for home from Ireland.
As the trial begins, Adam sits in his room in despair. Mr. Irwine and Bartle Massey (who has come to stay with Adam) bring news of how the trial is progressing; Hetty's guilt seems certain, though Adam refuses to believe it. Finally he goes to the courtroom himself. Two witnesses give evidence against Hetty, the jury returns the verdict of guilty, and the judge pronounces the death sentence. Meanwhile, Arthur has returned home, found a note from Mr. Irwine explaining the situation, and left for Stoniton.
On the evening after the trial, Dinah comes to the prison and gains admittance; she has been away and has just returned to the area. She gets Hetty to confess her guilt, which the girl had refused to do before, and induces her to pray. Dinah then goes and asks Adam to come and see Hetty before she dies. He comes the following morning, the day of the execution, and gives Hetty the forgiveness she asks for. Then Hetty is taken away to the place of execution. But at the last instant, Arthur comes riding up with a reprieve; Hetty's sentence has been commuted to "transportation" (exile). The next day, Adam and Arthur meet by chance in the grove where they had fought. Arthur is repentant and plans on going off to the wars. He asks Adam's forgiveness, and Adam, after a short struggle with his pride, agrees to shake hands.
Eighteen months later, Adam visits the Hall Farm to ask Dinah, who is visiting her relatives again, to come and comfort his ailing mother. Dinah goes back to the cottage with him and stays overnight to help Lisbeth. She blushes when Adam speaks to her. After she leaves, Lisbeth tells Adam that Dinah loves him; Adam is taken by surprise, but when he thinks about it he realizes that he loves her too. That afternoon he goes to the Hall Farm and proposes; Dinah wants to say yes, but her sense of duty stops her. She says she will return to her work among the poor and think about it. Adam reluctantly agrees and Dinah leaves. It is harvest time at the farm, and the harvest supper takes place with great gaiety.
After a month or so, Adam becomes anxious to know Dinah's decision and goes to Snowfield. He meets her atop a hill and she accepts his proposal. After another month has passed, they are married amid great rejoicing.
Some years later, Dinah and Seth are at home with Dinah's two children. Adam comes home; he has been to see Arthur, who has been away all this time and has returned a changed man. We learn that Hetty is dead, and then the novel ends on a note of domestic contentment.
Friday, 3 February 2012
paradise lost all books summery in few words
BOOK I
A brief introduction mentions the fall of Adam and Eve caused by the serpent, which was Satan, who led the angels in revolt against God and was cast into hell. The scene then opens on Satan lying dazed in the burning lake, with Beelzebub, next in command, beside him. Satan assembles his fallen legions on the shore, where he revives their spirits by his speech. They set to building a palace, called Pandemonium. There the high ranking angels assemble in council.
BOOK II
A debate is held whether or not to attempt recovery of heaven. A third proposal is preferred, concerning an ancient prophecy of another world which was to be created, where the devils may seek to enact their revenge. Satan alone undertakes the voyage to find this world. He encounters Sin and Death, his offspring, guarding hell's gates. Sin unlocks the gate, and Satan embarks on his passage across the great gulf of chaos between heaven and hell, till he sights the new universe floating near the larger globe, which is heaven.
BOOK III
God sees Satan flying towards this world and foretells the success of his evil mission to tempt man. God explains his purpose of grace and mercy toward man, but declares that justice must be met nonetheless. His Son, who sits at his right hand, freely offers to sacrifice himself for man's salvation, causing the angels to celebrate in songs of praise.
Meanwhile Satan alights upon the outer shell of the new creation, where he finds an opening to the universe within. He flies down to the sun, upon which an angel, Uriel, stands guard. Diguised as a cherub, Satan pretends he has come to praise God's new creation, and thereby tricks the angel into showing him the way to man's home.
BOOK IV
Landing atop Mt. Niphates, Satan experiences dissillusionment, but soon proceeds on his evil errand. He easily gains secret entrance to the Garden of Paradise. He wonders at its beauty, and soon comes upon Adam and Eve, who excite great envy in him at their happy state. He overhears them speak of God's commandment that they should not eat the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil under penalty of death, and thereby plots to cause them to transgress.
Uriel, becoming suspicious, comes to warn Gabriel and his angels, who are guarding the gate of Paradise. That evening, two scouts sent by Gabriel find Satan whispering in the ear of Eve as she sleeps next to her husband. The scouts apprehend and bring Satan to Gabriel who banishes him from Eden.
BOOK V
Next morning, Eve relates to Adam a troublesome dream, and is comforted by him. God sends the angel Raphael to visit the couple to warn them of their enemy. The angel arrives and dines with them, then relates to them the history of Satan's fall: how jealousy against the Son of God led him to incite all those in his charge to rebel against God, and how one angel, Abdiel, resisted and remained faithful to God.
BOOK VI
Raphael continues to relate how Michael was sent to lead the faithful angels into battle against Satan (then called Lucifer) and his army. Wounded and in dissaray, Satan and his powers retreat. During the night they invent weapons resembling cannons. When, in the second day's fight, Michael's angels are confronted with these devilish devices, they become enraged and pull up the very mountains and hurl them at Satan's crew. But the war continues into the third day, when God sends Messiah, his Son, to end the war. Riding forth in his flaming chariot, Messiah drives the rebels out of heaven and down into hell.
BOOK VII
Raphael then relates to Adam how God sent his Son to create a new world and new creatures to fill the place left by the fallen angels. The six days of creation are described.
