Satan’s Physical Appearance in Paradise Lost
Book I of Paradise Lost by John Milton reflects and parallels the Biblical story of Satan’s fall when he became too proud and thought of himself higher than God. This epic poem goes into detail on Satan’s attitude and thoughts of his fall. In the beginning of the poem Satan is chained and captive in the Lake of Fire and it is only through God’s allowance that Satan can be free and devise plans. As the poem continues Satan goes through the process of acceptance of this state he is in and plans a way to take revenge on what God has done to him; this revenge takes place by interrupting the good that God does. He build his army of fallen angels and meets in the enormous palace which is appropriately called Pandemonium, this is where the planning and deception takes place, where he convinces the fallen angels that another war is feasible and potential victory. In Milton’s Paradise Lost Satan seems to undergo various changes throughout the poem from seeming small at the beginning to very large at the end. Milton writes in a way that shows there is a direct relation of Satan’s size to his power; however, no matter how large Satan gets, he will always be God’s captive.
In the beginning of Milton’s poem, Satan seems very small as he lays captive in the fiery lake next to his accomplice in crime, Beelzebub. Milton’s exceptional word usage throughout the poem describes Satan’s state of mind and provides great imagery. First of all, Satan seems very small in the beginning as he is described as being “in adamantine chains and penal fire/ who durst defy th’ Omnipotent arms” (Milton I. 48-49). The word adamantine originates from something, in this case the chains, being fabricated by adamant; adamant is a mythological hard substance. In these lines Satan is very small and is directly related to his power, in that he is unable to do anything as he in chained in these extremely hard chains. The lines go on to state that no one can defy God’s omnipotent arms which further decreases
In the beginning of Milton’s poem, Satan seems very small as he lays captive in the fiery lake next to his accomplice in crime, Beelzebub. Milton’s exceptional word usage throughout the poem describes Satan’s state of mind and provides great imagery. First of all, Satan seems very small in the beginning as he is described as being “in adamantine chains and penal fire/ who durst defy th’ Omnipotent arms” (Milton I. 48-49). The word adamantine originates from something, in this case the chains, being fabricated by adamant; adamant is a mythological hard substance. In these lines Satan is very small and is directly related to his power, in that he is unable to do anything as he in chained in these extremely hard chains. The lines go on to state that no one can defy God’s omnipotent arms which further decreases
Cited: Milton, John. Paradise lost. Book 1. London: E. Stock, 1674.