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In Paradisum Amissam Summi Poetæ

JOHANNIS MILTONI

Qui legis Amissam Paradisum, grandia magni Carmina Miltoni, quid nisi cuncta legis?

Res cunctas, & cunctarum primordia rerum, Et fata, & fines continet iste liber.

Intima panduntur magni penetralia mundi, Scribitur & toto quicquid in Orbe latet.

Terræque, tractusque maris, cœlumque profundum Sulphureumque Erebi, flammivomumque specus.

Quæque colunt terras, Portumque & Tartara cæca, Quæque colunt summi lucida regna Poli.

Et quodcunque ullis conclusum est finibus usquam, Et sine fine Chaos, & sine fine Deus:

Et sine fine magis, si quid magis est sine fine, In Christo erga homines conciliatus amor.

Hæc qui speraret quis crederet esse futurum? Et tamen hæc hodie terra Britanna legit.

O quantos in bella Duces! quæ protulit arma! Quæ canit, & quanta prælia dira tuba.

Cœlestes acies! atque in certamine Cœlum! Et quæ Cœlestes pugna deceret agros!

Quantus in ætheriis tollit se Lucifer armis! Atque ipso graditur vix Michaele minor!

Quantis, & quam funestis concurritur iris Dum ferus hic stellas protegit, ille rapit!

Dum vulsos Montes ceu Tela reciproca torquent, Et non mortali desuper igne pluunt:

Stat dubius cui se parti concedat Olympus, Et metuit pugnæ non superesse suæ.

At simul in cœlis Messiæ insignia fulgent, Et currus animes, armaque digna Deo,

Horrendumque rotæ strident, & sæva rotarum Erumpunt torvis fulgura luminibus,

Et flammæ vibrant, & vera tonitrua rauco Admistis flammis insonuere Polo:

Excidit attonitis mens omnis, & impetus omnis Et cassis dextris irrita Tela cadunt.

Ad pœnas fugiunt, & ceu foret Orcus asylum Infernis certant condere se tenebris.

Cedite Romani Scriptores, cedite Graii Et quos fama recens vel celebravit anus.

Hæc quicunque leget tantum cecinesse putabit Mæonidem ranas, Virgilium culices.

S.B. M.D.

On the Paradise Lost of the most excellent poet, John Milton

You who read Paradise Lost, the sublime poem of the great Milton, what do you read but the story of all things. That book contains all things and the origin of all things, and their destinies and final ends. The innermost recesses of the great universe are thrown open, and whatever lies hidden in all the world is described: the land and the expanse of the sea and the vast height of heaven and the sulphurous, flame- vomiting den of Erebus; all that dwell on earth and in the sea and in dark Tartarus, and all that dwell in the bright realms of the highest heaven; whatever is contained anywhere within any boundaries, as well as boundless Chaos and the infinite God, and even more limitless, if there is anything more without limit, the reconciling love toward mankind in Christ. Who that had hoped for such a poem could have believed it would come to be? And yet today the land of Britain reads this poem. O what leaders in war? what deeds of arms? What dreadful battles does he sing on the war-trumpet? Celestial battles and Heaven itself at war! And fighting that is fitting for the fields of Heaven! How great Lucifer rises up in his celestial armor! And strides forth scarce inferior to Michael himself ! With what great and deadly anger is the battle joined, when one fiercely defends and the other assaults the stars! While they fling the uprooted mountains at each other as missiles and rain down inhuman fire from above, Olympus waits, doubtful as to which side it must yield, and fears that it may not survive its own battles. But soon as the standards of Messiah shine forth in the heavens and his living chariot and arms worthy of God, and soon as the wheels grate horribly and the fierce lightnings of the wheels burst forth from the grim eyes, and the flames flash and real thunder with intermixed fires resounds through the clangorous sky, all courage and all fighting depart from his awestruck foes and their

6 In Paradisum Amissam Summi Poetæ

42. Homer (Maeonides) was wrongly thought to have written the Batrachomyomachia (“Battle of the Frogs and Mice”); Virgil wrote a comic poem, Culex (“Gnat”).

S.B. is Samuel Barrow, an eminent London physician and friend of Milton. He had been chief physician to Monk’s army in Scotland and one of his confidential advisers; he then became physician in ordinary to Charles II. The poem appeared first in the 1674 edition.

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useless weapons fall from their feeble hands. They flee to their punishments and, as if Orcus were a refuge, they struggle to hide themselves in infernal darkness. Yield, writers of Rome, yield, writers of Greece and all those whom ancient or modern fame has celebrated. Whoever will read this poem will think Homer sang only of frogs, Virgil only of gnats.

On Paradise Lost

When I beheld the Poet blind, yet bold, In slender Book his vast Design unfold, Messiah Crown’d, Gods Reconcil’d Decree, Rebelling Angels, the Forbidden Tree, Heav’n, Hell, Earth, Chaos, All; the Argument Held me a while misdoubting his Intent, That he would ruine (for I saw him strong) The sacred Truths to Fable and old Song (So Sampson groap’d the Temples Posts in spight) The World o’rewhelming to revenge his sight.

Yet as I read, soon growing less severe, I lik’d his Project, the success did fear; Through that wide Field how he his way should find O’re which lame Faith leads Understanding blind; Lest he perplex’d the things he would explain, And what was easie he should render vain.

Or if a Work so infinite he spann’d Jealous I was that some less skilful hand (Such as disquiet always what is well, And by ill imitating would excell) Might hence presume the whole Creations day To change in Scenes, and show it in a Play.

Pardon me, Mighty Poet, nor despise My causeless, yet not impious, surmise. But I am now convinc’d, and none will dare Within thy Labours to pretend a share. Thou hast not miss’d one thought that could be fit, And all that was improper dost omit: So that no room is here for Writers left, But to detect their Ignorance or Theft.

That Majesty which through thy Work doth Reign Draws the Devout, deterring the Profane. And things divine thou treatst of in such state As them preserves, and thee, inviolate. At once delight and horrour on us seise, Thou singst with so much gravity and ease;

18–22. The reference is to Dryden, who sought and received Milton’s permission to turn Paradise Lost into an opera/play, in rhymed couplets. It was published in 1677 as The State of Innocence, but never performed.

On Paradise Lost 9

And above humane flight dost soar aloft With Plume so strong, so equal, and so soft. The Bird nam’d from that Paradise you sing So never flaggs, but always keeps on Wing.

Where couldst thou words of such a compass find? Whence furnish such a vast expence of mind? Just Heav’n thee like Tiresias to requite Rewards with Prophesie thy loss of sight.

Well mightst thou scorn thy Readers to allure With tinkling Rhime, of thy own sense secure; While the Town-Bayes writes all the while and spells, And like a Pack-horse tires without his Bells: Their Fancies like our Bushy-points appear, The Poets tag them, we for fashion wear. I too transported by the Mode offend, And while I meant to Praise thee must Commend. Thy Verse created like thy Theme sublime, In Number, Weight, and Measure, needs not Rhime.

A.M.

39–40. Birds of Paradise were popularly believed to have no feet, and therefore to be always in flight. 43 Tiresias. Blind Theban seer prominent in the mythical history of Greece. 47–50. Marvell satirizes the fashion for rhyme which Dryden advanced through his own poems and plays

and vigorously defended in his essay Of Dramatick Poesie (1667). 47. In Buckingham’s play The Rehearsal, Dryden was satirized as “Bayes,” referring to his ambition to wear

the laurel crown (from the bay/laurel tree) of the designated Poet Laureate. 49 Bushy-points. The tassels on hose fastenings “tagged” with bits of metal at the ends. Marvell compares

the constraints of rhyme to that foppish fashion, as Milton himself did when he gave Dryden permission to “Tagg my Points.”

A.M. is Milton’s friend, the poet Andrew Marvell, who served with him for a time in the Office of the Secretary for Foreign Tongues under Oliver Cromwell, and who was reportedly instrumental after the Restoration in helping Milton gain pardon for supporting the regicide and republic. This poem appeared first in the 1674 edition and again in the posthumous collected edition of Marvell’s poems, Miscellaneous Poems, 1681.

THE VERSE

The Measure is English Heroic Verse without Rime, as that of Homer in Greek, and Virgil in Latin; Rime being no necessary Adjunct or true Ornament of Poem or good Verse, in longer Works especially, but the Invention of a barbarous Age, to set off wretched matter and lame Meeter; grac’t indeed since by the use of some famous modern Poets, carried away by Custom, but much to thir own vexation, hindrance, and constraint to express many things otherwise, and for the most part worse then else they would have exprest them. Not without cause therefore some both Italian, and Spanish Poets of prime note have rejected Rime both in longer and shorter Works, as have also long since our best English Tragedies, as a thing of itself, to all judicious ears, triveal and of no true musical delight; which consists onely in apt Numbers, fit quantity of Syllables, and the sense variously drawn out from one Verse into another, not in the jingling sound of like endings, a fault avoyded by the learned Ancients both in Poetry and all good Oratory. This neglect then of Rime so little is to be taken for a defect, though it may seem so perhaps to vulgar Readers, that it rather is to be esteem’d an example set, the first in English, of ancient liberty recover’d to Heroic Poem from the troublesom and modern bondage of Rimeing.

In the 1668 and 1669 reissues of the 1667 edition, Samuel Simmons explained in a brief address, “The Printer to the Reader,” that he had elicited from Milton the arguments to the several books and this note on the verse: “Courteous Reader, there was no Argument at first intended to the Book, but for the satisfaction of many that have desired it, I have procur’d it, and withall a reason of that which stumbled many others, why the Poem Rimes not.”

3 barbarous Age. The Middle Ages, following the fall of Rome and the demise of classical culture. 4–5 famous modern Poets. Ariosto, Tasso, and Spenser used rhymed stanzas in their heroic poems. 8. Spanish poetry is usually rhymed, but unrhymed verse was used by Joan Boscà Almugaver in Leandro (1543)

and by Garcilaso de la Vega. Among Italian examples, Milton probably knew Torquato Tasso’s hexam- eron, Il Mondo Creato (written 1592–4).

9 best English Tragedies. Shakespeare chiefly, but also Marlowe. 10 apt Numbers. Appropriate rhythm. 11 quantity. Alludes to Greek and Latin quantitative meter, which Milton does not imitate; his direct ref-

erence is probably to the number of syllables in the poetic line, e.g., ten (usually) for his own iambic pentameter lines.

15–16. The charged language – “ancient liberty,” “modern bondage” – associates the Restoration aesthetic norm of rhymed verse with Stuart political tyranny and aligns classical and Elizabethan unrhymed poetry, and Milton’s own blank verse, with republican liberty.

BOOK 1 THE ARGUMENT

This first Book proposes, first in brief, the whole Subject, Mans disobedience, and the loss thereupon of Paradise wherein he was plac’t: Then touches the prime cause of his fall, the Serpent, or rather Satan in the Serpent; who revolting from God, and drawing to his side many Legions of Angels, was by the command of God driven out of Heaven with all his Crew into the great Deep. Which action past over, the Poem hasts into the midst of things, presenting Satan with his Angels now fallen into Hell, describ’d here, not in the Center ( for Heaven and Earth may be suppos’d as yet not made, certainly not yet accurst) but in a place of utter darkness, fitliest call’d Chaos: Here Satan with his Angels lying on the burning Lake, thunder-struck and astonisht, after a certain space recovers, as from confusion, calls up him who next in Order and Dignity lay by him; they confer of thir miserable fall. Satan awakens all his Legions, who lay till then in the same manner confounded; They rise, thir Numbers, array of Battel, thir chief Leaders nam’d, according to the Idols known afterwards in Canaan and the Countries adjoyning. To these Satan directs his Speech, comforts them with hope yet of regaining Heaven, but tells them lastly of a new World and new kind of Creature to be created, according to an ancient Prophesie or report in Heaven; for that Angels were long before this visible Creation, was the opinion of many ancient Fathers. To find out the truth of this Prophesie, and what to determin thereon he refers to a full Councel. What his Associates thence attempt. Pandemonium the Palace of Satan rises, suddenly built out of the Deep: The infernal Peers there sit in Councel.

Of Mans First Disobedience, and the Fruit Of that Forbidden Tree, whose mortal tast Brought Death into the World, and all our woe, With loss of Eden, till one greater Man Restore us, and regain the blissful Seat, Sing Heav’nly Muse, that on the secret top Of Oreb, or of Sinai, didst inspire

5–6. According to Horace, the epic poet should begin in medias res. 7. Center. Hell was not, as some thought, in the center of the earth. 17. Fathers. Church Fathers writing in the early Christian centuries, e.g., Jerome, Origen, Basil, Chrysostom,

Gregory of Nazianzen. See Milton’s Christian Doctrine, 1.7.

1–26. The first Proem contains the epic statement of theme (1–5) and the invocation. 4. Christ, the second Adam. 6. See 7.1 and note. Urania, the Greek Muse of astronomy, had been made into the Muse of Christian

poetry by Du Bartas and other religious poets. Here she is identified as the Muse that inspired biblical prophet-poets.

That Shepherd, who first taught the chosen Seed, In the Beginning how the Heav’ns and Earth Rose out of Chaos: Or if Sion Hill Delight thee more, and Siloa’s Brook that flow’d Fast by the Oracle of God; I thence Invoke thy aid to my adventrous Song, That with no middle flight intends to soar Above th’ Aonian Mount, while it pursues Things unattempted yet in Prose or Rhime. And chiefly Thou O Spirit, that dost prefer Before all Temples th’ upright heart and pure, Instruct me, for Thou know’st; Thou from the first Wast present, and with mighty wings outspread Dove-like satst brooding on the vast Abyss And mad’st it pregnant: What in me is dark Illumin, what is low raise and support; That to the highth of this great Argument° subject I may assert Eternal Providence, And justifie° the wayes of God to men. show the justice of

Say first, for Heav’n hides nothing from thy view Nor the deep Tract of Hell, say first what cause Mov’d our Grand Parents in that happy State, Favour’d of Heav’n so highly, to fall off From thir Creator, and transgress his Will For° one restraint, Lords of the World besides? because of

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8. Moses, thought to be the author of Genesis and the other four books of the Pentateuch, was tending sheep on Mount Horeb (“Oreb”) when God spoke to him from a burning bush (Exod. 3:1–2); he received the Law on the highest peak, “Sinai.” chosen Seed. The Jews.

9–10 In the Beginning. Echoes Gen. 1:1; Milton thought God created the universe out of unformed matter (“Chaos”), not out of nothing. Sion Hill. Mount Zion, associated with the biblical poet David (reputed author of many psalms); also the site of Solomon’s Temple with its songs and ceremonies.