BOOK VIII
Adam, desiring to extend the pleasurable visit with the angel, relates to Raphael what he remembers of his own creation, his first impressions of the world and its creatures, the Garden of Eden, and his first meeting and marriage to Eve. After repeating his warnings to Adam, the angel departs.
BOOK IX
Satan returns to earth, where he chooses the serpent as his best disguise. Next morning, when Adam and Eve go forth to their gardening tasks, Eve suggests they go in separate directions. With great reservation, Adam finally consents. The serpent finds Eve alone and approaches her. She is surprised to find the creature can speak, and is soon induced by him to eat the fruit of the forbidden tree. Adam is horrified when he finds what she has done, but at length resignes himself to share her fate rather than be left without her, and eats the fruit also. After eating, they are aroused with lust and lay together, then fall to restless sleep. They waken to awareness of their nakedness and shame, and cover themselves with leaves. In their emotional distress, they fall into mutual accusations and blame.
BOOK X
The guardian angels return to heaven, sad for man's failure, and the Son of God descends to earth to judge the sinners. Mercifully, he delays their sentence of death many days, during which they may work to regain God's favor. Then, in pity, he clothes them both.
At the gates of hell, Sin and Death sense the success of Satan in this new world. They set out to build a highway over chaos to make future passage to earth easier. Satan meets them on his return voyage to hell, and marvels at the great structure. Upon his arrival in Pandemonium, Satan boasts of his success to the assembly. Instead of applauding him, they can only hiss, for they and he have all been turned into snakes, their punishment from above.
God instructs his angels what changed conditions must prevail in the world, now in fallen state, while on earth, Adam bemoans his miserable condition and the fate of the human race. He harshly rejects Eve's attempt to console him, but she persists and wins his forgiveness. She proposes they commit suicide, but Adam reminds her of God's promise that her seed should wreak vengeance upon the serpent. Moreover, they must seek to make peace with their offended Lord.
BOOK XI
God sends Michael and his band to expel the sinning pair from Paradise, but first to reveal to Adam future events, resulting from his sin. The angel descends to Eden with the news of their expulsion, causing Eve to withdraw in tears. Michael leads Adam up a high hill, where he sets before him in visions what shall happen till the Great Flood.
BOOK XII
Michael continues in prophecy from the flood by degrees to explain who the Seed of woman shall be, the Savior which was promised, who shall redeem mankind. Adam is recomforted by these last revelations and resolves faithful obedience. He descends the hill with Michael and rejoins Eve, who is wakened from gentle sleep, reconfirmed in allegence to her husband. A flaming sword is placed to bar the gates behind them, as Adam and Eve are sent away from Paradise.
A brief introduction mentions the fall of Adam and Eve caused by the serpent, which was Satan, who led the angels in revolt against God and was cast into hell. The scene then opens on Satan lying dazed in the burning lake, with Beelzebub, next in command, beside him. Satan assembles his fallen legions on the shore, where he revives their spirits by his speech. They set to building a palace, called Pandemonium. There the high ranking angels assemble in council.
BOOK II
A debate is held whether or not to attempt recovery of heaven. A third proposal is preferred, concerning an ancient prophecy of another world which was to be created, where the devils may seek to enact their revenge. Satan alone undertakes the voyage to find this world. He encounters Sin and Death, his offspring, guarding hell's gates. Sin unlocks the gate, and Satan embarks on his passage across the great gulf of chaos between heaven and hell, till he sights the new universe floating near the larger globe, which is heaven.
BOOK III
God sees Satan flying towards this world and foretells the success of his evil mission to tempt man. God explains his purpose of grace and mercy toward man, but declares that justice must be met nonetheless. His Son, who sits at his right hand, freely offers to sacrifice himself for man's salvation, causing the angels to celebrate in songs of praise.
Meanwhile Satan alights upon the outer shell of the new creation, where he finds an opening to the universe within. He flies down to the sun, upon which an angel, Uriel, stands guard. Diguised as a cherub, Satan pretends he has come to praise God's new creation, and thereby tricks the angel into showing him the way to man's home.
BOOK IV
Landing atop Mt. Niphates, Satan experiences dissillusionment, but soon proceeds on his evil errand. He easily gains secret entrance to the Garden of Paradise. He wonders at its beauty, and soon comes upon Adam and Eve, who excite great envy in him at their happy state. He overhears them speak of God's commandment that they should not eat the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil under penalty of death, and thereby plots to cause them to transgress.
Uriel, becoming suspicious, comes to warn Gabriel and his angels, who are guarding the gate of Paradise. That evening, two scouts sent by Gabriel find Satan whispering in the ear of Eve as she sleeps next to her husband. The scouts apprehend and bring Satan to Gabriel who banishes him from Eden.
BOOK V
Next morning, Eve relates to Adam a troublesome dream, and is comforted by him. God sends the angel Raphael to visit the couple to warn them of their enemy. The angel arrives and dines with them, then relates to them the history of Satan's fall: how jealousy against the Son of God led him to incite all those in his charge to rebel against God, and how one angel, Abdiel, resisted and remained faithful to God.
BOOK VI
Raphael continues to relate how Michael was sent to lead the faithful angels into battle against Satan (then called Lucifer) and his army. Wounded and in dissaray, Satan and his powers retreat. During the night they invent weapons resembling cannons. When, in the second day's fight, Michael's angels are confronted with these devilish devices, they become enraged and pull up the very mountains and hurl them at Satan's crew. But the war continues into the third day, when God sends Messiah, his Son, to end the war. Riding forth in his flaming chariot, Messiah drives the rebels out of heaven and down into hell.
BOOK VII
Raphael then relates to Adam how God sent his Son to create a new world and new creatures to fill the place left by the fallen angels. The six days of creation are described.
