Poetry: Paradise Lost

Overview
John Milton's Paradise Lost (1667) is an epic blank-verse poem that retells the biblical story of the Fall of Man on a cosmic scale. It opens after Satan and his followers have been cast out of Heaven and traces their plotting in Hell, their journey to Earth, and the subsequent temptation and disobedience of Adam and Eve. The narrative intertwines theological argument, political imagery, and mythic invention to explore how sin and redemption enter the created order.
Milton frames the tale with a grand invocation and declares his purpose to "justify the ways of God to men," setting up a theological meditation as much as a narrative drama. The poem presents multiple perspectives, Satan's defiance, God's providence, and humanity's vulnerability, allowing readers to witness the moral and metaphysical stakes of the first transgression.

Plot Summary
Paradise Lost begins in medias res with Satan and his fallen angels awakening in Hell after their failed rebellion. Satan rallies his followers, justifies his revolt with speeches of liberty, and plans to corrupt God's new creation. A council in Hell and a daring journey through Chaos follow, culminating in Satan's arrival in the Garden of Eden.
On Earth, Adam and Eve live in an idyllic innocence under God's care, instructed to obey but given freedom to choose. Satan, disguising himself, enters Eden and first tempts Eve by sowing doubt and curiosity, then succeeds by appealing to her desire for knowledge and equality. Adam, out of love and solidarity, eats the forbidden fruit as well. God pronounces judgment, and though the couple must leave Eden, the poem ends with a glimpse of hope: the promise of eventual redemption through a coming Redeemer.

Major Themes
Free will and predestination are central tensions, as Milton probes how human freedom can coexist with divine omniscience. Obedience and rebellion are shown as moral acts with cosmic consequences, and the poem interrogates whether authority can be legitimate without consent. Milton also examines the psychology of pride, ambition, and self-deception, especially through Satan's eloquent but corrupting rhetoric.
The nature of knowledge, the relationship between reason and desire, and the dynamics of love and responsibility within the first human marriage are recurring preoccupations. Milton stages the Fall not simply as a moral failure but as an event with metaphysical and political resonance, where individual choices ripple through heaven and earth.

Style and Structure
Written in unrhymed iambic pentameter, Paradise Lost adapts classical epic conventions to a Christian narrative. Milton employs lofty diction, extended similes, and dense, periodic sentences that create a stately, often ornate cadence. The poem's narrative shifts between panoramic cosmological scenes and intimate psychological moments, using sustained blank verse to hold those scales together.
Milton's use of epic similes, catalogues, and invocations evokes Homer and Virgil, while Christian theology and Biblical sensibility reconfigure those models. The language can be syntactically complex and allusive, rewarding close reading while amplifying the poem's meditative and argumentative thrust.

Characterization and Controversy
Satan is one of the poem's most magnetic figures, given memorable speeches and complex motives that have prompted centuries of debate about whether he is an antihero. Adam and Eve are drawn with moral nuance: Adam as reflective and responsible, Eve as curious and persuasive, their relationship dramatizing questions of authority, mutual affection, and culpability.
Milton's theological commitments, Reformation-era concerns about authority, liberty, and salvation, pervade the character portrayals and have sparked ongoing critical discussion about gender, politics, and the poet's own ideological stance.

Legacy
Paradise Lost has exerted profound influence on English literature, shaping conceptions of epic, heroism, and tragic grandeur. Its linguistic richness and moral seriousness have inspired writers, artists, and theologians, while debates over its depiction of Satan, its portrayal of Eve, and its theological arguments continue to animate scholarship. The poem endures as a towering exploration of human freedom, responsibility, and the mysteries of divine justice.