11–12 Siloa’s Brook. Siloah, a pool near Mount Zion (Neh. 3:15); it parallels Aganippe, the Muses’ spring. Also Siloam, the pool where Jesus cured a blind man ( John 9:1–11). Oracle. Mount Zion as site of Divine teaching and prophecy (Isa. 2:3).

15 Aonian Mount. Mount Helicon, home of the classical Muses. 16. The line translates Ariosto, Orlando Furioso 1.2.2: “Cosa non detta in prosa mai, né in rima.” 17 Spirit. Probably the creative power of God (see Milton’s commentary on Gen. 1:2 in Christian Doctrine,

1.7), but possibly the Holy Spirit, understood in antitrinitarian terms (ch. 6). 17–22. A composite of biblical phrases (e.g., Gen. 1:2, 1 Cor. 3:16, Mark 1:10, Luke 3:22, and John 1:32).

Milton’s brooding image comes from the Hebrew, accurately translated in the Tremellius Latin Bible (“incubabat”).

27. An opening question like this is an epic convention. Compare Aeneid 1.8, “Musa, mihi causas memora” (“Tell me the cause, O Muse”).

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Who first seduc’d them to that foul revolt? Th’ infernal Serpent; he it was, whose guile Stird up with Envy and Revenge, deceiv’d The Mother of Mankind, what time° his Pride when Had cast him out from Heav’n, with all his Host° army Of Rebel Angels, by whose aid aspiring To set himself in Glory above his Peers,° equals, nobles He trusted to have equal’d the most High, If he oppos’d; and with ambitious aim Against the Throne and Monarchy of God Rais’d impious War in Heav’n and Battel proud With vain attempt. Him the Almighty Power Hurld headlong flaming from th’ Ethereal Skie With hideous ruine and combustion down To bottomless perdition, there to dwell In Adamantine Chains and penal Fire, Who durst defie th’ Omnipotent to Arms. Nine times the Space that measures Day and Night To mortal men, he with his horrid crew Lay vanquisht, rowling in the fiery Gulfe Confounded though immortal: But his doom Reserv’d him to more wrath; for now the thought Both of lost happiness and lasting pain Torments him; round he throws his baleful° eyes malignant That witness’d huge affliction and dismay Mixt with obdurate pride and stedfast hate: At once as far as Angels kenn° he views range of sight The dismal Situation waste and wilde, A Dungeon horrible, on all sides round As one great Furnace flam’d, yet from those flames No light, but rather darkness visible Serv’d onely to discover sights of woe, Regions of sorrow, doleful shades, where peace And rest can never dwell, hope never comes

33. Compare Iliad 1.8, asking who first sowed discord among the Greeks. 34. See Rev. 12:9: “that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan.” The description of Satan’s fall (42–9) echoes

Isa. 14:12–15, Luke 10:18, and Jude 6. 48. Adamant was a mythical substance of great hardness. 50. Alludes to the analogous fall of the defeated Titans in Greek myth (Hesiod, Theogony 664–735), who fell

nine days from heaven to earth and nine more into Tartarus. 66. The phrase alludes to the inscription over Dante’s Hell, “All hope abandon, you who enter here” (Inferno

3.9) and to Euripides, Troades 681, “to me even hope, that remains to all mortals, never comes.”

That comes to all; but torture without end Still urges,° and a fiery Deluge, fed always provokes With ever-burning Sulphur unconsum’d: Such place Eternal Justice had prepar’d For those rebellious, here thir Prison ordain’d In utter darkness, and thir portion set As far remov’d from God and light of Heav’n As from the Center thrice to th’ utmost Pole. O how unlike the place from whence they fell! There the companions of his fall, o’rewhelm’d With Floods and Whirlwinds of tempestuous fire, He soon discerns, and weltring° by his side rolling in the waves One next himself in power, and next in crime, Long after known in Palestine, and nam’d Beelzebub. To whom th’ Arch-Enemy, And thence in Heav’n call’d Satan, with bold words Breaking the horrid silence thus began.

If thou beest he; But O how fall’n! how chang’d From him, who in the happy Realms of Light Cloth’d with transcendent brightness didst out-shine Myriads though bright: If he whom mutual league, United thoughts and counsels, equal hope And hazard in the Glorious Enterprize, Joynd with me once, now misery hath joynd In equal ruin: into what Pit thou seest From what highth fall’n, so much the stronger prov’d He with his Thunder: and till then who knew The force of those dire Arms? yet not for those, Nor what the Potent Victor in his rage Can else inflict, do I repent or change, Though chang’d in outward lustre, that fixt mind And high disdain, from sence of injur’d merit, That with the mightiest rais’d me to contend, And to the fierce contention brought along

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74. Milton here describes the distance from Heaven to Hell as three times the distance from the center (earth) to the outermost sphere. Cf. other descriptions of the universe at 2.1051–3 and 8.66–170.

81. The Phoenician sun god Baal (the name in Hebrew means “Lord of the Flies”); in Matt. 12:24 he is called “the prince of the devils.” Like Satan (whose name in Hebrew means “Adversary”) and the other fallen angels, he is now known by the name he will bear in Hell and as a pagan deity.

84–5. Satan’s opening words recall Aeneas’ vision of the ghost of Hector on the night of Troy’s fall, “so changed from the living Hector” (Aeneid 2.274–5).

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Innumerable force of Spirits arm’d That durst dislike his reign, and me preferring, His utmost power with adverse power oppos’d In dubious° Battel on the Plains of Heav’n, of uncertain outcome And shook his throne. What though the field be lost? All is not lost; the unconquerable Will, And study of revenge, immortal hate, And courage never to submit or yield: And what is else not to be overcome? That Glory never shall his wrath or might Extort from me. To bow and sue for grace With suppliant knee, and deifie his power, Who from the terrour of this Arm so late Doubted° his Empire, that were low indeed, feared for That were an ignominy and shame beneath This downfall; since by Fate the strength of Gods And this Empyreal substance cannot fail,° cease to exist Since through experience of this great event In Arms not worse, in foresight much advanc’t, We may with more successful hope resolve To wage by force or guile eternal Warr Irreconcileable, to our grand Foe, Who now triumphs, and in th’ excess of joy Sole reigning holds the Tyranny of Heav’n.

So spake th’ Apostate Angel, though in pain, Vaunting aloud, but rackt with deep despare: And him thus answer’d soon his bold Compeer.° comrade

O Prince, O Chief of many Throned Powers That led th’ imbattelld Seraphim to Warr Under thy conduct, and in dreadful deeds Fearless, endanger’d Heav’ns perpetual King; And put to proof his high Supremacy, Whether upheld by strength, or Chance, or Fate, Too well I see and rue the dire event,° outcome That with sad overthrow and foul defeat Hath lost us Heav’n, and all this mighty Host

105. Cf. 6.833–4. 116–17 Gods. Usually angels (cf. 3.341), whose substance is “empyreal” (fiery, the substance of the highest

heaven). But Satan sometimes uses “Gods” to imply a pagan pantheon (cf. 5.70–81, 9.718–30). 128–9. According to tradition there were nine orders of angels arranged hierarchically: Seraphim, Cherubim,

Thrones, Dominations, Virtues, Powers, Principalities, Archangels, and Angels. The poem uses some of these titles, but does not keep the hierarchy.

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In horrible destruction laid thus low, As far as Gods and Heav’nly Essences Can perish: for the mind and spirit remains Invincible, and vigour soon returns, Though all our Glory extinct, and happy state Here swallow’d up in endless misery. But what if he our Conquerour, (whom I now Of force° believe Almighty, since no less necessarily Then such could hav orepow’rd such force as ours) Have left us this our spirit and strength intire Strongly to suffer and support our pains, That we may so suffice° his vengeful ire, satisfy Or do him mightier service as his thralls° slaves By right of Warr, what e’re his business be Here in the heart of Hell to work in Fire, Or do his Errands in the gloomy Deep; What can it then avail though yet we feel Strength undiminisht, or eternal being To undergo eternal punishment? Whereto with speedy words th’ Arch-fiend reply’d.

Fall’n Cherube, to be weak is miserable Doing or Suffering: but of this be sure, To do ought good never will be our task, But ever to do ill our sole delight, As being the contrary to his high will Whom we resist. If then his Providence Out of our evil seek to bring forth good, Our labour must be to pervert that end, And out of good still to find means of evil; Which oft times may succeed, so as perhaps Shall grieve him, if I fail not, and disturb His inmost counsels from thir destind aim. But see the angry Victor hath recall’d His Ministers of vengeance and pursuit Back to the Gates of Heav’n: The Sulphurous Hail Shot after us in storm, oreblown° hath laid calmed The fiery Surge, that from the Precipice Of Heav’n receiv’d us falling, and the Thunder, Wing’d with red Lightning and impetuous rage, Perhaps hath spent his shafts, and ceases now To bellow through the vast and boundless Deep. Let us not slip° th’ occasion, whether scorn, miss

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Or satiate° fury yield it from our Foe. satisfied Seest thou yon dreary Plain, forlorn and wilde, The seat of desolation, voyd of light, Save what the glimmering of these livid° flames bluish Casts pale and dreadful? Thither let us tend From off the tossing of these fiery waves, There rest, if any rest can harbour there, And reassembling our afflicted Powers, Consult how we may henceforth most offend° vex, harm Our Enemy, our own loss how repair, How overcome this dire Calamity, What reinforcement we may gain from Hope, If not what resolution from despare.

Thus Satan talking to his neerest Mate With Head up-lift above the wave, and Eyes That sparkling blaz’d, his other Parts besides Prone on the Flood, extended long and large Lay floating many a rood, in bulk as huge As whom the Fables name of monstrous size, Titanian, or Earth-born, that warr’d on Jove, Briareos or Typhon, whom the Den By ancient Tarsus held, or that Sea-beast Leviathan, which God of all his works Created hugest that swim th’ Ocean stream: Him haply° slumbring on the Norway foam perhaps The Pilot of some small night-founder’d° Skiff, benighted Deeming some Island, oft, as Sea-men tell, With fixed Anchor in his skaly rind Moors by his side under the Lee,° while Night out of the wind Invests° the Sea, and wished Morn delayes: covers So stretcht out huge in length the Arch-fiend lay Chain’d on the burning Lake, nor ever thence

183–91. Five of these lines rhyme. 196 rood. An old unit of linear measure (6–8 yards), or the fourth part of an acre. 198–9. Both the Titans (led by “Briareos,” said to have a hundred hands) and the Giants, represented by “Typhon”

(who lived near Tarsus and was said to have a hundred serpent heads) made war on Jove. They were cast into the underworld in punishment (Hesiod, Theogony 713–16, 820–85). Christian mythographers (and Milton) often interpreted myths as analogues to the story of Satan’s rebellion and fall.

200–1. The whale, often identified with the great sea-monster and enemy of the Lord in Isa. 27:1, and the crocodile-like dragon of Job 41:1–34, who is “king over all the children of pride.” Both were commonly identified with Satan.

203–8. The story of the deceived sailor and the illusory island was a commonplace (see, e.g., Orlando Furioso 6.37–41) often applied to Satan.

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Had ris’n or heav’d his head, but that the will And high permission of all-ruling Heaven Left him at large to his own dark designs, That with reiterated crimes he might Heap on himself damnation, while he sought Evil to others, and enrag’d might see How all his malice serv’d but to bring forth Infinite goodness, grace and mercy shewn On Man by him seduc’t, but on himself Treble confusion, wrath and vengeance pour’d. Forthwith upright he rears from off the Pool His mighty Stature; on each hand the flames Drivn backward slope thir pointing spires,° and rowld points of flame In billows, leave i’th’ midst a horrid° Vale. horrible, bristling Then with expanded wings he stears his flight Aloft, incumbent° on the dusky Air pressing That felt unusual weight, till on dry Land He lights,° if it were Land that ever burn’d alights With solid, as the Lake with liquid fire; And such appear’d in hue, as when the force Of subterranean wind transports a Hill Torn from Pelorus, or the shatter’d side Of thundring Ætna, whose combustible And fewel’d entrals thence conceiving Fire, Sublim’d° with Mineral fury, aid the Winds, vaporized And leave a singed bottom all involv’d° enveloped With stench and smoak: Such resting found the sole Of unblest feet. Him followed his next Mate, Both glorying to have scap’t the Stygian° flood Styxlike, hellish As Gods, and by thir own recover’d strength, Not by the sufferance° of supernal Power. permission

Is this the Region, this the Soil, the Clime, Said then the lost Arch-Angel, this the seat° estate That we must change for Heav’n, this mournful gloom For that celestial light? Be it so, since he Who now is Sovran can dispose and bid What shall be right: fardest from him is best Whom reason hath equald, force hath made supream

18 Paradise Lost

230–7 subterranean wind. Thought to be the cause of earthquakes. Pelorus. Cape Faro, a promon- tory on the east of Sicily, near the volcanic Mount “Ætna.” Cf. Aeneid 3.570–7, Virgil’s description of Etna darkening Pelorus with its smoke.

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Above his equals. Farewel happy Fields Where Joy for ever dwells: Hail horrours, hail Infernal world, and thou profoundest Hell Receive thy new Possessor: One who brings A mind not to be chang’d by Place or Time. The mind is its own place, and in it self Can make a Heav’n of Hell, a Hell of Heav’n. What matter where, if I be still the same, And what I should be, all but less then° he scarcely less than Whom Thunder hath made greater? Here at least We shall be free; th’ Almighty hath not built Here for his envy, will not drive us hence: Here we may reign secure, and in my choyce To reign is worth ambition though in Hell: Better to reign in Hell, then serve in Heav’n. But wherefore let we then our faithful friends, Th’ associates and copartners of our loss Lye thus astonisht° on th’ oblivious Pool, stunned And call them not to share with us their part In this unhappy Mansion, or once more With rallied Arms to try what may be yet Regaind in Heav’n, or what more lost in Hell?

So Satan spake, and him Beelzebub Thus answer’d. Leader of those Armies bright, Which but th’ Onmipotent none could have foyld, If once they hear that voyce, thir liveliest pledge Of hope in fears and dangers, heard so oft In worst extreams, and on the perilous edge° front lines Of battel when it rag’d, in all assaults Thir surest signal, they will soon resume New courage and revive, though now they lye Groveling and prostrate on yon Lake of Fire, As we erewhile, astounded and amaz’d, No wonder, fall’n such a pernicious highth.