BOOK VIII
Adam, desiring to extend the pleasurable visit with the angel, relates to Raphael what he remembers of his own creation, his first impressions of the world and its creatures, the Garden of Eden, and his first meeting and marriage to Eve. After repeating his warnings to Adam, the angel departs.
BOOK IX
Satan returns to earth, where he chooses the serpent as his best disguise. Next morning, when Adam and Eve go forth to their gardening tasks, Eve suggests they go in separate directions. With great reservation, Adam finally consents. The serpent finds Eve alone and approaches her. She is surprised to find the creature can speak, and is soon induced by him to eat the fruit of the forbidden tree. Adam is horrified when he finds what she has done, but at length resignes himself to share her fate rather than be left without her, and eats the fruit also. After eating, they are aroused with lust and lay together, then fall to restless sleep. They waken to awareness of their nakedness and shame, and cover themselves with leaves. In their emotional distress, they fall into mutual accusations and blame.
BOOK X
The guardian angels return to heaven, sad for man's failure, and the Son of God descends to earth to judge the sinners. Mercifully, he delays their sentence of death many days, during which they may work to regain God's favor. Then, in pity, he clothes them both.
At the gates of hell, Sin and Death sense the success of Satan in this new world. They set out to build a highway over chaos to make future passage to earth easier. Satan meets them on his return voyage to hell, and marvels at the great structure. Upon his arrival in Pandemonium, Satan boasts of his success to the assembly. Instead of applauding him, they can only hiss, for they and he have all been turned into snakes, their punishment from above.
God instructs his angels what changed conditions must prevail in the world, now in fallen state, while on earth, Adam bemoans his miserable condition and the fate of the human race. He harshly rejects Eve's attempt to console him, but she persists and wins his forgiveness. She proposes they commit suicide, but Adam reminds her of God's promise that her seed should wreak vengeance upon the serpent. Moreover, they must seek to make peace with their offended Lord.
BOOK XI
God sends Michael and his band to expel the sinning pair from Paradise, but first to reveal to Adam future events, resulting from his sin. The angel descends to Eden with the news of their expulsion, causing Eve to withdraw in tears. Michael leads Adam up a high hill, where he sets before him in visions what shall happen till the Great Flood.
BOOK XII
Michael continues in prophecy from the flood by degrees to explain who the Seed of woman shall be, the Savior which was promised, who shall redeem mankind. Adam is recomforted by these last revelations and resolves faithful obedience. He descends the hill with Michael and rejoins Eve, who is wakened from gentle sleep, reconfirmed in allegence to her husband. A flaming sword is placed to bar the gates behind them, as Adam and Eve are sent away from Paradise.
paradise lost introduction and brief summery
INTRODUCTION
Paradise Lost is about Adam and Eve—how they came to be created and how they came to lose their place in the Garden of Eden, also called Paradise. It's the same story you find in the first pages of Genesis, expanded by Milton into a very long, detailed, narrative poem. It also includes the story of the origin of Satan. Originally, he was called Lucifer, an angel in heaven who led his followers in a war against God, and was ultimately sent with them to hell. Thirst for revenge led him to cause man's downfall by turning into a serpent and tempting Eve to eat the forbidden fruit.
SUMMARY
The story opens in hell, where Satan and his followers are recovering from defeat in a war they waged against God. They build a palace, called Pandemonium, where they hold council to determine whether or not to return to battle. Instead they decide to explore a new world prophecied to be created, where a safer course of revenge can be planned. Satan undertakes the mission alone. At the gate of hell, he meets his offspring, Sin and Death, who unbar the gates for him. He journeys across chaos till he sees the new universe floating near the larger globe which is heaven. God sees Satan flying towards this world and foretells the fall of man. His Son, who sits at his right hand, offers to sacrifice himself for man's salvation. Meanwhile, Satan enters the new universe. He flies to the sun, where he tricks an angel, Uriel, into showing him the way to man's home.
Satan gains entrance into the Garden of Eden, where he finds Adam and Eve and becomes jealous of them. He overhears them speak of God's commandment that they should not eat the forbidden fruit. Uriel warns Gabriel and his angels, who are guarding the gate of Paradise, of Satan's presence. Satan is apprehended by them and banished from Eden. God sends Raphael to warn Adam and Eve about Satan. Raphael recounts to them how jealousy against the Son of God led a once favored angel to wage war against God in heaven, and how the Son, Messiah, cast him and his followers into hell. He relates how the world was created so mankind could one day replace the fallen angels in heaven.
Satan returns to earth, and enters a serpent. Finding Eve alone he induces her to eat the fruit of the forbidden tree. Adam, resigned to join in her fate, eats also. Their innocence is lost and they become aware of their nakedness. In shame and despair, they become hostile to each other. The Son of God descends to earth to judge the sinners, mercifully delaying their sentence of death. Sin and Death, sensing Satan's success, build a highway to earth, their new home. Upon his return to hell, instead of a celebration of victory, Satan and his crew are turned into serpents as punishment. Adam reconciles with Eve. God sends Michael to expel the pair from Paradise, but first to reveal to Adam future events resulting from his sin. Adam is saddened by these visions, but ultimately revived by revelations of the future coming of the Savior of mankind. In sadness, mitigated with hope, Adam and Eve are sent away from the Garden of Paradise.
