In Book 9 of Milton’s Paradise Lost, we, of course, see the fall of man. However, before Satan takes on the disguise of the serpent and tempts Eve to sin, we watch him hesitate a little bit. What are some evidences from the text that point to Satan’s jealousy when looking on the new world he can’t experience? Do you think Milton is allowing us yet another opportunity to empathize with Satan, and if so, is this an expression of Milton’s own doubts about Christianity? Or are we being led to identify with Satan so that we might realize our own sinful nature?
ENGL 201 | British Literature to 1800
Myra Seaman | Fall 2012
I don’t think that Satan is hesitating anymore, exactly, but more so expressing regret for the beauty that he could be enjoying had he not been so determined to ruin humankind. Despite the fact that his decision to tempt Eve is final, he realizes that it would have been better to remain good. I believe Milton uses Satan’s struggle as a cautionary tale against wallowing in our own despair. Satan set out to create a heaven out of Hell, but ended up creating a Hell where there could have been a Heaven. He looks around at the beauty of the Earth and realizes that he could be enjoying it, but he has instead allowed his mind to create a prison for himself. “But the hot Hell that always in him burns,/Though in mid Heav’n, soon ended his delight,/And tortures him now more, the more he sees/Of Pleasure, not for him ordained….” (Book IX, lines 467-470)
I agree with Sarah; Satan isn’t really hesitating, he just gets lost in admiration and awe of God’s works and he wishes that he could be a part of that world again. He says starting at line 114, “With what delight could I have walked thee round,/If I could joy in aught…” This again allows us to sympathize with Satan up until the point where he again denies God’s saving grace and vows to torment the human race out of pleasure. However, I think Milton also used Satan’s jealousy to make us 1)appreciate God and his creation(s) 2) aware of what it looks and feels like to turn God away–jealousy, regret, remorse, etc. 3) understand why Satan wants to cause us to suffer. He’s just jealous.
Satan admires G-ds work before tempting Eve. I think this can definitely be seen as hesitation. Why admire and long for something you ultimately want to destroy? The grief he feels about not being able to be a part of such a beautiful earth leads him to be jealous of Adam and Eve. I believe it’s this grief that leads Satan to carry out creating a hell. I think this hesitation by Satan is to remind us that, Satan had a choice but chose to sin instead. This also emphasizes why jealousy is a sin.
I believe this book shows us more of Satan’s inability to change his outlook on his situation, and continued betrayal of God. I think Satan sees himself as too far gone to turn around. In line 119: “the more I see/pleasures about me, so
much more I feel/torment within me”.
I think this shows Satan’s regret for what he lost and doesn’t believe he can ever again achieve. In fact, he says quite clearly that he makes no
Plan to return to paradise through repentance, but through his own evil plan, in lime 125:
“But neither here I seek, no nor in Heaven/to dwell, unless by mastering Heaven’s supreme.”
Which I think means gaining control over Adam and Eve, or else making God submit to his rule in heaven. Either way, Satan is the evil mastermind, making his own end through violence and deceit.
I do think Milton has Satan hesitate to destroy mankind so that we may empathize with him and also so that we may realize our own sinful nature through Satan’s acts. Like Sarah has mentioned, Satan looks around and sees how beautiful the earth is and it is clear that he has always regretted turning away from God. Although his acts are ultimately evil, it is hard not to feel for the internal pain and suffering caused by his own ego. His pride prevents him from ever admitting his wrongdoings – and I think this is where Milton wants us to see ourselves in Satan. Obviously none of us have ever waged our pride on such universally destructive decisions as Satan in Paradise Lost, but all of us have probably waged our pride on something. Sometimes our ego gets in the way of admitting that we are wrong and this can cause many bad things to happen and can drastically take toll on our own mental wellbeing. This is what happens to Satan. His pride overtakes his decision making ability, consumes his reality and as a result he becomes permanently trapped in his own mind, which as Sarah points out, acts as his own prison. Or even worse, his own hell.
I believe that Satan takes on the disguise of the serpent and tempts Eve to sin, but he hesitates a little bit because he is almost feeling guilty for trying to make others sin. Satan is jealous for not being able to experience the new world because he can’t. I believe this is a time that Milton uses for the readers to empathize with Satan, because we see that pause and little bit of goodness which gives the reader hope for him to become good again. I think this is a little of expression of Milton’s own doubts about Christianity because he is known for putting his beliefs in his writing, and that uncertainty shows that he is maybe not fully convinced.
I think this is an attempt by Milton to help show that even those that are seen as most evil and apart from God still have some sense of him inside themselves. To sin against God is, as we have discussed, the ultimate betrayal. When we see Satan take on the form of the snake and look upon the earth he literally says ” how to like Heav’n, if not preferred/ More justly, seat worthier of gods,” showing a deep admiration and almost longing for such a place. We have to also note that this is the earth before the fall of man so it is as God created it, pure and free from Satan’s influence. When we do see him tempt Eve and cause her to take fruit form the Tree of Knowledge we see it as a culmination of Satan’s spite and hatred towards god even though he seemingly longs for something better, a regret of sorts for rebelling.
While everyone has made valid points, I think I have to agree the most with what Nicholas has said. When I first read this scene, I interpreted it in about three different ways.
I think Satan’s pausing to look around at all of God’s creation before tempting Eve can be viewed as both an appreciation for God and also a pause and/or hesitation for his actions, in fact, I think the two could go hand in hand together. I don’t think it was supposed to be one thing over the other. The scene that this depicts is one that is very powerful and charged with emotion…Satan is about to destroy all of mankind! The fact that he pauses I think serves to show a number of things. One, to show again that Satan is a fallen angel and to maybe draw on that side of him that might still have somewhat of a moral conscious left. Two, to symbolize to the reader God’s goodness and to show how one might end up if they don’t choose the path of God. Three, it’s really solidifying all of Satan’s choices and it kind of symbolizes the death of his anglicism. Overall though, I think the main message of this scene is to emphasize the power of God.
I think Milton is portraying Satan as being jealous of the new world he can’t experience as yet another way to empathize with Satan and thus realize our own sinful nature. Milton has done this throughout the entire story and I think he is doing it again here. The more we empathize with Satan, the more we realize how much we need to follow God and stray away from the ways of evil. It is especially pertinent because sense we are so close with evil, so related, that we take extreme caution and make conscious decisions to stray away from such evil. I think that’s what Milton is trying to do here: persuade people more into Christianity rather than away from it.