He scarce had ceas’t when the superiour Fiend Was moving toward the shoar; his ponderous shield

254–6. Compare Satan’s soliloquy, 4:75–8. 262–3. The sentiment, and its opposite, were proverbial. Cf. Phineas Fletcher, The Purple Island, 7.10, “In

heav’n they scorn’d to serve, so now in hell they reigne.” See also Abdiel (PL 6.183–5). 266 oblivious pool. Suggests Lethe (forgetfulness), one of the classical rivers of Hades. 284–7. Cf. Achilles’ shield, Iliad 19.373.

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Ethereal temper, massy,° large and round, solid, weighty Behind him cast; the broad circumference Hung on his shoulders like the Moon, whose Orb Through Optic Glass the Tuscan Artist views At Ev’ning from the top of Fesole, Or in Valdarno, to descry new Lands, Rivers or Mountains in her spotty Globe. His Spear, to equal which the tallest Pine Hewn on Norwegian hills, to be the Mast Of some great Ammiral,° were but a wand, admiral’s flagship He walkt with to support uneasie steps Over the burning Marle,° not like those steps clay soil On Heavens Azure, and the torrid Clime Smote on him sore besides, vaulted with Fire; Nathless° he so endur’d, till on the Beach nevertheless Of that inflamed Sea, he stood and call’d His Legions, Angel Forms, who lay intrans’t Thick as Autumnal Leaves that strow the Brooks In Vallombrosa, where th’ Etrurian shades High overarch’t imbowr;° or scatterd sedge° form bowers / seaweed Afloat, when with fierce Winds Orion arm’d Hath vext the Red-Sea Coast, whose waves orethrew Busiris and his Memphian Chivalry, While with perfidious hatred they pursu’d The Sojourners of Goshen, who beheld From the safe shore thir floating Carkases And broken Chariot Wheels, so thick bestrown Abject and lost lay these, covering the Flood, Under amazement° of thir hideous change. stupefaction He call’d so loud, that all the hollow Deep

20 Paradise Lost

285. Ethereal. Tempered with celestial fire. 288–91. Galileo studied the moon with a powerful telescope (“Optic Glass”) which as “Artist” (artifex) he

made. He did so from the hill town of Fiesole (“Fesole”) outside Florence and from the valley of the Arno (“Valdarno”), in Tuscany. Milton visited him in 1638 or 1639.

292–4. Ships’ masts were customarily made from “Norwegian” fir trees. Cf. Homer’s comparison of Polyphemus’ club to the mast of a “black ship” (Odyssey 9.322–3).

302–4 Similes comparing the numberless dead to fallen leaves are frequent in epic (e.g. Aeneid 6.309–10). Vallombrosa. Shady valley; a wooded region high in the Apennines, about 20 miles from Florence in the region anciently known as “Etrurea.”

305–12. The constellation Orion (representing an armed giant) was associated with stormy weather (Amos 5:8; Aeneid 1.535, 7.719). Busiris was a mythical Egyptian pharaoh identified by Milton with the pharaoh of Exod. 14, who pursued the Israelites (formerly “Sojourners of Goshen” in Egypt) into the Red Sea; it rolled back for them but inundated the Egyptians (“Memphian Chivalry”).

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Book 1 21

Of Hell resounded. Princes, Potentates, Warriers, the Flowr of Heav’n, once yours, now lost, If such astonishment as this can sieze Eternal spirits; or have ye chos’n this place After the toyl of Battel to repose Your wearied vertue,° for the ease you find strength, valor To slumber here, as in the Vales of Heav’n? Or in this abject posture have ye sworn To adore the Conquerour? who now beholds Cherube and Seraph rowling° in the Flood tossing about With scatter’d Arms and Ensigns,° till anon battle flags His swift pursuers from Heav’n Gates discern Th’ advantage, and descending tread us down Thus drooping, or with linked Thunderbolts Transfix us to the bottom of this Gulfe. Awake, arise, or be for ever fall’n.

They heard, and were abasht, and up they sprung Upon the wing, as when men wont° to watch accustomed On duty, sleeping found by whom they dread, Rouse and bestir themselves ere well awake. Nor did they not perceave the evil plight In which they were, or the fierce pains not feel; Yet to thir Generals Voyce they soon obeyd Innumerable. As when the potent Rod Of Amrams Son in Egypts evill day Wav’d round the Coast,° up call’d a pitchy cloud region Of Locusts, warping° on the Eastern Wind, floating That ore the Realm of impious Pharaoh hung Like Night, and darken’d all the Land of Nile: So numberless were those bad Angels seen Hovering on wing under the Cope° of Hell roof ’Twixt upper, nether, and surrounding Fires; Till, as a signal giv’n, th’ uplifted Spear Of thir great Sultan waving to direct Thir course, in even ballance° down they light perfect formation On the firm brimstone, and fill all the Plain; A multitude, like which the populous North

338–43 Amrams Son. Moses (Exod. 6:20), who with his rod called down a plague of locusts on Egypt “so that the land was darkened” (Exod. 10:12–15; PL 12.184–8).

348 Sultan. The title of the Ottoman emperors, connoting despotism. 351–5. The barbarian invasions of Rome began with northern tribes crossing the Rhine (“Rhene”) and

Danube (“Danaw”) rivers, then spreading across Spain via “Gibralter” into North Africa (“Lybian sands”).

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Pour’d never from her frozen loyns, to pass Rhene or the Danaw, when her barbarous Sons Came like a Deluge on the South, and spread Beneath Gibralter to the Lybian sands. Forthwith from every Squadron and each Band The Heads and Leaders thither hast where stood Thir great Commander; Godlike shapes and forms Excelling human, Princely Dignities, And Powers that earst° in Heaven sat on Thrones; formerly Though of thir Names in heav’nly Records now Be no memorial, blotted out and ras’d° erased By thir Rebellion, from the Books of Life. Nor had they yet among the Sons of Eve Got them new Names, till wandring ore the Earth, Through Gods high sufferance for the tryal of man, By falsities and lyes the greatest part Of Mankind they corrupted to forsake God thir Creator, and th’ invisible Glory of him that made them, to transform Oft to the Image of a Brute, adorn’d With gay° Religions full of Pomp and Gold, showy, specious And Devils to adore for Deities: Then were they known to men by various Names, And various Idols through the Heathen World. Say, Muse, thir Names then known, who first, who last, Rous’d from the slumber, on that fiery Couch, At thir great Emperors call, as next in worth Came singly° where he stood on the bare strand,° one at a time / shore While the promiscuous° croud stood yet aloof ? randomly mixed The chief were those who from the Pit of Hell Roaming to seek thir prey on earth, durst fix Thir Seats long after next the Seat of God, Thir Altars by his Altar, Gods ador’d Among the Nations round, and durst abide

22 Paradise Lost

363 Books of Life. Record of the names of the faithful (Rev. 3:5 and 21:27). 373. Tertullian, Origen, Augustine, and others identified the pagan gods with the fallen angels, and the belief

continued to Milton’s time. 376. The catalogue of the gods here is an epic convention. Homer catalogues commanders and ships, Virgil,

warriors; both begin with an invocation to the Muse (Iliad 2.484; Aeneid 7.641). 381–91. The first group of devil-idols settled in the Middle East, close neighbors of “Jehovah” whose seat was

in Jerusalem (“Sion”). Milton draws many details about them from John Selden’s De Diis Syris.

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Jehovah thundring out of Sion, thron’d Between the Cherubim; yea, often plac’d Within his Sanctuary it self thir Shrines, Abominations; and with cursed things His holy Rites, and solemn Feasts profan’d, And with thir darkness durst affront° his light. confront, defy First Moloch, horrid King besmear’d with blood Of human sacrifice, and parents tears, Though for the noyse of Drums and Timbrels° loud tambourines Thir childrens cries unheard, that past through fire To his grim Idol. Him the Ammonite Worshipt in Rabba and her watry Plain, In Argob and in Basan, to the stream Of utmost Arnon. Nor content with such Audacious neighbourhood, the wisest heart Of Solomon he led by fraud to build His Temple right against the Temple of God On that opprobrious° Hill, and made his Grove polluted The pleasant Vally of Hinnom, Tophet thence And black Gehenna call’d, the Type° of Hell. figure Next Chemos, th’ obscene dread° of Moabs Sons, object of awe From Aroar to Nebo, and the wild Of Southmost Abarim; in Hesebon And Horonaim, Seons Realm, beyond The flowry Dale of Sibma clad with Vines, And Eleale to th’ Asphaltick Pool. Peor his other Name, when he entic’d Israel in Sittim on thir march from Nile

386–7 Cherubim. Golden Cherubim adorned opposite ends of the gold cover on the Ark of the Covenant, where Jehovah was “thron’d” (2 Kgs 19:15; Ps. 80:1).

392–9 Moloch. In Hebrew, “King.” A god of the Ammonites, usually represented with a calf ’s head crowned. Rabba (“city of waters”) is modern Amman in Jordan; the towns “Argob” and “Basan,” and the river “Arnon” lie east of the Dead Sea. Children were sacrificed by being placed alive in Moloch’s red-hot brazen image while “Timbrels” sounded to cover their cries (2 Kgs 23:10).

403–5 that opprobrious Hill. 1 Kgs 11:7: the Mount of Olives. Under the names “Tophet” and “Gehenna,” the “Valley of Hinnom” (2 Kgs 23:10) adjacent to Jerusalem became a “Type of Hell.” Groves throughout the Old Testament are associated with idolatry.

406–11 Chemos. Moabite fertility god, associated with the phallic god Priapus; his priests were said to defecate ritually before his shrine. Their lands (many taken from Isa. 15–16) are mentioned in these lines. Seon. Sihon, king of the Ammonites. Asphaltick Pool. The Dead Sea. “Asphaltick” refers to its deposits of bitumen.

412–14 Peor. The story of Peor seducing the Israelites in “Sittim” and the resulting “woe,” a plague killing 24,000, is told in Num. 25:1–9.

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To do him wanton rites, which cost them woe. Yet thence his lustful Orgies he enlarg’d Even to that Hill of scandal, by the Grove Of Moloch homicide, lust hard by hate; Till good Josiah drove them thence to Hell. With these came they, who from the bordring flood Of old Euphrates to the Brook that parts Egypt from Syrian ground, had general Names Of Baalim and Ashtaroth, those male, These Feminine. For Spirits when they please Can either Sex assume, or both; so soft And uncompounded is thir Essence pure, Not ti’d or manacl’d with joynt or limb, Nor founded on the brittle strength of bones, Like cumbrous flesh; but in what shape they choose Dilated or condens’t, bright or obscure,° dark Can execute thir aerie purposes, And works of love or enmity fulfill. For those the Race of Israel oft forsook Thir living strength, and unfrequented left His righteous Altar, bowing lowly down To bestial Gods; for which thir heads as low Bow’d down in Battel, sunk before the Spear Of despicable foes. With these in troop Came Astoreth, whom the Phœnicians call’d Astarte, Queen of Heav’n, with crescent Horns; To whose bright Image nightly by the Moon Sidonian Virgins paid thir Vows and Songs, In Sion also not unsung, where stood Her Temple on th’ offensive Mountain, built By that uxorious King, whose heart though large,

24 Paradise Lost

416 Hill of scandal. The Mount of Olives, where Solomon built temples to Chemos and Moloch (1 Kgs 11:7). 418 Josiah. A reforming king of Judah, Josiah destroyed the groves and idols of Moloch, Chemos, Astoreth,

and Bael (2 Kgs 23:4–14). 419–21. Palestine is bordered by the “Euphrates” on the east and the “Brook” of Besor on the Egyptian bor-

der (1 Sam. 30:10). 422 Baalim and Ashtaroth. Plural forms of the sun god Baal and the moon goddess Astoreth (438; “Astarte,”

439). Baal means Lord, and is used as a prefix, e.g., Baal-Peor. 439–41 Astarte. The Phoenician (“Sidonian,” from the city Sidon) original of Aphrodite, with a bull’s head

above her own from which sprang “crescent Horns” (Nativity Ode, 200). 443–6 th’ offensive Mountain. The Mount of Olives where “uxorious” King Solomon, whom God gave a

“large” heart, built a temple for “Astoreth” at the behest of his many wives (2 Kgs 23:13; 1 Kgs 4:29, 11:1–8).

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Beguil’d by fair Idolatresses, fell To Idols foul. Thammuz came next behind, Whose annual wound in Lebanon allur’d The Syrian Damsels to lament his fate In amorous dittyes all a Summers day, While smooth Adonis from his native Rock Ran purple to the Sea, suppos’d with blood Of Thammuz yearly wounded: the Love-tale Infected Sions daughters with like heat, Whose wanton passions in the sacred Porch Ezekiel saw, when by the Vision led His eye survay’d the dark Idolatries Of alienated Judah. Next came one Who mourn’d in earnest, when the Captive Ark Maim’d his brute Image, head and hands lopt off In his own Temple, on the grunsel edge,° threshold Where he fell flat, and sham’d his Worshipers: Dagon his Name, Sea Monster, upward Man And downward Fish: yet had his Temple high Rear’d in Azotus, dreaded through the Coast Of Palestine, in Gath and Ascalon And Accaron and Gaza’s frontier bounds. Him follow’d Rimmon, whose delightful Seat Was fair Damascus, on the fertil Banks Of Abbana and Pharphar, lucid streams. He also against the house of God was bold: A Leper once he lost and gain’d a King, Ahaz his sottish° Conquerour, whom he drew foolish Gods Altar to disparage and displace

446–52 Thammuz. A Syrian god; his Greek form was “Adonis,” beloved of Aphrodite, metamorphosed into the anemone. Annual festivals identify his death in “Lebanon” from a boar’s wound and his revival, with the death and rebirth of vegetation. Here, “Adonis” is a Lebanese river, so named because each July it turned blood red from iron-rich clay.

455 Ezekiel. Ezek. 8:12–16 describes women’s “dark” idolatrous rites for Thammuz in the “Porch” and men’s worship of the sun within the Temple.

457–63. When the Philistines stole the Ark of God they placed it in the temple of their sea-god, Dagon (half- man, half-fish) but his statue fell down and broke in pieces (1 Sam. 5:1–5).

464–6. The five chief cities of the Philistines, sites of Dagon’s worship (see Zeph. 2:4): “Azotus” (Ashdod), “Gath,” “Ascalon,” “Accaron” (Ekron), and “Gaza” (Azza).

467–76 Rimmon. The chief Syrian god. The Syrian general Naaman was cured of leprosy when (at the prophet Elisha’s bidding) he bathed in the river Jordan and then renounced Rimmon (2 Kgs 5:1–19); “Abbana” and “Pharphar” are rivers of “Damascus,” the chief city of Syria. King “Ahaz” of Judah conquered Syria but then converted to Rimmon’s cult (2 Kgs 16:7–18).