Paradise Lost is about Adam and Eve—how they came to be created and how they came to lose their place in the Garden of Eden, also called Paradise. It's the same story you find in the first pages of Genesis, expanded by Milton into a very long, detailed, narrative poem. It also includes the story of the origin of Satan. Originally, he was called Lucifer, an angel in heaven who led his followers in a war against God, and was ultimately sent with them to hell. Thirst for revenge led him to cause man's downfall by turning into a serpent and tempting Eve to eat the forbidden fruit.
SUMMARY
The story opens in hell, where Satan and his followers are recovering from defeat in a war they waged against God. They build a palace, called Pandemonium, where they hold council to determine whether or not to return to battle. Instead they decide to explore a new world prophecied to be created, where a safer course of revenge can be planned. Satan undertakes the mission alone. At the gate of hell, he meets his offspring, Sin and Death, who unbar the gates for him. He journeys across chaos till he sees the new universe floating near the larger globe which is heaven. God sees Satan flying towards this world and foretells the fall of man. His Son, who sits at his right hand, offers to sacrifice himself for man's salvation. Meanwhile, Satan enters the new universe. He flies to the sun, where he tricks an angel, Uriel, into showing him the way to man's home.
Satan gains entrance into the Garden of Eden, where he finds Adam and Eve and becomes jealous of them. He overhears them speak of God's commandment that they should not eat the forbidden fruit. Uriel warns Gabriel and his angels, who are guarding the gate of Paradise, of Satan's presence. Satan is apprehended by them and banished from Eden. God sends Raphael to warn Adam and Eve about Satan. Raphael recounts to them how jealousy against the Son of God led a once favored angel to wage war against God in heaven, and how the Son, Messiah, cast him and his followers into hell. He relates how the world was created so mankind could one day replace the fallen angels in heaven.
Satan returns to earth, and enters a serpent. Finding Eve alone he induces her to eat the fruit of the forbidden tree. Adam, resigned to join in her fate, eats also. Their innocence is lost and they become aware of their nakedness. In shame and despair, they become hostile to each other. The Son of God descends to earth to judge the sinners, mercifully delaying their sentence of death. Sin and Death, sensing Satan's success, build a highway to earth, their new home. Upon his return to hell, instead of a celebration of victory, Satan and his crew are turned into serpents as punishment. Adam reconciles with Eve. God sends Michael to expel the pair from Paradise, but first to reveal to Adam future events resulting from his sin. Adam is saddened by these visions, but ultimately revived by revelations of the future coming of the Savior of mankind. In sadness, mitigated with hope, Adam and Eve are sent away from the Garden of Paradise.
John Milton 's life
John Milton was born in London on December 9, 1608, the son of a prosperous Puritan family. His father, a musician, encouraged him to pursue an excellent education, hiring private tutors and enroling him in St. Paul's school (c. 1620).
John Milton
The first stage of Milton's literary career began in 1625, when he entered Christ's College, Cambridge, where he studied until 1632. He seems not to have been very popular with his fellow students or his professors, and on one occasion he was "sent down" for a fight with a tutor, but was allowed to return. Milton seems to have spent the years between 1632 (when he completed his Master's degree) and 1637 in private study at his father's country home near Windsor. Following this, he travelled in France and Italy (1638-1639), and many of the descriptions in Paradise Lost (such as the description of Hell) reflect things which he saw on these travels. Poems from this period include "Prolusions," "On the Morning of Christ's Nativity" (1629), "Comus" (1634), and "Lycidas" (1639), a poem based on the death of a fellow student, Edward King.
The second stage of Milton's career began in 1640, when he returned to England to teach his nephews. This stage of Milton's life was marked by controversy and civil unrest in England. In 1642 civil war broke out between the Puritan Roundheads and the Royalist supporters of Charles I. Milton was involved in many of the religious and political controversies of his day, and many of his prose works (both in English and Latin) date from the years between 1641 and 1660. His devotion to the principles of Oliver Cromwell's Commonwealth (as well as many of the themes and motifs which would later dominate Paradise Lost) are evident in the many pamphlets he penned during this period.
In 1642 Milton married Mary Powell, but the marriage was a failure and she seems to have left him within months of the wedding, not to return until 1645. His two daughters, Anne and Mary, were born after their reconciliation.
In 1649 Charles I was executed and Cromwell's Commonwealth seemed secure. In March of that year, Milton was appointed Secretary in Foreign Tongues to the Council of State (a kind of foreign-affairs minister). Charles I's death was highly controversial both in England and Europe, and in October Milton published Eikonoklastes, in which he defended Cromwell's actions. In 1651, responding to further European criticism of Cromwell's regime, he published his first Defensio pro populo Anglicano (The Defence of the People of England) . The year 1651 also saw the birth of his only son, John.
The following year was one of tragedy for Milton. Within days of the birth of his third daughter, Deborah, his wife died, and a month later his son John also died. To compound the tragedy, his eyesight, weak since 1644, failed completely and he became totally blind. One can only imagine how devastating this must have been for a poet whose work is as dominated by vivid visual imagery as is Milton's.
In 1656, Milton married his second wife, Kathenne Woodcock, who died less than two years later. Over the next few years, Milton published a number of tracts which reflect his deep concern for church government and the abuses therein.
Following the Restoration in 1660, Milton was placed for a time under house arrest, but was released within six months. This begins the third and final stage of Milton's literary career. Retired from public life, in 1663 he married his third wife, Elizabeth Minshul, and in 1667, he published the first edition of Paradise Lost's ten books. Although much of the material subsequent to the fall is missing from this edition, the concern to "justify the ways of God to man" is evident, as is Milton's conviction that, despite the fall of the Commonwealth and the Restoration of the monarchy, political justice can be achieved in this world. Between 1670 and 1673 he published several of his greatest works, including Paradise Regained and Samson Agonistes. Only months before his death, he published Paradise Lost, A Poem in Twelve Books, the complete edition of his epic. He died on November 8, 1674, and was buried in St. Giles, Cripplegate, London.
