Satan Flashcards
Introduction
-Paradise Lost (1667) presents a profoundly ambitious theological epic that seeks, in Milton’s words, “to justify the ways of God to men”. Central to this justification is the figure of Satan, who emerges as both the initiator of mankind’s fall and the embodiment of fallen reason, corrupted will, and rhetorical seduction.
-in the Augustinian-Puritan framework underpinning Milton’s theology, Satan is not an autonomous evil but a once-glorious being whose prideful rejection of divine hierarchy perverts the very freedom God grants him
-Satan operates in tension between heroic grandeur and moral decay. He is introduced with a Homeric pathos- resolute, eloquent, and tragic- yet his trajectory is one of progressive degeneration, both physical and psychological.
-while classical epics frae the hero’s hamartia as a tragic flaw that leads to catharsis and eventual agnorisis, satan’s flaw- pride- yields no such redemption. Instead, he spirals into self-deception, performative rhetoric, and bodily grotesquery, culminating in his literal transformation into a serpent.
1: Satan’s initial posture- prideful defiance and the illusion of heroism
Quotes and analysis
-satan in the early books presents a paradoxical image: rhetorically compelling and politically revolutionary, yet spiritually hollow and theologically corrupted. He is introduced not just as antagonist, but as a perverted mirror of the classical tragic hero- endowed with pathos agency and rhetorical prowess, but entirely devoid of agnorisis (recognition of fault or redemption)
”in meditated fraud and malice, bent/ On man’s destruction, maugre what might happen/ Of heavier on himself, fearless returned”
In this line encapsulates his self-destructive resolve- Satan does not act blindly but knowingly, with full awareness that his actions will intensify his damnation. Milton thus constructs Satan as a perverter of providence, who uses language as his chief weapon, much like the tyrants Milton critiques in Eikonoklastes. Satan’s ”bent” toward destruction becomes not just physical but moral: he is the embodiment of will twisted by revenge
-the phrase ”Meditated fraud” positions him as antithetical to Milton’s poetic ethic, which he defines as ”unpremeditated verse”- divinely inspired and free from human cunning, Satan’s deliberation marks him as fallen in thought before deed, a central component of Milton’s conception of sin
1:Satan’s initial posture- prideful defiance and the illusion of heroism
Context and critic
CONTEXT: in eikonoklastes, Milton denounces Charles I as a monarch who overstepped God’s ordained power-Satan, likewise, refuses divine hierarchy and becomes a self-crowned king of ruin. His name in hebrew “satan” means “adversary” and in the bible as “arch-enemy”, underscores his identuty as one who lives through opposition not creation.
The depiction of Satan is deeply engaged with contemporary political allegory. As Charles I is presented as a tyrant who seeks to elevate himself above divine authority, satan mirrors this pattern via his rebellion and self-coronation in Hell. Through such parallels, Satan becomes not only a theological adversary, but a cipher for political despotism and rhetorical manipulation, warning against the abuse of freedom, language and power.
-Satan’s resemblance to Vindice in The Revenger’s Tragedy is also apt. Like vindice, he is motivated not by justice but by vengeance for vengeance’s sake, collapsing justice into obsession. However, unlike the tragic revenger, Satan never seeks redemption or moral resolution- he is eternally fixed in defiance
CRITIC: William Blake famously wrote that “Milton was of the Devil’s party without knowing it”. This stems from Satan’s heroic posture in Books 1 and 2 where he commands sympathy, but this is a rhetorical trap- Milton uses Satan’s charisma to show the dangerous appeal of rebellion when divorced from virtue
Milton does know that Satan’s allure- his goal is not to glorify rebellion but to show how persuasive sin can appear when couched in lofty rhetoric and political grievance.
2: Satan’s cosmic descent- degeneration in mind, body and space
Quotes and analysis
-Milton presents Satan’s fall as not only theological, but ontological and spatial- his rebellion results in increasing psychological disintegration and physical grotesquery, reflecting Milton’s animate materialist philosophy where soul and body decay in tandem.
*”the space of seven continued nights he rode/ With Darkness […] he circled”**
The dark parody of seven days of Creation places Satan as the anti-creator, whose journey brings not order but entropy. He does not illuminate; he blinds. Milton’s use of Galilean cosmology- referencing telescope insights into the vast, cold universe- places Satan in the outer void, both physically and metaphysically removed from god
-”o foul descent” - this exclamation encapsulates the tragedy of Satan: a being of once ineffable beauty now in freefall, both morally and cosmologically. His fall is a product of his own choosing, reflecting Augustine’s definition of evil as the privato boni- a privation of the good, a will that has turned away from God.
-*”the serpent sleeping, in whose mazy folds/ to hide me, and the dark intent i bring”** this line is densely symbolic. The “mazy folds” of the serpent reflects Satan’s circular, self-referential logic- his thoughts spiral, never progressing.