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For one of Syrian mode, whereon to burn His odious off ’rings, and adore the Gods Whom he had vanquisht. After these appear’d A crew who under Names of old Renown, Osiris, Isis, Orus and thir Train With monstrous shapes and sorceries abus’d° deceived Fanatic Egypt and her Priests, to seek Thir wandring Gods disguis’d in brutish forms Rather then human. Nor did Israel scape Th’ infection when thir borrow’d Gold compos’d The Calf in Oreb: and the Rebel King Doubl’d that sin in Bethel and in Dan, Lik’ning his Maker to the Grazed Ox, Jehovah, who in one Night when he pass’d From Egypt marching, equal’d° with one stroke leveled Both her first born and all her bleating Gods. Belial came last, then whom a Spirit more lewd Fell not from Heaven, or more gross to love Vice for it self: To him no Temple stood Or Altar smoak’d; yet who more oft then hee In Temples and at Altars, when the Priest Turns Atheist, as did Ely’s Sons, who fill’d With lust and violence the house of God. In Courts and Palaces he also Reigns And in luxurious Cities, where the noyse Of riot° ascends above thir loftiest Towrs, debauchery And injury and outrage: And when Night Darkens the Streets, then wander forth the Sons Of Belial, flown° with insolence and wine. flushed, swollen

26 Paradise Lost

477–82. The second group of devils includes gods originally driven from Olympus by the revolt of the giants and forced to wander in “brutish” (animal) forms (Ovid, Metamorphoses 5.319–31). The Egyptians later wor- shiped such animal-headed gods: “Osiris,” a bull; “Isis,” a cow; “Orus” (Horus), a falcon.

482–4. While Moses was receiving the Law his brother Aaron made the “Calf in Oreb” with golden orna- ments “borrow’d” (carried out of ) Egypt (Exod. 12:35); the Israelites worshiped the idol, traditionally identified with the Egyptian god Apis (Exod. 32:1–4).

484–9 Rebel King. Jeroboam led ten tribes in a revolt against Solomon’s son Rehoboam, and “doubled” Aaron’s sin by making two golden calves, one in “Bethel,” one in “Dan” (1 Kgs 12:19–30); at the Passover, “Jehovah” (Exod. 12:12) smote the Egyptian firstborn ( both men and beasts) and all their gods.

490–502 Belial. Hebrew for “worthlessness.” Not a god, but phrases such as “Sons of Belial” ( Judg. 19:22, 20:13, and 2 Cor. 6:15) encouraged personification. The sons of the high priest “Ely,” themselves priests, were “sons of Belial,” seizing offerings meant for God and lying with prostitutes (1 Sam. 2:12–22). Milton invites association with Restoration churches, courts, and cities.

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Witness the Streets of Sodom, and that night In Gibeah, when the hospitable door Expos’d a Matron to avoid worse rape. These were the prime in order and in might; The rest were long to tell, though far renown’d, Th’ Ionian Gods, of Javans Issue held Gods, yet confest later then Heav’n and Earth Thir boasted Parents; Titan Heav’ns first born With his enormous° brood, and birthright seis’d monstrous By younger Saturn, he from mightier Jove His own and Rhea’s Son like measure found; So Jove usurping reign’d: these first in Creet And Ida known, thence on the Snowy top Of cold Olympus rul’d the middle Air Thir highest Heav’n; or on the Delphian Cliff, Or in Dodona, and through all the bounds Of Doric Land; or who with Saturn old Fled over Adria to th’ Hesperian Fields, And ore the Celtic roam’d the utmost Isles. All these and more came flocking; but with looks Down cast and damp,° yet such wherein appear’d depressed Obscure some glimps of joy, to have found thir chief Not in despair, to have found themselves not lost In loss it self; which on his count’nance cast Like doubtful hue: but he his wonted° pride accustomed Soon recollecting, with high words, that bore Semblance of worth, not substance, gently rais’d Thir fanting courage, and dispel’d thir fears. Then strait° commands that at the warlike sound immediately

503–5. Lot begged the Sodomites to rape his virgin daughters rather than his angel guests; no rape occurred, and the angels destroyed “Sodom” (Gen. 19:1–10, 24). At “Gibeah” ( Judg. 19:22–9) an old man prevented “worse” homosexual rape by surrendering his Levite guest’s concubine to “certain sons of Belial”; she was raped all night and was found dead the next morning. The change from the biblical concubine to “a Matron” heightens the crime.

508–10. The Ionian Greeks (“Javans issue,” i.e., of the line of Noah’s grandson Javan, son of Japhet) held the Titans to be gods, supposedly the progeny of “Heav’n” (Uranus) and “Earth” (Gaea).

510–15 Titan. Titan, the firstborn, was deposed by his younger brother “Saturn” (or Cronos), who was in turn deposed by his son “Jove” (Zeus) who had been reared in secret in a cave on Mount “Ida” in “Creet” (Crete).

515–19. The Olympian gods dwelt on Mount “Olympus”; Apollo’s Pythian oracle was at Delphi (“Delphian Cliff”), high on Mount Parnassus; “Dodona” was an ancient site of Zeus’ oracle; “Doric Land”: Greece.

519–21. The defeated “Saturn” fled over the Adriatic (“Adria”) to Italy (“th’ Hesperian Fields”), to France (“Celtic” lands) to roam (“the utmost Isles”) of Britain.

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Of Trumpets loud and Clarions° be upreard small, shrill trumpets His mighty Standard; that proud honour claim’d Azazel as his right, a Cherube tall: Who forthwith from the glittering Staff unfurld Th’ Imperial Ensign,° which full high advanc’t battle flag Shon like a Meteor streaming to the Wind With Gemms and Golden lustre rich imblaz’d,° adorned with heraldic devices Seraphic arms and Trophies: all the while Sonorous mettal° blowing Martial sounds: trumpets At which the universal Host upsent A shout that tore Hells Concave,° and beyond vault, roof Frighted the Reign of Chaos and old Night. All in a moment through the gloom were seen Ten thousand Banners rise into the Air With Orient° Colours waving: with them rose lustrous A Forest huge of Spears: and thronging Helms Appear’d, and serried° Shields in thick array pushed close together Of depth immeasurable: Anon they move In perfect Phalanx to the Dorian mood Of Flutes and soft Recorders; such as rais’d To hight of noblest temper Hero’s old Arming to Battel, and in stead of rage Deliberate valour breath’d, firm and unmov’d With dread of death to flight or foul retreat, Nor wanting° power to mitigate and swage° lacking / assuage With solemn touches, troubl’d thoughts, and chase Anguish and doubt and fear and sorrow and pain From mortal or immortal minds. Thus they Breathing united force with fixed thought Mov’d on in silence to soft Pipes that charm’d Thir painful steps o’re the burnt soyle; and now Advanc’t in view, they stand, a horrid° Front bristling with spears Of dreadful length and dazling Arms, in guise Of Warriers old with order’d Spear and Shield, Awaiting what command thir mighty Chief Had to impose: He through the armed Files

28 Paradise Lost

534 Azazel. Traditionally, one of the four standard-bearers of Satan’s army; a chief devil in the Book of Enoch. 543. For their “Reign” see 2.894–909, 959–70. 550–4 Phalanx. Greek battle formation consisting of footsoldiers presenting a square, impenetrable thicket

of spears, usually eight ranks deep. Dorian mood. The Greek musical mode used for solemn martial music, intended to produce calm firmness (Plato, Republic 3.399A). The Spartans (“Hero’s old”) marched to battle to the Dorian music of “Flutes.”

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Darts his experienc’t eye, and soon traverse° across The whole Battalion views, thir order due, Thir visages and stature as of Gods, Thir number last he summs. And now his heart Distends with pride, and hardning in his strength Glories: For never since created man, Met such imbodied force, as nam’d° with these compared Could merit more then that small infantry Warr’d on by Cranes: though all the Giant brood Of Phlegra with th’ Heroic Race were joyn’d That fought at Theb’s and Ilium, on each side Mixt with auxiliar° Gods; and what resounds allied In Fable or Romance of Uthers Son Begirt with British and Armoric Knights; And all who since, Baptiz’d or Infidel Jousted in Aspramont or Montalban, Damasco, or Marocco, or Trebisond, Or whom Biserta sent from Afric shore When Charlemain with all his Peerage fell By Fontarabbia. Thus far these beyond Compare of mortal prowess, yet observ’d Thir dread commander: he above the rest In shape and gesture proudly eminent Stood like a Towr; his form had yet not lost All her Original brightness, nor appear’d Less then Arch Angel ruind, and th’ excess Of Glory obscur’d: As when the Sun new ris’n Looks through the Horizontal° misty Air on the horizon Shorn of his Beams, or from behind the Moon

573 never since created man. i.e., since man was created (Latin idiom). 575–9. See Iliad 3.1–6 for the war of the pygmies (with a pun on “infantry,” infants) and the “Cranes.” The

Giants fought the Olympian gods at “Phlegra” in Macedonia (Pindar, Nemian Odes 1.67–8); the Greek armies (“Heroic Race”) fought battles at “Theb’s” and “Ilium” (Troy), aided by various gods.

580–4. Armies from romances include “British” and “Armoric knights” (from Brittany) who fought with Arthur (“Uthers Son”); and Charlemagne’s army that defeated the Saracens at “Aspramont” (the dark mountain). Knightly jousts took place at the sites named, all from romances about chivalric wars between Christians and Saracens: “Montalban” (the white mountain) the home of Rinaldo, “Damasco” (Damascus), “Marocco” (Marrakesh, a sultanate in what is now Morocco), and “Trebisond” (Trabzon, a Byzantine city on the Black Sea).

585–7. Saracens gathered at “Biserta” (Bizerte) in Tunisia to invade Spain (Boiardo, Orlando Innamorato 2.29.1–22); Charlemagne’s rearguard, led by his best knight Roland, was massacred at Roncesvalles, near “Fontarabbia” (Fuenterrabia, on the Spanish coast). But in no version of the story did Charlemagne himself fall.

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In dim Eclips disastrous twilight sheds On half the Nations, and with fear of change Perplexes Monarchs. Dark’n’d so, yet shon Above them all th’ Arch Angel: but his face Deep scars of Thunder had intrencht, and care Sat on his faded cheek, but under Browes Of dauntless courage, and considerate° Pride conscious, deliberate Waiting revenge: cruel his eye, but cast Signs of remorse and passion to behold The fellows of his crime, the followers rather (Far other once beheld in bliss) condemn’d For ever now to have thir lot in pain, Millions of Spirits for his fault amerc’t° deprived Of Heav’n, and from Eternal Splendors flung For his revolt, yet faithfull how they stood, Thir Glory witherd. As when Heavens Fire Hath scath’d° the Forrest Oaks, or Mountain Pines, scorched With singed top thir stately growth though bare Stands on the blasted Heath. He now prepar’d To speak; whereat thir doubl’d Ranks they bend From wing to wing, and half enclose him round With all his Peers: attention held them mute. Thrice he assayd,° and thrice in spight of scorn, tried Tears such as Angels weep, burst forth: at last Words interwove with sighs found out thir way.

O Myriads of immortal Spirits, O Powers Matchless, but with th’ Almighty, and that strife Was not inglorious, though th’ event° was dire, outcome As this place testifies, and this dire change Hateful to utter: but what power of mind Foreseeing or presaging, from the Depth Of knowledge past or present, could have fear’d, How such united force of Gods, how such As stood like these, could ever know repulse? For who can yet beleeve, though after loss, That all these puissant° Legions, whose exile powerful Hath emptied Heav’n, shall fail to re-ascend

30 Paradise Lost

597–9. The censor objected to these lines, as perhaps an allusion to the eclipse on the day of Charles II’s birth, portending “change” (i.e., the Interregnum). disastrous. astrologically unfavorable (dis + astrum).

620. Satan weeping before his defeated troops recalls Agamemnon stricken with grief in similar circumstances (Iliad 9.13–14)

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Book 1 31

Self-rais’d, and repossess thir native seat? For mee be witness all the Host of Heav’n, If counsels different, or danger shun’d By me, have lost our hopes. But he who reigns Monarch in Heav’n, till then as one secure Sat on his Throne, upheld by old repute, Consent or custome, and his Regal State Put forth at full, but still° his strength conceal’d, always Which tempted our attempt, and wrought our fall. Henceforth his might we know, and know our own So as not either to provoke, or dread New warr, provok’t; our better part remains To work in close° design, by fraud or guile secret What force effected not: that he no less At length from us may find, who overcomes By force, hath overcome but half his foe. Space may produce new Worlds; whereof so rife° widespread There went a fame° in Heav’n that he ere long rumor Intended to create, and therein plant A generation, whom his choice regard Should favour equal to the Sons of Heaven: Thither, if but to prey, shall be perhaps Our first eruption,° thither or elsewhere: breaking out For this Infernal Pit shall never hold Cælestial Spirits in Bondage, nor th’ Abyss Long under darkness cover. But these thoughts Full Counsel must mature: Peace is despaird, For who can think Submission? Warr then, Warr Open or understood° must be resolv’d. covert

He spake: and to confirm his words, out-flew Millions of flaming swords, drawn from the thighs Of mighty Cherubim; the sudden blaze Far round illumin’d hell: highly they rag’d Against the Highest, and fierce with grasped arms Clash’d on thir sounding Shields the din of war, Hurling defiance toward the Vault of Heav’n.

There stood a Hill not far whose griesly° top causing horror Belch’d fire and rowling° smoak; the rest entire undulating Shon with a glossie scurff,° undoubted sign crust That in his womb was hid metallic Ore,

668. Like Roman legions, the fallen angels applaud by beating swords on shields.

635

640

645

650

655

660

665

670

The work of Sulphur. Thither wing’d with speed A numerous Brigad hasten’d. As when Bands Of Pioners° with Spade and Pickax arm’d military engineers Forerun the Royal Camp, to trench a Field, Or cast a Rampart. Mammon led them on, Mammon, the least erected Spirit that fell From heav’n, for ev’n in heav’n his looks and thoughts Were always downward bent, admiring more The riches of Heav’ns pavement, trod’n Gold, Then aught divine or holy else enjoy’d In vision beatific: by him first Men also, and by his suggestion taught, Ransack’d the Center, and with impious hands Rifl’d the bowels of thir mother Earth For Treasures better hid. Soon had his crew Op’nd into the Hill a spacious wound And dig’d out ribs° of Gold. Let none admire° veins / wonder That riches grow in Hell; that soyle may best Deserve the precious bane.° And here let those poison Who boast in mortal things, and wond’ring tell Of Babel, and the works of Memphian Kings Learn how thir greatest Monuments of Fame, And Strength and Art are easily out-done By Spirits reprobate,° and in an hour damned What in an age they with incessant toyle And hands innumerable scarce perform. Nigh on the Plain in many cells prepar’d, That underneath had veins of liquid fire Sluc’d from the Lake, a second multitude With wondrous Art founded° the massie Ore, melted Severing each kind, and scum’d° the Bullion dross:° skimmed / boiling dregs A third as soon had form’d within the ground A various mould, and from the boyling cells

32 Paradise Lost

674 Sulphur. This was thought to be the father of metals. 678 Mammon. An Aramaic word for riches, Mammon came to be personified and associated with the god

of wealth, Plutus, and with Pluto, god of the underworld. Cf. Matt. 6:24: “Ye cannot serve God and Mammon.”