John Milton
The first stage of Milton's literary career began in 1625, when he entered Christ's College, Cambridge, where he studied until 1632. He seems not to have been very popular with his fellow students or his professors, and on one occasion he was "sent down" for a fight with a tutor, but was allowed to return. Milton seems to have spent the years between 1632 (when he completed his Master's degree) and 1637 in private study at his father's country home near Windsor. Following this, he travelled in France and Italy (1638-1639), and many of the descriptions in Paradise Lost (such as the description of Hell) reflect things which he saw on these travels. Poems from this period include "Prolusions," "On the Morning of Christ's Nativity" (1629), "Comus" (1634), and "Lycidas" (1639), a poem based on the death of a fellow student, Edward King.
The second stage of Milton's career began in 1640, when he returned to England to teach his nephews. This stage of Milton's life was marked by controversy and civil unrest in England. In 1642 civil war broke out between the Puritan Roundheads and the Royalist supporters of Charles I. Milton was involved in many of the religious and political controversies of his day, and many of his prose works (both in English and Latin) date from the years between 1641 and 1660. His devotion to the principles of Oliver Cromwell's Commonwealth (as well as many of the themes and motifs which would later dominate Paradise Lost) are evident in the many pamphlets he penned during this period.
In 1642 Milton married Mary Powell, but the marriage was a failure and she seems to have left him within months of the wedding, not to return until 1645. His two daughters, Anne and Mary, were born after their reconciliation.
In 1649 Charles I was executed and Cromwell's Commonwealth seemed secure. In March of that year, Milton was appointed Secretary in Foreign Tongues to the Council of State (a kind of foreign-affairs minister). Charles I's death was highly controversial both in England and Europe, and in October Milton published Eikonoklastes, in which he defended Cromwell's actions. In 1651, responding to further European criticism of Cromwell's regime, he published his first Defensio pro populo Anglicano (The Defence of the People of England) . The year 1651 also saw the birth of his only son, John.
The following year was one of tragedy for Milton. Within days of the birth of his third daughter, Deborah, his wife died, and a month later his son John also died. To compound the tragedy, his eyesight, weak since 1644, failed completely and he became totally blind. One can only imagine how devastating this must have been for a poet whose work is as dominated by vivid visual imagery as is Milton's.
In 1656, Milton married his second wife, Kathenne Woodcock, who died less than two years later. Over the next few years, Milton published a number of tracts which reflect his deep concern for church government and the abuses therein.
Following the Restoration in 1660, Milton was placed for a time under house arrest, but was released within six months. This begins the third and final stage of Milton's literary career. Retired from public life, in 1663 he married his third wife, Elizabeth Minshul, and in 1667, he published the first edition of Paradise Lost's ten books. Although much of the material subsequent to the fall is missing from this edition, the concern to "justify the ways of God to man" is evident, as is Milton's conviction that, despite the fall of the Commonwealth and the Restoration of the monarchy, political justice can be achieved in this world. Between 1670 and 1673 he published several of his greatest works, including Paradise Regained and Samson Agonistes. Only months before his death, he published Paradise Lost, A Poem in Twelve Books, the complete edition of his epic. He died on November 8, 1674, and was buried in St. Giles, Cripplegate, London.
Doctor faustus as morality
Liturgical Drama in the beginning had three forms, Mystery, Miracle and Morality. The morality plays really a fusion of allegory and the religious drama of the miracle plays (Which presents the miracles of saints and the subjects depend upon Bible). It flourished in the middle ages, was at its height in the first half of the 15 century, disappeared after the second half, but reappeared in Elizabethan drama. In this play the characters were personified abstractions of vice or virtues such as Good deeds, Faith, Mercy, Anger, Truth, Pride etc. The general theme of the moralities was theological and the main one was the struggle between the good and evil powers for capturing the man’s soul and good always won. The story of whole morality play centers round the single towering figure. The seven deadly sins were found engaged in physical and verbal battle with cardinal virtues. The antics of vices and devils etc offered a considerable opportunity for low comedy or buffoonery. The morality play often ended with a solemn moral. In the light of these points we may call Marlowe’s “Dr. Faustus” a belated morality play in spite of its tragic ending. It has been mentioned that in morality plays the characters were personified abstractions of vice or virtues. In “Dr.Faustus” also we find the Good and Evil angels, the former stand for the path of virtue and the latter for sin and damnation, one for conscience and the other for desires. Then we have the old man appearing, telling Faustus that he is there “To guide’ thysteps unto the way of life”. He symbolizes the forces of righteousness and morality. The seven deadly sins are also there in a grand spectacle to cheer up the despairing soul of Faustus. If the, general theme of morality plays was theological dealing with the struggle of forces of good and evil for man’s soul, then “Dr. Faustus” may be called a religious or morality play to a very great extent. We find Marlowe’s hero, Faustus, abjuring the scriptures, the Trinity and Christ. He surrenders his soul to the Devil out of his inordinate ambition to gain: “-----a world of profit and delight’ of power, of honor, of omnipotence.”Through knowledge by mastering the unholy art of magic. About the books of magic, he declares: “These metaphysics of magicians and necromantic books are heavenly.”By selling his soul to the Devil he lives a blasphemous life full of vain and sensual pleasures just for only twenty-four years. There is struggle between his overwhelming ambition and conscience which are externalized by good angel and evil angel. But Faustus has already accepted the opinion of Evil Angel, who says: “Be thou on earth as Jove in the sky.” Faustus is also fascinated by the thought: “A sound