This echos the book 2’s fallen angel in ”fixed fate, free will, foreknowledge absolute/ and found no end , in wandering maze lost”. The maze becomes an emblem of sinful confusion, a mind cut off from divine order, where rhetoric replaces truth and movement replaces progress. Satan’s thoughts “go round in a rut”- he is both physically and cognitively stagnant caught in the inertia of rebellion
2: Satan’s cosmic descent- degeneration in mind, body and space
Critic and context
CONTEXT: ”squat toad” Book 4: this grotesque transformation signifies the degeneration of the soul refelcted in the body- Milton literalises moral decay. The toad is low, earthly and slimy- a visual antithesis to angelic sublimity
“Python”: a classical allusion to Ovid’s metamorphoses, the python was a creature slain by apollo- Milton uses this myth to align Satan with superstition and falsity. As a python, satan embodies error, the rejection of divine truth in favour of illusion
Satan’s degeneration is paralleled by his followers. In Book 2, they remain stuck in philosophical tautologies- unable to understand fate or freedom. Their rebellion has unmoored from logic, mirroring Satan’s own descent into self-parody and delusion
CRITIC: Percy Shelley calls Satan as “the hero of Paradise lost” admiring his defiance and passionate will. But this defiance becomes tragic when it produces only more fall, not freedom. Milton reveals that the desire to “reign in hell” leads not to liberty, but to stasis and deformity.
Shelley’s reading captures Satan’s early energy, but overlooks how Milton erodes that grandeur- satan’s physical form, like his arguments, collapses into grotesque parody by book 9 and 10
3:satan’s seduction of eve- language as a vehicle for sin
Analysis and quotes
-satan’s ultimate act of corruption occurs through language- not violence. Milton uses this moment to warn of the dangers of rhetoric divorced from truth, echoing distrust of manipulative oratory
*”Curled many a wanton wreath in sight of Eve, to lure her eye”. This seduction begins not with speech but with visual allure. Satan uses Eve’s appreciation of natural beauty- her gift for tending to Eden- as a tool against her. The word “wreath” connotes both nature and artifice- satan appropriates the Edenic for his own ends, embodying sin’s parasitic nature
-”mark his play”- eve becomes the spectator in a performance of seduction. The serpent becomes a sexualised performer, turning her into both object and audience. The moment becomes laced with erotic overtones, linking sin to sensuality and haze to temptation
-”with serpent tongue/ Organic or impulse of vocal air,/ His fraudulent temptation thus began” Milton foregrounds Satan’s artificiality here- his voice is not natural, but manufactured, a deceptive “impulse of vocal air”. His tongue both serpentine and rhetorical- deadly through persuasion, not bite. This again contrasts with Milton’s “unpremeditated verse”
-”and gaze and worship thee of right declared/ sovereign of creatures, universal dame”. Satan;s flattery is extreme- he defies Eve, declaring her “sovereign”. This inverts the divine hierarchy and appeals to Eve’s vanity and desire for autonomy. He seduces her not just physically, but theologically- suggesting she deserves worship, not God
-”hovering and blazing with delusive light/ Misleads th’amazed wanderer from his way” this is a powerful image of false enlightenment. Satan becomes a “will o’the-wisp”, luring travellers into swamps with phantasmal light. His is not the illumination of truth, but of confusion and illusion. The light he offers dazzles but does not guide-it is the aesthetic of sin
3: Satan’s seduction of eve- language as a vehicle for sin
Critic and context
CRITIC: Stanley Fish asserts that “Milton means for us to be seduced by Satan”. This is a deliberate strategy: by making Satan persuasive, Milton implicates the reader in the process of temptation. We are meant to feel the allure of his rhetoric, just as Eve does.
But Milton’s structure ensures we ultimately see through Satan. His seduction is exposed and calculated- Eve is “his purposed prey”. The language confirms that Satan is a hunter, not a lover- his goal is destruction, not enlightenment.
Conclusion
-ultimately, Satan functions as a morally inverted epic figure- his ambition, eloquence and resolve are all fatally undermined by his inability to repent his dislocation from grace, and his progressive deformation. Through Satan, Milton explores how sin begins in the will, expresses itself through rhetoric and culminates in both spiritual and physical degeneration
-Book 10 ”Him by fraud i have seduced […] with an apple”. This is the only moment milton uses “apple”- a loaded term, often associated with superficial temptation and fairytale imagery. By using this term only in Satan’s voice, Milton implies that Satan’s victory is as shallow as his language- fruitful only in its rot
-Book 10 ”enter now into full bliss”. Satan’s declaration of “bliss” is immediately undercut. The “s” sounds evoke a hissing chorus- the sibilant mockery of the fallen angels who have become literal snakes. Bliss becomes a cacophony of animal sounds, a parody of harmony
-he is converted into a python and falls prone. His final metamorphosis is complete- he is now wholly serpentine, having lost the last remnants of angelic form. He is debased to his own illusion, crushed under the weight of his own rhetorical deceit.