684 vision beatific. Scholastic term for the sight of God, the greatest joy of heaven. 685–8. Ovid, Metamorphoses 1.138–42, describes men rifling earth’s “bowels” (“viscera terrae”) in search of

riches. Cf. Spenser, Faerie Queene 2.7.17. 694 Babel. The Tower of Babel (cf. Gen. 11:1–9; PL 12.38–62). works. The Pyramids built by

“Memphian” (Egyptian) pharaohs.

675

680

685

690

695

700

705

Book 1 33

By strange conveyance fill’d each hollow nook, As in an Organ from one blast of wind To many a row of Pipes the sound-board breaths. Anon out of the earth a Fabrick° huge building Rose like an Exhalation, with the sound Of Dulcet° Symphonies and voices sweet, sweet, pleasing Built like a Temple, where Pilasters° round columns set in a wall Were set, and Doric pillars overlaid With Golden Architrave; nor did there want Cornice or Freeze, with bossy° Sculptures grav’n, embossed The Roof was fretted° Gold. Not Babilon, richly ornamented Nor great Alcairo such magnificence Equal’d in all thir glories, to inshrine Belus or Serapis thir Gods, or seat Thir Kings, when Ægypt with Assyria strove In wealth and luxurie. Th’ ascending pile° large building Stood fixt° her stately highth, and strait° the dores complete / at once Op’ning thir brazen foulds discover wide Within, her ample spaces, o’re the smooth And level pavement: from the arched roof Pendant by suttle Magic many a row Of Starry Lamps and blazing Cressets fed With Naphtha and Asphaltus yeilded light As from a sky. The hasty multitude Admiring enter’d, and the work some praise And some the Architect: his hand was known In Heav’n by many a Towred structure high, Where Scepter’d Angels held thir residence, And sat as Princes, whom the supreme King Exalted to such power, and gave to rule, Each in his Hierarchie, the Orders bright.

711–12 Exhalation. Exhalations were thought to cause comets and meteors (bad omens) and pestilence (cf. 10.693–5). Pandæmonium rises to symphonic and vocal music, like Thebes to Amphion’s lyre.

714 Doric pillars. Round and fluted, Doric pillars are severe and plain. Pandæmonium combines classical archi- tectural features with elaborate ornamentation, perhaps suggesting St. Peter’s in Rome.

715–16 Architrave. The beam that rests on top of the columns. Cornice. The part above and over- hanging the frieze. Freeze. The frieze: the architectural element above the architrave on which the sculptures usually are set.

717–20 Babilon. Babylon in Assyria had temples to “Belus” (Baal); “Alcairo” (ancient Memphis, near Cairo) had temples to “Serapis” (composite of Osiris and Apis, the bull god). Both cities were famously magnificent.

728–9 Cressets. Iron baskets hung from the ceiling, holding burning pitch (“Asphaltus”); oily “Naphtha” was placed in the lamps.

710

715

720

725

730

735

Nor was his name unheard or unador’d In ancient Greece; and in Ausonian land Men call’d him Mulciber; and how he fell From Heav’n, they fabl’d, thrown by angry Jove Sheer o’re the Chrystal Battlements; from Morn To Noon he fell, from Noon to dewy Eve, A Summers day; and with the setting Sun Dropt from the Zenith like a falling Star, On Lemnos th’ Ægean Ile: thus they relate, Erring; for he with this rebellious rout Fell long before; nor aught avail’d him now To have built in Heav’n high Towrs; nor did he scape By all his Engins,° but was headlong sent contrivances With his industrious crew to build in hell. Mean while the winged Haralds by command Of Sovran power, with awful° Ceremony awesome And Trumpets sound throughout the Host proclaim A solemn Councel forthwith to be held At Pandæmonium, the high Capital Of Satan and his Peers:° thir summons call’d nobles, companions From every Band and squared Regiment By place° or choice° the worthiest; they anon rank / election With hunderds and with thousands trooping came Attended: all access was throng’d, the Gates And Porches wide, but chief the spacious Hall (Though like a cover’d field, where Champions bold Wont° ride in arm’d, and at the Soldans° chair were accustomed to / sultan’s Defi’d the best of Panim° chivalry pagan To mortal combat or carreer° with Lance) joust Thick swarm’d, both on the ground and in the air, Brusht with the hiss of russling wings. As Bees In spring time, when the Sun with Taurus rides, Pour forth thir populous youth about the Hive

34 Paradise Lost

738–46. Hephæstus (in “Greece”), Vulcan or “Mulciber” in Italy (“Ausonian land”), was architect of the clas- sical gods’ palaces; the story of his fall, cast out by Zeus (“angry Jove”) to land in “Lemnos” in the “Ægean” sea, is told in Iliad 1.590–4. Zenith. the highest point of the celestial sphere.

747 Erring. Milton thought the classical myths were erroneous versions of biblical stories. 756 Pandæmonium. Milton’s coinage, literally “all Demons,” an inversion of Pantheon, “all gods.” 768–76. Bee similes were common in epic from Homer on (Iliad 2.87–90; Aeneid 1.430–6); also, the bees’ (roy-

alist) society was often cited in political arguments. The simile prepares for the sudden contraction of the “common” devils, enabling them to fit into the Hall of Pandæmonium (791–2).

769. The sun is in the zodiacal sign of “Taurus” (the Bull) from about April 19 to May 20.

740

745

750

755

760

765

770

Book 1 35

In clusters; they among fresh dews and flowers Flie to and fro, or on the smoothed Plank, The suburb of thir Straw-built Cittadel, New rub’d with Baum, expatiate° and confer walk about at large Thir State affairs. So thick the aerie crowd Swarm’d and were straitn’d;° till the Signal giv’n. packed together Behold a wonder! they but now who seemd In bigness to surpass Earths Giant Sons Now less then smallest Dwarfs, in narrow room Throng numberless, like that Pigmean Race Beyond the Indian Mount, or Faerie Elves, Whose midnight Revels, by a Forrest side Or Fountain some belated Peasant sees, Or dreams he sees, while over-head the Moon Sits Arbitress,° and neerer to the Earth witness Wheels her pale course, they on thir mirth and dance Intent, with jocond° Music charm his ear; merry At once with joy and fear his heart rebounds. Thus incorporeal Spirits to smallest forms Reduc’d thir shapes immense, and were at large, Though without number still amidst the Hall Of that infernal Court. But far within And in thir own dimensions like themselves The great Seraphic Lords and Cherubim In close° recess and secret conclave sat secluded A thousand Demy-Gods on golden seat’s, Frequent and full. After short silence then And summons read, the great consult began.

The End of the First Book.

780–1 Pigmean Race. Pygmies were thought to live beyond the Himalayas (“the Indian Mount”). 792–4. These “Lords” retained their own size. 795 conclave. Secret assembly, often ecclesiastical. 797 Frequent. Crowded together. full. In great number.

775

780

785

790

795

Figure 4 Illustration to Book 2, 1688

BOOK 2 THE ARGUMENT

The Consultation begun, Satan debates whether another Battel be to be hazarded for the recovery of Heaven: some advise it, others dissuade: A third proposal is prefer’d, mention’d before by Satan, to search the truth of that Prophesie or Tradition in Heaven concerning another world, and another kind of creature equal or not much inferiour to themselves, about this time to be created: Thir doubt who shall be sent on this difficult search: Satan thir chief undertakes alone the voyage, is honourd and applauded. The Councel thus ended, the rest betake them several wayes and to sev- eral imployments, as thir inclinations lead them, to entertain the time till Satan return. He passes on his journey to Hell Gates, finds them shut, and who sat there to guard them, by whom at length they are op’nd, and discover to him the great Gulf between Hell and Heaven; with what difficulty he passes through, directed by Chaos, the Power of that place, to the sight of this new World which he sought.

High on a Throne of Royal State, which far Outshon the wealth of Ormus and of Ind, Or where the gorgeous East with richest hand Showrs on her Kings Barbaric Pearl and Gold, Satan exalted sat, by merit rais’d To that bad eminence; and from despair Thus high uplifted beyond hope, aspires Beyond thus high, insatiate to pursue Vain Warr with Heav’n, and by success° untaught the outcome His proud imaginations thus displaid.

Powers and Dominions, Deities of Heav’n, For since no deep within her gulf can hold Immortal vigor, though opprest and fall’n, I give not Heav’n for lost. From this descent Celestial vertues rising, will appear

1. A typical epic convention (in e.g. Iliad 2.53–394, Aeneid 11.302–446, Tasso, Gerusalemme Liberata 2.58–90) involved councils debating war and peace, with spokesmen on each side. Infernal councils have antecedents in Tasso, Vida, Valvasone, and others.

11–12. Satan is given directions by “Chaos,” the ruler (“Power”) of “that place” (Chaos) to the created uni- verse (“new World”).

2 Ormus. Hormuz, an island port at the mouth of the Persian Gulf, famous for pearls. 4 Barbaric. Exotic; pertaining originally to all nations except Greece and Rome. 5 merit. Desert, either good or bad. Cf. 3.309–10, 6.43. 11 Powers and Dominions. Angelic orders; “vertues” (15) were also an angelic order. Milton retains the

names but not the arrangement into distinct hierarchical ranks.

28 Thunderer. The attribute of Zeus ( Jove) is the thunderbolt. 41. The classic Machiavellian choice for gaining or extending power. Tasso’s Satan (Gerusalemme Liberata, trans.

Edward Fairfax [1600], 4.16–17) also proposes “open force, or secret guile.”

More glorious and more dread then from no fall, And trust themselves to fear no second fate: Mee though just right, and the fixt Laws of Heav’n Did first create your Leader, next free choice, With what besides, in Counsel or in Fight, Hath bin achievd of merit, yet this loss Thus farr at least recover’d, hath much more Establisht in a safe unenvied Throne Yielded with full consent. The happier state In Heav’n, which follows dignity, might draw Envy from each inferior; but who here Will envy whom the highest place exposes Formost to stand against the Thunderers aim Your bulwark, and condemns to greatest share Of endless pain? where there is then no good For which to strive, no strife can grow up there From Faction; for none sure will claim in Hell Precedence, none, whose portion is so small Of present pain, that with ambitious mind Will covet more. With this advantage then To union, and firm Faith, and firm accord, More then can be in Heav’n, we now return To claim our just inheritance of old, Surer to prosper then prosperity Could have assur’d us; and by what best way, Whether of open Warr or covert guile, We now debate; who can advise, may speak.

He ceas’d, and next him Moloc, Scepter’d King Stood up, the strongest and the fiercest Spirit That fought in Heav’n; now fiercer by despair: His trust was with th’ Eternal to be deem’d Equal in strength, and rather then be less Care’d not to be at all; with that care lost Went all his fear: of God, or Hell, or worse He reck’d° not, and these words thereafter spake. cared

My sentence° is for open Warr: Of Wiles, judgment More unexpert,° I boast not: them let those inexperienced

38 Paradise Lost

69 Tartarean. Hellish. Tartarus is the place of punishment in the classical underworld. 74 forgetful Lake. Suggests Lethe, the river of oblivion in Hades. Cf. 1.266. 75. Cf. 2.932–5.

Contrive who need, or when they need, not now For while they sit contriving, shall the rest, Millions that stand in Arms, and longing wait The Signal to ascend, sit lingring here Heav’ns fugitives, and for thir dwelling place Accept this dark opprobrious° Den of shame, infamous The Prison of his Tyranny who Reigns By our delay? no, let us rather choose Arm’d with Hell flames and fury all at once O’re Heav’ns high Towrs to force resistless way, Turning our Tortures into horrid° Arms bristling, terrible Against the Torturer; when to meet the noise Of his Almighty Engin° he shall hear machine of war Infernal Thunder, and for Lightning see Black fire and horror shot with equal rage Among his Angels; and his Throne it self Mixt with Tartarean Sulphur, and strange fire, His own invented Torments. But perhaps The way seems difficult and steep to scale With upright wing against a higher foe. Let such bethink them, if the sleepy drench° soporific drink Of that forgetful Lake benumm not still, That in our proper° motion we ascend natural Up to our native seat: descent and fall To us is adverse. Who but felt of late When the fierce Foe hung on our brok’n Rear° rearguard Insulting,° and pursu’d us through the Deep, attacking, exulting scornfully With what compulsion and laborious flight We sunk thus low? Th’ ascent is easie then; Th’ event° is fear’d; should we again provoke outcome Our stronger, some worse way his wrath may find To our destruction: if there be in Hell Fear to be worse destroy’d: what can be worse Then to dwell here, driv’n out from bliss, condemn’d In this abhorred deep to utter woe; Where pain of unextinguishable fire Must exercise° us without hope of end afflict

Book 2 39

90–2 Scourge . . . Penance. Suggest Roman Catholic practices of mortification. 113–14 Manna. The food supplied to the Israelites in the desert, tasting of honey. For making “the worse

appear / The better reason” Belial is aligned with the Sophists, mercenary teachers of rhetoric in ancient Greece, who were denounced by Plato for just this practice (Apology 19b).

The Vassals° of his anger, when the Scourge slaves Inexorably, and the torturing hour Calls us to Penance? More destroy’d then thus We should be quite abolisht and expire. What fear we then? what doubt we to incense His utmost ire? which to the highth enrag’d, Will either quite consume us, and reduce To nothing this essential,° happier farr essence Then miserable to have eternal being: Or if our substance be indeed Divine, And cannot cease to be, we are at worst On this side nothing;° and by proof we feel short of annihilation Our power sufficient to disturb his Heav’n, And with perpetual inrodes to Allarme, Though inaccessible, his fatal° Throne: fated, death-dealing Which if not Victory is yet Revenge.