magician is a mighty god, Here, Faustus, tire thy brains to gain a deity.”When the final hours approaches, Faustus find himself at the edge of eternal damnation and cries with deep sorrow: “My God, my God, look not so fierce to me!”Through this story Marlowe gives the lesson that the man, who desires to be God, is doomed to eternal damnation. The chief aim of morality play was didactic. It was a dramatized guide to Christian living and Christian dying. Whosoever discards the path of virtue and faith in God and Christ is destined to despair and eternal damnation--- this is also the message of Marlowe’s Dr. Faustus. And it has found the most touching expression in the closing lines of the play: “Whose deepness doth entice such forward wits, to practice more than heavenly power permits.”Hudson has rightly said: “No finer sermon than Marlowe’s Dr. Faustus ever came from the pulpit.”The tradition of chorus is also maintained. We find the chorus introducing the story just before the beginning of the first scene and subsequently filling in the gaps in the narrative and announcing the end of the play with a very solemn moral. The appearance of seven deadly sins shows that Marlowe in “Dr. Faustus” adopted some of the conventions of the old Morality plays. The seven Deadly sins- pride, Covetousness, Wrath, Envy, Gluttony, Sloth and Lechery of good old Morality plays are also very much here in this play in a grand spectacle to cheer up the dejected soul of Faustus. And the old favorite and familiar figure of the devil is also not missing. Mephistopheles, an assistant to Lucifer, appears as a servile slave of Faustus in many scenes. The comic scenes of “Dr. Faustus” also belong to the tradition of old Morality plays. The comic scenes were not integral part of those plays but were introduced to entertain. In “Dr. Faustus” many comic scenes are depicted especially his pranks on the Pope, the planting of a pair of horns on the head of a knight and the cheating of a greedy horse-dealer. They throw light on the nature of the tragedy of Dr.Faustus. The comic episodes underline the fact that Faustus has sunk to the low level of a sordid fun-loving sorcerer. In “Dr. Faustus” there is only one towering figure all the action and incidents centre round him. Then just like the earlier Morality plays, it also suffers from looseness of construction especially in the middle part of the play. Though to a great extent, “Dr. Faustus” is a morality play yet there are also some other elements which make it different from morality play. The difference is that in morality plays, all characters are abstractions, not concrete. But in “Dr. Faustus” the main character, Faustus is not an abstraction but as person with desires and high ambitions He is a living person like other human beings. Then the element of conflict is the fountain head of the entire action in the play and the movement of the action defines the plot of the play. Faustus heart and soul is the greatest battle field for the internal or spiritual conflict. Though Faustus has abjured God and has made his pact with the devil, yet there is a conflict in his mind between good and evil, he feels the pricks of conscience. The growing sense of loss and of the wages of “damnation” begins to sting him like a scorpion. “When I behold the heaven, then I repent, and curse thee, Wicked Mephistophilis, because thou hast deprived me of those joys “This inner conflict in Faustus is the element of tragedy not of morality, on the basis of which we some times think that it is not a morality play. In a morality play, the moral is always positive and goodness always triumphs over evil, truth over lie and virtue over vice .Virtue is always rewarded. But in “Dr. Faustus” we find evil spreading its powerful hands over goodness and then laying it down. Faustus follows the path told by evil angel and ultimately is ruined. He cannot repent and devil is successful in getting hold of his soul. This moral is negative which is not in accordance with morality plays. Moreover, in this play, Faustus plays pranks with pope and knight and makes fun of them. Unlike morality plays the butt of this low comedy is Pope instead of devil. Faustus is a character ideal to be the hero of a tragedy where man alone is the maker of his fate, good or bad. He falls not by the fickleness of fortune or the decree of fate, or because he has been corrupted by Mephistopheles, the agent of Lucifer; the devil, but because of his own will. Faustus, being a tragic hero was dominated by some uncontrollable passion or inordinate ambition. There is a conflict in his mind between good and evil. He falls from high to low and this degradation is clear in his soliloquy, when he says: “O soul, be changed into little water drops, and fall into ocean, never to be found!”Such a tragic hero cannot be the hero of a morality play. Thus we see that in spite of its entire links with medieval miracle plays or moralities, Dr. Faustus can never be treated wholly as a morality play. It is the greatest heroic tragedy before Shakespeare with its enormous stress on characterization and inner conflict in the soul of a towering personality. We may call this play the last of the Morality plays and the beginning of tragedy that was developed by Shakespeare. We may conclude in the words of a critic: “Dr. Faustus is both the consummation of the English Morality, tradition and the last and the finest of Marlowe’s heroic plays.
Paradise Lost(John Milton)Summary: Lines 27–722: Satan and Hell
Immediately after the prologue, Milton raises the question of how Adam and Eve’s disobedience occurred and explains that their actions were partly due to a serpent’s deception. This serpent is Satan, and the poem joins him and his followers in Hell, where they have just been cast after being defeated by God in Heaven.
Satan lies stunned beside his second-in-command, Beelzebub, in a lake of fire that gives off darkness instead of light. Breaking the awful silence, Satan bemoans their terrible position, but does not repent of his rebellion against God, suggesting that they might gather their forces for another attack. Beelzebub is doubtful; he now believes that God cannot be overpowered. Satan does not fully contradict this assessment, but suggests that they could at least pervert God’s good works to evil purposes. The two devils then rise up and, spreading their wings, fly over to the dry land next to the flaming lake. But they can undertake this action only because God has allowed them to loose their chains. All of the devils were formerly angels who chose to follow Satan in his rebellion, and God still intends to turn their evil deeds toward the good.
