There was so much to unpack in these books that I had a fairly difficult time picking just one thought to really explore in great depth, but I have to start off by saying that Milton is continuously blowing my mind. The attention to detail is astounding, especially considering that Milton was completely blind while writing this epic. He literally had it memorized and spoke it out loud verbatim to have it transcribed. I cannot wrap my mind around this concept in the slightest. However, that is not what we're here to talk about.
First of all, I have to say that reading about a blonde Adam and Eve really threw me for a loop, and Milton brings this detail into the spotlight on several occasions. Why was that a detail that he felt was important enough to mention multiple times? This was just a random thought of mine, but I hope at least one other person noticed this. I have never imagined Adam and Eve as being stereotypical pictures of a Western beauty standard before, so I was a little taken aback by this description of them. But that's beside the point.
The main point that I took away from this weekend's reading was that Satan is honestly a character that garners a lot of sympathy from me (which is really weird to actually say). In Book IV, Satan is incredibly vulnerable in regards to his situation, stating that "they little know / How dearly I abide that boast so vain, / Under what torments inwardly I groan / While they adore me on the throne of Hell / With diadem and scepter high advanced / The lower still I fall, only supreme / In misery. Such joy ambition finds." Satan has really put himself in a position that he cannot handle, and as much as I hate so say it, I kind of feel bad for him. I would be lying if I said I hadn't put myself in similar situations before. While I've never led a third of the angels in a direct rebellion against God and gotten them all exiled for eternity, I have definitely placed myself in sticky situations or found myself in a position where I was in charge of something that I knew I wasn't capable of doing well. This sounds awful, but I see so much of myself in Milton's characterization of Satan. It's making me all the more grateful that God has extended His grace towards me, because I am being shown over and over again that I am in desperate need of it.
the comments curse has befallen me, so I'm leaving them here :)
Breanna: Your post definitely did make sense, and I'm with you! Don't second guess yourself - you're comprehending more than you give yourself credit for. I'm glad that you talked about Abdiel. The lack of discussion surrounding him has been a little disappointing for me considering all that he represents, but I think you hit the nail on the head by saying that he is exactly why we shouldn't pity Satan.
Eliza: This was a perspective that I hadn't really considered previously, and it really piqued my interest! Honestly the passages with a lot of proper nouns in them tend to go way over my head, so I'm glad you're here to lead me to understanding them. This brought a whole new level of meaning to my understanding of this poem as a whole, and I greatly appreciate that.
First of all, I have to say that reading about a blonde Adam and Eve really threw me for a loop, and Milton brings this detail into the spotlight on several occasions. Why was that a detail that he felt was important enough to mention multiple times? This was just a random thought of mine, but I hope at least one other person noticed this. I have never imagined Adam and Eve as being stereotypical pictures of a Western beauty standard before, so I was a little taken aback by this description of them. But that's beside the point.
The main point that I took away from this weekend's reading was that Satan is honestly a character that garners a lot of sympathy from me (which is really weird to actually say). In Book IV, Satan is incredibly vulnerable in regards to his situation, stating that "they little know / How dearly I abide that boast so vain, / Under what torments inwardly I groan / While they adore me on the throne of Hell / With diadem and scepter high advanced / The lower still I fall, only supreme / In misery. Such joy ambition finds." Satan has really put himself in a position that he cannot handle, and as much as I hate so say it, I kind of feel bad for him. I would be lying if I said I hadn't put myself in similar situations before. While I've never led a third of the angels in a direct rebellion against God and gotten them all exiled for eternity, I have definitely placed myself in sticky situations or found myself in a position where I was in charge of something that I knew I wasn't capable of doing well. This sounds awful, but I see so much of myself in Milton's characterization of Satan. It's making me all the more grateful that God has extended His grace towards me, because I am being shown over and over again that I am in desperate need of it.
the comments curse has befallen me, so I'm leaving them here :)
Breanna: Your post definitely did make sense, and I'm with you! Don't second guess yourself - you're comprehending more than you give yourself credit for. I'm glad that you talked about Abdiel. The lack of discussion surrounding him has been a little disappointing for me considering all that he represents, but I think you hit the nail on the head by saying that he is exactly why we shouldn't pity Satan.
Eliza: This was a perspective that I hadn't really considered previously, and it really piqued my interest! Honestly the passages with a lot of proper nouns in them tend to go way over my head, so I'm glad you're here to lead me to understanding them. This brought a whole new level of meaning to my understanding of this poem as a whole, and I greatly appreciate that.
Comments
Since Milton clearly makes Satan such a pitiable character, bordering on tragic hero even, it makes me wonder if he saw any of himself in him. We know that Milton completely supported Cromwell's revolution against the king. But what if, like Satan, he regretted it sometimes? They say you should 'write what you know.' What if that's what Milton did?