He ended frowning, and his look denounc’d° proclaimed Desperate revenge, and Battel dangerous To less then Gods. On th’ other side up rose Belial, in act more graceful and humane; A fairer person lost not Heav’n; he seemd For dignity compos’d and high exploit: But all was false and hollow; though his Tongue Dropt Manna, and could make the worse appear The better reason, to perplex and dash Maturest Counsels: for his thoughts were low; To vice industrious, but to Nobler deeds Timorous and slothful: yet he pleas’d the ear, And with perswasive accent thus began.

I should be much for open Warr, O Peers, As not behind in hate; if what was urg’d Main reason to persuade immediate Warr, Did not disswade me most, and seem to cast Ominous conjecture on the whole success: When he who most excels in fact° of Arms, feat In what he counsels and in what excels Mistrustful, grounds his courage on despair

40 Paradise Lost

100

105

110

115

120

125

139 Ethereal mould. Heavenly substance, derived from “ether,” the fifth and purest element, supposed incor- ruptible.

148. Cf. Seneca, De Consolatione Ad Marciam 11.4–5, describing the capacity of thoughts to range through heaven and all past and future time.

And utter dissolution, as the scope Of all his aim, after some dire revenge. First, what Revenge? the Towrs of Heav’n are fill’d With Armed watch, that render all access Impregnable; oft on the bordering Deep Encamp thir Legions, or with obscure wing Scout farr and wide into the Realm of night, Scorning surprize. Or could we break our way By force, and at our heels all Hell should rise With blackest Insurrection, to confound Heav’ns purest Light, yet our great Enemy All incorruptible would on his Throne Sit unpolluted, and th’ Ethereal mould Incapable of stain would soon expel Her mischief, and purge off the baser fire Victorious. Thus repuls’d, our final hope Is flat° despair: we must exasperate absolute Th’ Almighty Victor to spend all his rage, And that must end us, that must be our cure, To be no more; sad cure; for who would loose, Though full of pain, this intellectual being, Those thoughts that wander through Eternity, To perish rather, swallowd up and lost In the wide womb of uncreated night, Devoid of sense and motion? and who knows, Let this be good, whether our angry Foe Can give it, or will ever? how he can Is doubtful; that he never will is sure. Will he, so wise, let loose at once his ire, Belike° through impotence, or unaware, perhaps To give his Enemies thir wish, and end Them in his anger, whom his anger saves To punish endless? wherefore cease we then? Say they who counsel Warr, we are decreed, Reserv’d and destin’d to Eternal woe; Whatever doing, what can we suffer more, What can we suffer worse? is this then worst,

Book 2 41

130

135

140

145

150

155

160

170–4. For Belial’s questions, cf. Tasso, Gerusalemme Liberata 10.44–7. For God’s “breath that kindled” cf. Isa. 30:33, “the pile [of Hell] is fire and much wood; the breath of the Lord, like a stream of brimstone, doth kindle it.” For God’s “red right hand” cf. Horace, Odes 1.2.1–4, Jove hurling thunderbolts with a “red right hand.”

190–1. “He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh; the Lord shall have them in derision” (Ps. 2:4). Milton’s God is not passionless, but displays a range of emotions, see Christian Doctrine 1.2.

Thus sitting, thus consulting, thus in Arms? What when we fled amain,° pursu’d and strook at full speed With Heav’ns afflicting Thunder, and besought The Deep to shelter us? this Hell then seem’d A refuge from those wounds: or when we lay Chain’d on the burning Lake? that sure was worse. What if the breath that kindl’d those grim fires Awak’d should blow them into sevenfold rage And plunge us in the flames? or from above Should intermitted° vengeance arm again suspended His red right hand to plague us? what if all Her stores were open’d, and this Firmament° vault Of Hell should spout her Cataracts° of Fire, cascades Impendent° horrors, threatning hideous fall hanging down One day upon our heads; while we perhaps Designing or exhorting glorious warr, Caught in a fierie Tempest shall be hurl’d Each on his rock transfixt, the sport and prey Of racking° whirlwinds, or for ever sunk driving, torturing Under yon boyling Ocean, wrapt in Chains; There to converse with everlasting groans, Unrespited, unpitied, unrepreevd, Ages of hopeless end;° this would be worse. without hope for an end Warr therefore, open or conceal’d, alike My voice disswades; for what can force or guile With him, or who deceive his mind, whose eye Views all things at one view? he from heav’ns highth All these our motions° vain, sees and derides; proposals, plans Not more Almighty to resist our might Then wise to frustrate all our plots and wiles. Shall we then live thus vile, the Race of Heav’n Thus trampl’d, thus expell’d to suffer here Chains and these Torments? better these then worse By my advice; since fate inevitable Subdues us, and Omnipotent Decree,

42 Paradise Lost

165

170

175

180

185

190

195

199–200. Echoing Mucius Scaevola’s famous words, when he held his hand in the fire to demonstrate Roman fortitude (Livy, Ab Urbe Condita 2.12.10).

212 mind. Be concerned about; be aware of. 220 light. May be a noun, the opposite of darkness, or an adjective, “easy to bear.”

The Victors will. To suffer, as to doe, Our strength is equal, nor the Law unjust That so ordains: this was at first resolv’d, If we were wise, against so great a foe Contending, and so doubtful what might fall. I laugh, when those who at the Spear are bold And vent’rous, if that fail them, shrink and fear What yet they know must follow, to endure Exile, or ignominy,° or bonds, or pain, humiliation The sentence of thir Conquerour: This is now Our doom; which if we can sustain and bear, Our Supream Foe in time may much remit His anger, and perhaps thus farr remov’d Not mind us not offending, satisfi’d With what is punish’t; whence these raging fires Will slack’n, if his breath stir not thir flames. Our purer essence then will overcome Thir noxious vapour, or enur’d° not feel, accustomed Or chang’d at length, and to the place conformd In temper° and in nature, will receive physical and mental constitution Familiar the fierce heat, and void of pain; This horror will grow milde, this darkness light, Besides what hope the never-ending flight Of future dayes may bring, what chance, what change Worth waiting, since our present lot appeers For happy though but ill, for ill not worst, If we procure not to our selves more woe.

Thus Belial with words cloath’d in reasons garb Counsell’d ignoble ease, and peaceful sloath, Not peace: and after him thus Mammon spake.

Either to disinthrone the King of Heav’n We warr, if warr be best, or to regain Our own right lost: him to unthrone we then May hope when everlasting Fate shall yeild To fickle Chance, and Chaos judge the strife: The former vain to hope argues as vain The latter: for what place can be for us

Book 2 43

200

205

210

215

220

225

230

235

252–60. Mammon echoes the Stoic stance of Horace (Epistles 1.18.107–10) but not his proposed simple lifestyle.

Within Heav’ns bound, unless Heav’ns Lord supream We overpower? Suppose he should relent And publish Grace to all, on promise made Of new Subjection; with what eyes could we Stand in his presence humble, and receive Strict Laws impos’d, to celebrate his Throne With warbl’d Hymns, and to his Godhead sing Forc’t Halleluiah’s; while he Lordly sits Our envied Sovran, and his Altar breathes Ambrosial° Odours and Ambrosial Flowers, fragrant, divine Our servile offerings. This must be our task In Heav’n this our delight; how wearisom Eternity so spent in worship paid To whom we hate. Let us not then pursue By force impossible, by leave obtain’d Unacceptable, though in Heav’n, our state Of splendid vassalage,° but rather seek servitude Our own good from our selves, and from our own Live to our selves, though in this vast recess, Free, and to none accountable, preferring Hard liberty before the easie yoke Of servile Pomp. Our greatness will appeer Then most conspicuous, when great things of small, Useful of hurtful, prosperous of adverse We can create, and in what place so e’re Thrive under evil, and work ease out of pain Through labour and indurance. This deep world Of darkness do we dread? How oft amidst Thick clouds and dark doth Heav’ns all-ruling Sire Choose to reside, his Glory unobscur’d, And with the Majesty of darkness round Covers his Throne; from whence deep thunders roar Must’ring thir rage, and Heav’n resembles Hell? As he our darkness, cannot we his Light Imitate when we please? This Desart soile Wants° not her hidden lustre, Gemms and Gold; lacks Nor want we skill or Art, from whence to raise Magnificence; and what can Heav’n shew more? Our torments also may in length of time Become our Elements, these piercing Fires

44 Paradise Lost

240

245

250

255

260

265

270

275

278. Pain felt by the senses. 294 Michael. Traditionally, the chief of the angelic armies, cf. 6.250ff, 320ff. 306 Atlantean. Burdened statesmen were often compared to Atlas the Titan, whose rebellion Jove punished

by forcing him to bear the heavens on his shoulders. 310–11. Angelic orders. See note to line 11, above.

As soft as now severe, our temper chang’d Into their temper; which must needs remove The sensible of pain. All things invite To peaceful Counsels, and the settl’d State Of order, how in safety best we may Compose° our present evils, with regard adjust to Of what we are and where, dismissing quite All thoughts of warr: ye have what I advise.

He scarce had finisht, when such murmur filld Th’ Assembly, as when hollow Rocks retain The sound of blustring winds, which all night long Had rous’d the Sea, now with hoarse cadence lull Sea-faring men orewatcht,° whose Bark by chance worn out from watching Or Pinnace° anchors in a craggy Bay small light boat After the Tempest: Such applause was heard As Mammon ended, and his Sentence pleas’d, Advising peace: for such another Field They dreaded worse then Hell: so much the fear Of Thunder and the Sword of Michael Wrought still within them; and no less desire To found this nether Empire, which might rise By pollicy,° and long process of time, statecraft In emulation opposite to Heav’n. Which when Beelzebub perceiv’d, then whom, Satan except, none higher sat, with grave Aspect he rose, and in his rising seem’d A Pillar of State; deep on his Front° engraven forehead Deliberation sat and public care; And Princely counsel in his face yet shon, Majestic though in ruin: sage he stood With Atlantean shoulders fit to bear The weight of mightiest Monarchies; his look Drew audience and attention still as Night Or Summers Noon-tide air, while thus he spake.

Thrones and Imperial Powers, off-spring of heav’n, Ethereal Vertues; or these Titles now

Book 2 45

280

285

290

295

300

305

310

327–8. God’s iron scepter symbolizes Justice, his golden scepter, Mercy. Cf. Rev. 19:15, “he shall rule them with a rod of iron.” In 1653 Milton translated Ps. 2:9 with the phrase, “With iron scepter bruised.” See PL 5.886–7.

Must we renounce, and changing stile be call’d Princes of Hell? for so the popular vote Inclines, here to continue, and build up here A growing Empire; doubtless; while we dream, And know not that the King of Heav’n hath doom’d This place our dungeon, not our safe retreat Beyond his Potent arm, to live exempt From Heav’ns high jurisdiction, in new League Banded against his Throne, but to remaine In strictest bondage, though thus far remov’d, Under th’ inevitable curb, reserv’d His captive multitude: For he, be sure, In heighth or depth, still first and last will Reign Sole King, and of his Kingdom loose no part By our revolt, but over Hell extend His Empire, and with Iron Scepter rule Us here, as with his Golden those in Heav’n. What° sit we then projecting peace and Warr? why Warr hath determin’d us, and foild with loss Irreparable; tearms of peace yet none Voutsaf ’t° or sought; for what peace will be giv’n granted To us enslav’d, but custody severe, And stripes, and arbitrary punishment Inflicted? and what peace can we return, But to° our power hostility and hate, to the extent of Untam’d reluctance,° and revenge though slow, resistance Yet ever plotting how the Conqueror least May reap his conquest, and may least rejoyce In doing what we most in suffering feel? Nor will occasion want,° nor shall we need be lacking With dangerous expedition to invade Heav’n, whose high walls fear no assault or Siege, Or ambush from the Deep. What if we find Some easier enterprize? There is a place (If ancient and prophetic fame° in Heav’n rumor Err not) another World, the happy seat Of some new Race call’d Man, about this time

46 Paradise Lost

315

320

325

330

335

340

345

349–50. Cf. Ps. 8:5: “For thou hast made him a little lower than the angels.” See PL 1.654, 8.228. 352–3. In classical epic the heavens shake when the king of the gods (Zeus, Jove) takes an oath. 369–70. Gen. 6:7, God determining to destroy the world by flood: “And the Lord said, I will destroy man

[and all the creatures] . . . for it repenteth me that I have made them.” 383. Adam is the “root” of the human family tree.

To be created like to us, though less In power and excellence, but favour’d more Of him who rules above; so was his will Pronounc’d among the Gods,° and by an Oath, angels That shook Heav’ns whol circumference, confirm’d. Thither let us bend all our thoughts, to learn What creatures there inhabit, of what mould, Or substance, how endu’d,° and what thir Power, endowed And where thir weakness, how attempted° best, attacked, tempted By force or suttlety: Though Heav’n be shut, And Heav’ns high Arbitrator sit secure In his own strength, this place may lye expos’d The utmost border of his Kingdom, left To their defence who hold it: here perhaps Som advantagious act may be achiev’d By sudden onset, either with Hell fire To waste his whole Creation, or possess All as our own, and drive as we were driven, The punie habitants, or if not drive, Seduce them to our Party, that thir God May prove thir foe, and with repenting hand Abolish his own works. This would surpass Common revenge, and interrupt his joy In our Confusion, and our Joy upraise In his disturbance; when his darling Sons Hurl’d headlong to partake with us, shall curse Thir frail Original,° and faded bliss, originator, parent Faded so soon. Advise if this be worth Attempting, or to sit in darkness here Hatching vain Empires. Thus Beelzebub Pleaded his devilish Counsel, first devis’d By Satan, and in part propos’d: for whence, But from the Author of all ill could Spring So deep a malice, to confound° the race ruin Of mankind in one root, and Earth with Hell To mingle and involve,° done all to spite entangle

Book 2 47

350

355

360

365

370

375

380

406 palpable obscure. Darkness so thick it can be felt (cf. Exod. 10:21). 409 vast abrupt. An abyss, referring to Chaos, the gulf between two created places, heaven and hell. 410 happy Ile. Earth, with probable allusion to the Isles of the Blessed in Greek mythology. 420. Cf. 3.217.

The great Creatour? But thir spite still serves His glory to augment. The bold design Pleas’d highly those infernal States,° and joy nobles Sparkl’d in all thir eyes; with full assent They vote: whereat his speech he thus renews.