Once out of the lake, Satan becomes more optimistic about their situation. He calls the rest of the fallen angels, his legions, to join him on land. They immediately obey and, despite their wounds and suffering, fly up to gather on the plain. Milton lists some of the more notable of the angels whose names have been erased from the books of Heaven, noting that later, in the time of man, many of these devils come to be worshipped as gods.
Among these are Moloch, who is later known as a god requiring human sacrifices, and Belial, a lewd and lustful god. Still in war gear, these fallen angels have thousands of banners raised and their shields and spears in hand. Even in defeat, they are an awesome army to behold.
Satan’s unrepentant evil nature is unwavering. Even cast down in defeat, he does not consider changing his ways: he insists to his fellow devils that their delight will be in doing evil, not good. In particular, as he explains to Beelzebub, he wishes to pervert God’s will and find a way to make evil out of good. It is not easy for Satan to maintain this determination; the battle has just demonstrated God’s overwhelming power, and the devils could not even have lifted themselves off the lake of fire unless God had allowed it. God allows it precisely because he intends to turn their evil designs toward a greater good in the end. Satan’s envy of the Son’s chosen status led him to rebel and consequently to be condemned. His continued envy and search for freedom leads him to believe that he would rather be a king in Hell than a servant in Heaven. Satan’s pride has caused him to believe that his own free intellect is as great as God’s will. Satan remarks that the mind can make its own Hell out of Heaven, or in his case, its own Heaven out of Hell.
Satan addresses his comrades and acknowledges their shame in falling to the heavenly forces, but urges them to gather in order to consider whether another war is feasible. Instantly, the legions of devils dig into the bowels of the ground, unearthing gold and other minerals. With their inhuman powers they construct a great temple in a short time. It is called Pandemonium (which means “all the demons” in Greek), and the hundreds of thousands of demonic troops gather there to hold a summit. Being spirits, they can easily shrink from huge winged creatures to the smallest size. Compacting themselves, they enter Pandemonium, and the debate begins.
Analysis
Throughout the first two or three books of Paradise Lost, Satan seems as if he’s the hero of the poem. This is partly because the focus of the poem is all on him, but it is also because the first books establish his struggle—he finds himself defeated and banished from Heaven, and sets about establishing a new course for himself and those he leads. Typically, the hero or protagonist of any narrative, epic poem or otherwise, is a person who struggles to accomplish something. Milton plays against our expectations by spending the first quarter of his epic telling us about the antagonist rather than the protagonist, so that when we meet Adam and Eve, we will have a more profound sense of what they are up against. But even when the focus of the poem shifts to Adam and Eve, Satan remains the most active force in the story.
One important way in which the narrator develops our picture of Satan—and gives us the impression that he is a hero—is through epic similes, lengthy and developed comparisons that tell us how big and powerful Satan is. For example, when Satan is lying on the burning lake, Milton compares him to the titans who waged war upon Jove in Greek mythology. Then, at greater length, he compares him to a Leviathan, or whale, that is so huge that sailors mistake it for an island and fix their anchor to it. In other epics, these sorts of similes are used to establish the great size or strength of characters, and on the surface these similes seem to do the same thing. At the same time, however, the effect of these similes is to unsettle us, making us aware that we really do not know how big Satan is at all. No one knows how big the titans were, because they were defeated before the age of man. The image of the 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.
More than anything, the similes used to describe Satan make us aware of the fact that size is relative, and that we don’t know how big anything in Hell is—the burning lake, the hill, Pandemonium, etc. Milton drives this fact home at the end of Book I with a tautology: while most of the devils shrink in size to enter Pandemonium, the important ones sit “far within / And in their own dimensions like themselves” (I.792–793). In other words, they were however big they were, but we have no way of knowing how big that was. Finally, it is important to note that the first description of Satan’s size is the biggest we will ever see him. From that point on, Satan assumes many shapes and is compared to numerous creatures, but his size and stature steadily diminishes. The uncertainty created by these similes creates a sense of irony—perhaps Satan isn’t so great after all.
The devils in Paradise Lost are introduced to the story here in Book I in almost a parody of how Homer introduces great warriors in the Iliad. The irony of these descriptions lies in the fact that while these devils seem heroic and noteworthy in certain ways, they just lost the war in Heaven. As frightening and vividly presented as these creatures are, they did not succeed in killing a single angel.
In Book I, Milton presents Satan primarily as a military hero, and the council of devils as a council of war. In doing so, he makes Paradise Lost resonate with earlier epics, which all center around military heroes and their exploits. At the same time, Milton presents an implicit critique of a literary culture that glorifies war and warriors. Satan displays all of the virtues of a great warrior such as Achilles or Odysseus. He is courageous, undaunted, refusing to yield in the face of impossible odds, and able to stir his followers to follow him in brave and violent exploits. Milton is clearly aware of what he’s doing in making Satan somewhat appealing in the early chapters. By drawing us into sympathizing with and admiring Satan, Milton forces us to question why we admire martial prowess and pride in literary characters. Ultimately he attempts to show that the Christian virtues of obedience, humility, and forbearance are more important.
Satan lies stunned beside his second-in-command, Beelzebub, in a lake of fire that gives off darkness instead of light. Breaking the awful silence, Satan bemoans their terrible position, but does not repent of his rebellion against God, suggesting that they might gather their forces for another attack. Beelzebub is doubtful; he now believes that God cannot be overpowered. Satan does not fully contradict this assessment, but suggests that they could at least pervert God’s good works to evil purposes. The two devils then rise up and, spreading their wings, fly over to the dry land next to the flaming lake. But they can undertake this action only because God has allowed them to loose their chains. All of the devils were formerly angels who chose to follow Satan in his rebellion, and God still intends to turn their evil deeds toward the good.