Well have ye judg’d, well ended long debate, Synod° of Gods, and like to what ye are, assembly Great things resolv’d, which from the lowest deep Will once more lift us up, in spight of Fate, Neerer our ancient Seat; perhaps in view Of those bright confines, whence with neighbouring Arms And opportune excursion we may chance Re-enter Heav’n; or else in some milde Zone Dwell not unvisited of Heav’ns fair Light Secure, and at the brightning Orient beam Purge off this gloom; the soft delicious Air, To heal the scarr of these corrosive Fires Shall breathe her balme. But first whom shall we send In search of this new world, whom shall we find Sufficient? who shall tempt° with wandring feet attempt, try The dark unbottom’d infinite Abyss And through the palpable obscure find out His uncouth° way, or spread his aerie flight unknown Upborn with indefatigable wings Over the vast abrupt, ere he arrive The happy Ile; what strength, what art can then Suffice, or what evasion bear him safe Through the strict Senteries° and Stations° thick sentries / guardposts Of Angels watching round? Here he had need All circumspection, and wee now no less Choice° in our suffrage; for on whom we send, discrimination The weight of all and our last hope relies.

This said, he sat; and expectation held His look suspence,° awaiting who appeer’d in suspension To second, or oppose, or undertake The perilous attempt; but all sat mute,

48 Paradise Lost

385

390

395

400

405

410

415

420

427–66. Cf. the Son’s parallel offer, 3.222–65. 432–3. An echo of the Sybil’s warning to Aeneas, Aeneid 6.126–9. 435–6. Hell’s fiery walls have nine thicknesses that “immure” the fallen angels. Adamant. A substance

of impenetrable hardness. 441 abortive gulf. Chaos is a womb in which all potential forms fragment (cf. 900ff ). 450–66. An ironic recasting of the noble speech of Sarpedon to Glaucus (Iliad 12.310–28).

Pondering the danger with deep thoughts; and each In others count’nance read his own dismay Astonisht:° none among the choice and prime stunned Of those Heav’n-warring Champions could be found So hardie as to proffer or accept Alone the dreadful voyage; till at last Satan, whom now transcendent glory rais’d Above his fellows, with Monarchal pride Conscious of highest worth, unmov’d thus spake.

O Progeny of Heav’n, Empyreal Thrones, With reason hath deep silence and demurr° delay Seis’d us, though undismaid: long is the way And hard, that out of Hell leads up to light; Our prison strong, this huge convex° of Fire, vault Outrageous° to devour, immures us round furious Ninefold, and gates of burning Adamant Barr’d over us prohibit all egress. These past, if any pass, the void profound Of unessential° Night receives him next without being Wide gaping, and with utter loss of being Threatens him, plung’d in that abortive gulf. If thence he scape into whatever world, Or unknown Region, what remains him less° awaits him except Then unknown dangers and as hard escape. But I should ill become this Throne, O Peers,° nobles, companions And this Imperial Sov’ranty, adorn’d With splendor, arm’d with power, if aught propos’d And judg’d of public moment,° in the shape importance Of difficulty or danger could deterr Mee from attempting. Wherefore do I assume These Royalties,° and not refuse to Reign, royal prerogatives Refusing to accept as great a share Of hazard as of honour, due alike To him who Reigns, and so much to him due Of hazard more, as he above the rest

Book 2 49

425

430

435

440

445

450

455

High honourd sits? Go therefore mighty Powers, Terror of Heav’n, though fall’n; intend° at home, consider While here shall be our home, what best may ease The present misery, and render Hell More tollerable; if there be cure or charm To respite° or deceive,° or slack the pain relieve / beguile away Of this ill Mansion: intermit no watch Against a wakeful Foe, while I abroad Through all the Coasts° of dark destruction seek regions Deliverance for us all: this enterprize None shall partake with me. Thus saying rose The Monarch, and prevented° all reply, forestalled Prudent, least from his resolution rais’d° made bold Others among the chief might offer now (Certain to be refus’d) what erst° they fear’d; formerly And so refus’d might in opinion stand His Rivals, winning cheap the high repute Which he through hazard huge must earn. But they Dreaded not more th’ adventure then his voice Forbidding; and at once with him they rose; Thir rising all at once was as the sound Of Thunder heard remote. Towards him they bend With awful° reverence prone; and as a God full of awe Extoll him equal to the highest in Heav’n: Nor fail’d they to express how much they prais’d, That for the general safety he despis’d His own: for neither do the Spirits damn’d Loose all thir vertue; least bad men should boast Thir specious° deeds on earth, which glory excites, pretending to worth Or clos° ambition varnisht o’re with zeal. secret Thus they thir doubtful consultations dark Ended rejoycing in thir matchless Chief: As when from mountain tops the dusky clouds Ascending, while the North wind sleeps, o’respread Heav’ns chearful face, the lowring Element° threatening sky Scowls ore the dark’nd lantskip° Snow, or showre; landscape If chance the radiant Sun with farewell sweet Extend his ev’ning beam, the fields revive, The birds thir notes renew, and bleating herds Attest thir joy, that hill and valley rings. O shame to men! Devil with Devil damn’d Firm concord holds, men onely disagree

50 Paradise Lost

460

465

470

475

480

485

490

495

506 Stygian. From the river Styx, leading to Hades. 512 Globe. A compact body, often a formation of soldiers. “Seraphim” are associated with fire; saraph in

Hebrew means “to burn.” 517 sounding Alchymie. Trumpets made of the goldlike alloy, brass. 528–55. Athletic games and musical contests are common in epic. See Aeneid 6.642–59. 530. The “Olympian” games were held at Olympia, the “Pythian” games at Delphi. 531 shun the Goal. To drive a chariot as close as possible to a turning post without hitting it.

Of Creatures rational, though under hope Of heavenly Grace: and God proclaiming peace, Yet live in hatred, enmity, and strife Among themselves, and levie cruel warres, Wasting the Earth, each other to destroy: As if (which might induce us to accord) Man had not hellish foes anow° besides, enough That day and night for his destruction waite.

The Stygian Counsel thus dissolv’d; and forth In order came the grand infernal Peers, Midst came thir mighty Paramount,° and seemd supreme ruler Alone th’ Antagonist of Heav’n, nor less Than Hells dread Emperour with pomp Supream, And God-like imitated State; him round A Globe of fierie Seraphim inclos’d With bright imblazonrie,° and horrent° Arms. heraldic devices / bristling Then of thir Session ended they bid cry With Trumpets regal sound the great result: Toward the four winds four speedy Cherubim Put to thir mouths the sounding Alchymie By Haralds voice explain’d: the hollow Abyss Heard farr and wide, and all the host of Hell With deafning shout, return’d them loud acclaim. Thence more at ease thir minds and somwhat rais’d By false presumptuous hope, the ranged° powers arrayed in ranks Disband, and wandring, each his several way Pursues, as inclination or sad choice Leads him perplext, where he may likeliest find Truce to his restless thoughts, and entertain° while away The irksom hours, till his great Chief return. Part on the Plain, or in the Air sublime° aloft Upon the wing, or in swift Race contend, As at th’ Olympian Games or Pythian fields; Part curb thir fierie Steeds, or shun the Goal With rapid wheels, or fronted Brigads° form. opposing teams

Book 2 51

500

505

510

515

520

525

530

533–6. The seeming appearance of warfare in the skies, reported before several notable battles including the English Civil War, was thought to warn of the wars to come.

539–41 Typhœan rage. Typhon’s name was associated with typhoon, and meant “whirlwind.” See note to 1.198–9.

542–6 Alcides. Hercules (Alcides), wearing a poisoned (“envenom’d”) robe given to him through a decep- tion practiced on his wife after he returned from a victory at “Oechalia,” was driven mad with pain. Wrongly suspecting his beloved companion “Lichas,” who innocently gave him the cloak, he threw him along with uprooted trees from the top of Mount “Oeta” in Thessaly into “the Euboic Sea,” the strait between Thessaly in northern Greece and the Isle of Euboia. Cf. Ovid, Metamorphoses 9.134–229.

557–65 Various classical schools are prefigured here, e.g. the Peripatetic, Epicurean, and Stoic, as well as con- temporary theological debates about predestination, foreknowledge, and free will. Cf. Jesus’ denunciation of the classical schools in Paradise Regained 4.291–321.

As when to warn proud Cities warr appears Wag’d in the troubl’d Skie, and Armies rush To Battel in the Clouds, before each Van° vanguard Prick° forth the Aerie Knights, and couch thir Spears spur Till thickest Legions close; with feats of Arms From either end of Heav’n the welkin° burns. sky Others with vast Typhœan rage more fell° fierce Rend up both Rocks and Hills, and ride the Air In whirlwind; Hell scarce holds the wilde uproar. As when Alcides from Oechalia Crown’d With conquest, felt th’ envenom’d robe, and tore Through pain up by the roots Thessalian Pines, And Lichas from the top of Oeta threw Into th’ Euboic Sea. Others more milde, Retreated in a silent valley, sing With notes Angelical to many a Harp Thir own Heroic deeds and hapless fall By doom of Battel; and complain that Fate Free Vertue should enthrall to Force or Chance. Thir Song was partial,° but the harmony biased, polyphonic (What could it less when Spirits immortal sing?) Suspended° Hell, and took with ravishment held in suspense The thronging audience. In discourse more sweet (For Eloquence the Soul, Song charms the Sense,) Others apart sat on a Hill retir’d, In thoughts more elevate, and reason’d high Of Providence, Foreknowledge, Will and Fate, Fixt Fate, free will, foreknowledg absolute, And found no end, in wandring mazes lost. Of good and evil much they argu’d then,

52 Paradise Lost

535

540

545

550

555

560

564 Apathie. The Stoic ideal of freedom from passion. 575–81 four infernal Rivers. These are traditional in the geography of Hell; the epithet describing each trans-

lates its Greek name. 583 Lethe. Defined here as the “River of Oblivion.” Cf. lines 74 above and 604 below. 590–1 gathers heap. In a heap, resembling the ruins of a massive old building, “ancient pile.” 592–4 Serbonian Bog. Lake Serbonis, famous for quicksands that sank armies and overwhelmed the defeated

monster Typhon, lies near the city of “Damiata” (Damietta) on the Egyptian coast near the mouth of the Nile. “Mount Casius” lies between Egypt and Arabia.

Of happiness and final misery, Passion and Apathie, and glory and shame, Vain wisdom all, and false Philosophie: Yet with a pleasing sorcerie could charm Pain for a while or anguish, and excite Fallacious hope, or arm th’ obdured° brest hardened With stubborn patience as with triple steel. Another part in Squadrons and gross° Bands, large, dense On bold adventure to discover wide That dismal world, if any Clime perhaps Might yield them easier habitation, bend Four ways thir flying March, along the Banks Of four infernal Rivers that disgorge Into the burning Lake thir baleful° streams; evil Abhorred Styx the flood of deadly hate, Sad Acheron of sorrow, black and deep; Cocytus, nam’d of lamentation loud Heard on the ruful stream; fierce Phlegeton Whose waves of torrent fire inflame with rage. Farr off from these a slow and silent stream, Lethe the River of Oblivion roules Her watrie Labyrinth, whereof who drinks, Forthwith his former state and being forgets, Forgets both joy and grief, pleasure and pain. Beyond this flood a frozen Continent Lies dark and wilde, beat with perpetual storms Of Whirlwind and dire Hail, which on firm land Thaws not, but gathers heap, and ruin seems Of ancient pile; all else deep snow and ice, A gulf profound° as that Serbonian Bog deep Betwixt Damiata and Mount Casius old, Where Armies whole have sunk: the parching Air Burns frore,° and cold performs th’ effect of Fire. extremely cold

Book 2 53

565

570

575

580

585

590

595

596 harpy-footed. With eagle-like talons. In Homer the Harpies (winged monsters with women’s faces) carry souls off to the avenging Furies (Odyssey 20.61–78). Milton combines the Harpies and the Furies.

611 Medusa. One of the three Gorgons, women with snaky hair whose look turned men to stone. 614. In Homer’s hell “Tantalus” is tormented (tantalized) by being forced to stand in the middle of a lake whose

waters recede whenever he tries to slake his raging thirst (Odyssey 11.582–92). 628 Hydras. Venomous serpents with nine heads, each of which grew back when severed. Chimeras. Fire-

breathing monsters. Gorgons. See note to line 611. 629 Adversary. The literal meaning of “Satan” (see 1 Pet. 5:8).

Thither by harpy-footed Furies hail’d,° hauled, dragged At certain revolutions° all the damn’d recurring times Are brought: and feel by turns the bitter change Of fierce extreams, extreams by change more fierce, From Beds of raging Fire to starve° in Ice freeze Thir soft Ethereal warmth, and there to pine Immovable, infixt,° and frozen round, firmly planted Periods of time, thence hurried back to fire. They ferry over this Lethean Sound Both to and fro, thir sorrow to augment, And wish and struggle, as they pass, to reach The tempting stream, with one small drop to loose In sweet forgetfulness all pain and woe, All in one moment, and so neer the brink; But Fate withstands, and to oppose th’ attempt Medusa with Gorgonian terror guards The Ford, and of it self the water flies All taste of living wight,° as once it fled creature The lip of Tantalus. Thus roving on In confus’d march forlorn, th’ adventrous Bands With shuddring horror pale, and eyes agast View’d first thir lamentable lot, and found No rest: through many a dark and drearie Vaile They pass’d, and many a Region dolorous, O’er many a Frozen, many a fierie Alpe,° high mountain Rocks, Caves, Lakes, Fens, Bogs, Dens, and shades of death, A Universe of death, which God by curse Created evil, for evil only good, Where all life dies, death lives, and Nature breeds, Perverse, all monstrous, all prodigious° things, unnatural, abnormal Abominable, inutterable, and worse Than Fables yet have feign’d, or fear conceiv’d, Gorgons and Hydras, and Chimeras dire.

Mean while the Adversary of God and Man,

54 Paradise Lost

600

605

610

615

620

625

638 Close sailing. Sailing close to the wind. Bengala. Bengal, in India 639 Ternate and Tidore. Two of the Spice Islands, in the Moluccas (Indonesia). 640–2 Trading Flood. The trade route for spice merchants on the Indian “Ethiopian” Ocean, sailing from

the Moluccas toward “the Cape” of Good Hope and the South “Pole.” 648–9. The two figures blocking Satan’s path allude to the monster Scylla and the giant whirlpool Charybdis,

who threaten sailors passing down the Straits of Messina between Italy and Sicily (Odyssey 12.229–59). The identification of the two “shapes” comes at lines 760 and 787 below.