Once out of the lake, Satan becomes more optimistic about their situation. He calls the rest of the fallen angels, his legions, to join him on land. They immediately obey and, despite their wounds and suffering, fly up to gather on the plain. Milton lists some of the more notable of the angels whose names have been erased from the books of Heaven, noting that later, in the time of man, many of these devils come to be worshipped as gods.
Among these are Moloch, who is later known as a god requiring human sacrifices, and Belial, a lewd and lustful god. Still in war gear, these fallen angels have thousands of banners raised and their shields and spears in hand. Even in defeat, they are an awesome army to behold.
Satan’s unrepentant evil nature is unwavering. Even cast down in defeat, he does not consider changing his ways: he insists to his fellow devils that their delight will be in doing evil, not good. In particular, as he explains to Beelzebub, he wishes to pervert God’s will and find a way to make evil out of good. It is not easy for Satan to maintain this determination; the battle has just demonstrated God’s overwhelming power, and the devils could not even have lifted themselves off the lake of fire unless God had allowed it. God allows it precisely because he intends to turn their evil designs toward a greater good in the end. Satan’s envy of the Son’s chosen status led him to rebel and consequently to be condemned. His continued envy and search for freedom leads him to believe that he would rather be a king in Hell than a servant in Heaven. Satan’s pride has caused him to believe that his own free intellect is as great as God’s will. Satan remarks that the mind can make its own Hell out of Heaven, or in his case, its own Heaven out of Hell.
Satan addresses his comrades and acknowledges their shame in falling to the heavenly forces, but urges them to gather in order to consider whether another war is feasible. Instantly, the legions of devils dig into the bowels of the ground, unearthing gold and other minerals. With their inhuman powers they construct a great temple in a short time. It is called Pandemonium (which means “all the demons” in Greek), and the hundreds of thousands of demonic troops gather there to hold a summit. Being spirits, they can easily shrink from huge winged creatures to the smallest size. Compacting themselves, they enter Pandemonium, and the debate begins.
Analysis
Throughout the first two or three books of Paradise Lost, Satan seems as if he’s the hero of the poem. This is partly because the focus of the poem is all on him, but it is also because the first books establish his struggle—he finds himself defeated and banished from Heaven, and sets about establishing a new course for himself and those he leads. Typically, the hero or protagonist of any narrative, epic poem or otherwise, is a person who struggles to accomplish something. Milton plays against our expectations by spending the first quarter of his epic telling us about the antagonist rather than the protagonist, so that when we meet Adam and Eve, we will have a more profound sense of what they are up against. But even when the focus of the poem shifts to Adam and Eve, Satan remains the most active force in the story.
One important way in which the narrator develops our picture of Satan—and gives us the impression that he is a hero—is through epic similes, lengthy and developed comparisons that tell us how big and powerful Satan is. For example, when Satan is lying on the burning lake, Milton compares him to the titans who waged war upon Jove in Greek mythology. Then, at greater length, he compares him to a Leviathan, or whale, that is so huge that sailors mistake it for an island and fix their anchor to it. In other epics, these sorts of similes are used to establish the great size or strength of characters, and on the surface these similes seem to do the same thing. At the same time, however, the effect of these similes is to unsettle us, making us aware that we really do not know how big Satan is at all. No one knows how big the titans were, because they were defeated before the age of man. The image of the 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.
More than anything, the similes used to describe Satan make us aware of the fact that size is relative, and that we don’t know how big anything in Hell is—the burning lake, the hill, Pandemonium, etc. Milton drives this fact home at the end of Book I with a tautology: while most of the devils shrink in size to enter Pandemonium, the important ones sit “far within / And in their own dimensions like themselves” (I.792–793). In other words, they were however big they were, but we have no way of knowing how big that was. Finally, it is important to note that the first description of Satan’s size is the biggest we will ever see him. From that point on, Satan assumes many shapes and is compared to numerous creatures, but his size and stature steadily diminishes. The uncertainty created by these similes creates a sense of irony—perhaps Satan isn’t so great after all.
The devils in Paradise Lost are introduced to the story here in Book I in almost a parody of how Homer introduces great warriors in the Iliad. The irony of these descriptions lies in the fact that while these devils seem heroic and noteworthy in certain ways, they just lost the war in Heaven. As frightening and vividly presented as these creatures are, they did not succeed in killing a single angel.
In Book I, Milton presents Satan primarily as a military hero, and the council of devils as a council of war. In doing so, he makes Paradise Lost resonate with earlier epics, which all center around military heroes and their exploits. At the same time, Milton presents an implicit critique of a literary culture that glorifies war and warriors. Satan displays all of the virtues of a great warrior such as Achilles or Odysseus. He is courageous, undaunted, refusing to yield in the face of impossible odds, and able to stir his followers to follow him in brave and violent exploits. Milton is clearly aware of what he’s doing in making Satan somewhat appealing in the early chapters. By drawing us into sympathizing with and admiring Satan, Milton forces us to question why we admire martial prowess and pride in literary characters. Ultimately he attempts to show that the Christian virtues of obedience, humility, and forbearance are more important.
Notes M.A English
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i am a student of M.A English and want to help to my dear students that wants to get in this regard. i can give you some notes that can give you help in your studies. you can get good marks and can get information about English literature.
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