650–61. Sin is modeled on “Scylla,” a beautiful nymph whose lower parts were changed into a ring of bark- ing dogs when Circe, out of jealousy, poured poison into the straits between “Calabria,” the southernmost part of Italy, and Sicily (“Trinacrian shore”) where she was bathing (Ovid, Metamorphoses 14.40–74). Another model is Spenser’s Errour (Faerie Queene 1.1.14–15).

655 Cerberian. Like Cerberus, the many-headed watchdog of Hades.

Satan with thoughts inflam’d of highest design, Puts on swift wings, and towards the Gates of Hell Explores° his solitary flight; som times tries, tests He scours the right hand coast, som times the left, Now shaves° with level wing the Deep, then soares skims Up to the fiery Concave° touring° high. vault / rising, towering As when farr off at Sea a Fleet descri’d Hangs in the Clouds, by Æquinoctial° Winds from the Equator Close sailing from Bengala, or the Iles Of Ternate and Tidore, whence Merchants bring Thir spicie Drugs:° they on the Trading Flood spices Through the wide Ethiopian to the Cape Ply stemming° nightly toward the Pole. So seem’d steering Farr off the flying Fiend: at last appeer Hell bounds high reaching to the horrid Roof, And thrice threefold the Gates; three folds were Brass, Three Iron, three of Adamantine° Rock, impregnably hard Impenetrable, impal’d° with circling fire, fenced in Yet unconsum’d. Before the Gates there sat On either side a formidable shape; The one seem’d Woman to the waste, and fair, But ended foul in many a scaly fould Voluminous and vast, a Serpent arm’d With mortal sting: about her middle round A cry° of Hell Hounds never ceasing bark’d pack With wide Cerberian mouths full loud, and rung A hideous Peal: yet, when they list,° would creep, wished If aught disturb’d thir noyse, into her woomb, And kennel there, yet there still bark’d and howl’d, Within unseen. Farr less abhorrd than these Vex’d Scylla bathing in the Sea that parts

Book 2 55

630

635

640

645

650

655

660

662–5 Night-Hag. Hecate, goddess of sorcery, whose approach is signaled by howling dogs, and who attends orgies of witches in Lapland (famous for witchcraft), drawn by the blood of babies they have sacrificed.

666–73. The portrayal of Death as a shadowy, black, nebulous figure with dart and crown is traditional (cf. Rev. 6:2).

692 third part. The number comes from Rev. 12:4. Cf. PL 1.632–3 and 9.141–2.

Calabria from the hoarse Trinacrian shore: Nor uglier follow the Night-Hag, when call’d In secret, riding through the Air she comes Lur’d with the smell of infant blood, to dance With Lapland Witches, while the labouring Moon Eclipses at thir charms.° The other shape, magic spells If shape it might be call’d that shape had none Distinguishable in member, joynt, or limb, Or substance might be call’d that shadow seem’d, For each seem’d either; black it stood as Night, Fierce as ten Furies, terrible as Hell, And shook a dreadful Dart; what seem’d his head The likeness of a Kingly Crown had on. Satan was now at hand, and from his seat The Monster moving onward came as fast With horrid strides, Hell trembled as he strode. Th’ undaunted Fiend what this might be admir’d,° wondered Admir’d, not fear’d; God and his Son except, Created thing naught valu’d he nor shun’d; And with disdainful look thus first began.

Whence and what art thou, execrable shape, That dar’st, though grim and terrible, advance Thy miscreated Front° athwart my way misshapen face To yonder Gates? through them I mean to pass, That be assured, without leave askt of thee: Retire, or taste thy folly, and learn by proof,° experience Hell-born, not to contend with Spirits of Heav’n.

To whom the Goblin full of wrauth reply’d, Art thou that Traitor Angel, art thou hee, Who first broke peace in Heav’n and Faith, till then Unbrok’n, and in proud rebellious Arms Drew after him the third part of Heav’ns Sons Conjur’d° against the highest, for which both Thou conspired And they outcast from God, are here condemn’d To waste Eternal dayes in woe and pain? And reck’n’st thou thy self with Spirits of Heav’n,

56 Paradise Lost

665

670

675

680

685

690

695

709–11 Ophiucus. A vast northern constellation, the Serpent Bearer. Comets were thought to predict or even cause disasters such as “Pestilence” and “Warr”; one that appeared in this constellation in 1618 was taken as an augury of the Thirty Years War. Cf. Tasso’s comparison of Argantes to a comet that threatens death “To mighty lords, to monarchs, and to kings” (Gerusalemme Liberata 7.52).

714–18. Boiardo (Orlando Innamorato 1.16.10) likens Orlando and Agrican’s encounter to a clash of thunder- clouds. The “Caspian” was notorious for storms.

722 foe. The Son will destroy “him that had the power of death, that is, the devil” (Heb. 2:14). He will also destroy “the last enemy . . . death” (1 Cor. 15:26).

Hell-doom’d, and breath’st defiance here and scorn Where I reign King, and to enrage thee more, Thy King and Lord? Back to thy punishment, False fugitive, and to thy speed add wings, Least with a whip of Scorpions° I pursue studded whip Thy lingring, or with one stroke of this Dart Strange horror seise thee, and pangs unfelt before.

So spake the grieslie terror, and in shape, So speaking and so threatning, grew tenfold More dreadful and deform: on th’ other side Incenst with indignation Satan stood Unterrifi’d, and like a Comet burn’d, That fires the length of Ophiucus huge In th’ Artick Sky, and from his horrid° hair bristling Shakes Pestilence and Warr. Each at the Head Level’d his deadly aime; thir fatall hands No second stroke intend, and such a frown Each cast at th’ other, as when two black Clouds With Heav’ns Artillery° fraught, come rattling on thunderbolts Over the Caspian, then stand front to front Hov’ring a space, till Winds the signal blow To join thir dark Encounter in mid air: So frownd the mighty Combatants, that Hell Grew darker at thir frown, so matcht they stood; For never but once more was either like To meet so great a foe: and now great deeds Had been achiev’d, whereof all Hell had rung, Had not the Snakie Sorceress that sat Fast by Hell Gate, and kept the fatal Key, Ris’n, and with hideous outcry rush’d between.

O Father, what intends thy hand, she cry’d, Against thy only Son? What fury O Son, Possesses thee to bend that mortal Dart

Book 2 57

700

705

710

715

720

725

752–8. In Greek myth, Athena sprang fully armed out of the head of Zeus, an allegory, according to some theologians, of God’s generation of the Son. Sin, Death, and Satan in their various incestuous interrela- tions parody obscenely the relations between God and the Son, Adam and Eve (cf. 5.602–17, 8.457–77). The “left” is the sinister side.

760–87. The allegorical figures of Sin and Death are based on Jas. 1:15: “Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin, and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.” But the incest of Sin and Death is Milton’s own conception.

Against thy Fathers head? and know’st for whom; For him who sits above and laughs the while At thee ordain’d his drudge, to execute What e’re his wrath, which he calls Justice, bids, His wrath which one day will destroy ye both.

She spake, and at her words the hellish Pest Forbore, then these to her Satan return’d:

So strange thy outcry, and thy words so strange Thou interposest, that my sudden hand Prevented° spares to tell thee yet by deeds forestalled What it intends; till first I know of thee, What thing thou art, thus double-form’d, and why In this infernal Vaile first met thou call’st Me Father, and that Fantasm call’st my Son? I know thee not, nor ever saw till now Sight more detestable then him and thee.

T’ whom thus the Portress of Hell Gate reply’d; Hast thou forgot me then, and do I seem Now in thine eye so foul, once deemd so fair In Heav’n, when at th’ Assembly, and in sight Of all the Seraphim with thee combin’d In bold conspiracy against Heav’ns King, All on a sudden miserable pain Surprisd thee, dim thine eyes, and dizzie swumm In darkness, while thy head flames thick and fast Threw forth, till on the left side op’ning wide, Likest to thee in shape and count’nance bright, Then shining heav’nly fair, a Goddess arm’d Out of thy head I sprung; amazement seis’d All th’ Host of Heav’n; back they recoild affraid At first, and call’d me Sin, and for a Sign Portentous held me; but familiar grown, I pleas’d, and with attractive graces won The most averse, thee chiefly, who full oft

58 Paradise Lost

730

735

740

745

750

755

760

764–6. Cf. 3.62–4, 167–70.

Thy self in me thy perfect image viewing Becam’st enamour’d, and such joy thou took’st With me in secret, that my womb conceiv’d A growing burden. Mean while Warr arose, And fields were fought in Heav’n; wherein remaind (For what could else) to our Almighty Foe Cleer Victory, to our part loss and rout Through all the Empyrean: down they fell Driv’n headlong from the Pitch° of Heaven, down apex, summit Into this Deep, and in the general fall I also; at which time this powerful Key Into my hand was giv’n, with charge to keep These Gates for ever shut, which none can pass Without my op’ning. Pensive here I sat Alone, but long I sat not, till my womb Pregnant by thee, and now excessive grown Prodigious° motion felt and rueful throes. enormous, portentous At last this odious offspring whom thou seest Thine own begotten, breaking violent way Tore through my entrails, that with fear and pain Distorted, all my nether shape° thus grew lower parts Transform’d: but he my inbred enemie Forth issu’d, brandishing his fatal Dart Made to destroy: I fled, and cry’d out Death; Hell trembl’d at the hideous Name, and sigh’d From all her Caves, and back resounded Death. I fled, but he pursu’d (though more, it seems, Inflam’d with lust then rage) and swifter far, Mee overtook his mother all dismaid, And in embraces forcible and foule Ingendring with me, of that rape begot These yelling Monsters that with ceasless cry Surround me, as thou sawst, hourly conceiv’d And hourly born, with sorrow infinite To me, for when they list° into the womb wish That bred them they return, and howle and gnaw My Bowels, thir repast; then bursting forth Afresh with conscious terrours vex me round, That rest or intermission none I find. Before mine eyes in opposition sits

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765

770

775

780

785

790

795

800

Grim Death my Son and foe, who sets them on, And me his Parent would full soon devour For want of other prey, but that he knows His end with mine involvd; and knows that I Should prove a bitter Morsel, and his bane,° poison When ever that shall be; so Fate pronounc’d. But thou O Father, I forewarn thee, shun His deadly arrow; neither vainly hope To be invulnerable in those bright Arms, Though temper’d heav’nly, for that mortal dint,° fatal stroke Save he who reigns above, none can resist.

She finish’d, and the suttle Fiend his lore° lesson Soon learnd, now milder, and thus answerd smooth. Dear Daughter, since thou claim’st me for thy Sire, And my fair Son here showst me, the dear pledge Of dalliance had with thee in Heav’n, and joys Then sweet, now sad to mention, through dire change Befalln us unforeseen, unthought of, know I come no enemie, but to set free From out this dark and dismal house of pain, Both him and thee, and all the heav’nly Host Of Spirits that in our just pretenses° arm’d claims Fell with us from on high: from them I go This uncouth° errand sole, and one for all unknown, strange My self expose, with lonely steps to tread Th’ unfounded° deep, and through the void immense bottomless To search with wandring quest a place foretold Should be, and, by concurring signs, ere now Created vast and round, a place of bliss In the Pourlieues° of Heav’n, and therein plac’t outskirts A race of upstart Creatures, to supply Perhaps our vacant room, though more remov’d, Least Heav’n surcharg’d° with potent multitude overcrowded Might hap to move new broiles: Be this or aught Then this more secret now design’d, I haste To know, and this once known, shall soon return, And bring ye to the place where Thou and Death Shall dwell at ease, and up and down unseen Wing silently the buxom° Air, imbalm’d° yielding / made fragrant With odours; there ye shall be fed and fill’d Immeasurably, all things shall be your prey. He ceas’d, for both seem’d highly pleasd, and Death

60 Paradise Lost

805

810

815

820

825

830

835

840

845

864–70. Parodies the Nicene Creed, “Jesus Christ . . . who sitteth on the right hand of the Father, and . . . of whose kingdom there shall be no end.” Cf. PL 3.62–3, 250–65.

873 bestial train. Her yelping offspring. 877 wards. The ridges inside a lock, corresponding to the incisions on the key.

Grinnd horrible a gastly smile, to hear His famine° should be fill’d, and blest his mawe° ravenous hunger / stomach Destin’d to that good hour: no less rejoyc’d His mother bad, and thus bespake her Sire.

The key of this infernal Pit by due, And by command of Heav’ns all-powerful King I keep, by him forbidden to unlock These Adamantine° Gates; against all force impregnably hard Death ready stands to interpose his dart, Fearless to be o’rmatcht by living might. But what ow I to his commands above Who hates me, and hath hither thrust me down Into this gloom of Tartarus profound, To sit in hateful Office here confin’d, Inhabitant of Heav’n, and heav’nlie-born, Here in perpetual agonie and pain, With terrors and with clamors compasst round Of mine own brood, that on my bowels feed: Thou art my Father, thou my Author, thou My being gav’st me; whom should I obey But thee, whom follow? thou wilt bring me soon To that new world of light and bliss, among The Gods who live at ease, where I shall Reign At thy right hand voluptuous, as beseems Thy daughter and thy darling, without end.

Thus saying, from her side the fatal Key, Sad instrument of all our woe, she took; And towards the Gate rouling her bestial train, Forthwith the huge Porcullis° high up drew, outer gate Which but her self not all the Stygian powers° armies of hell Could once have mov’d; then in the key-hole turns Th’ intricate wards, and every Bolt and Bar Of massie Iron or sollid Rock with ease Unfast’ns: on a sudden op’n flie With impetuous recoile and jarring sound Th’ infernal dores, and on thir hinges grate Harsh Thunder, that the lowest bottom shook

Book 2 61

850

855

860

865

870

875

880

883 Erebus. In Greek myth, the son of Chaos. The name means darkness, and is applied to the dark space through which the dead pass into Hades.

891–6. As a cosmic place, Chaos is infinitely extended and without any order; it surrounds the created places, hell, heaven, the universe and it contains the primal matter out of which God creates. In Christian Doctrine 1.7, Milton argues that creation is not out of nothing but from matter originally in and then separated from God and therefore good (cf. PL 7.168–73). As mythological figures “Chaos” and “eldest Night” are the most ancient gods (Hesiod, Theogony 123, and Orphic Hymns 3.1–2). Milton allegorizes Chaos as embodi- ment of and anti-ruler (Anarch) of that place, along with Night, his consort.

898–903. These subatomic qualities combine in nature to form the four elements fire, earth, water, and air, but in Chaos they struggle endlessly and the atoms remain unformed, embryonic. Milton’s description owes something to Ovid, Metamorphoses 1.5–20. Atomist philosophers (e.g. Lucretius, De Rerum Natura Book 2) saw atoms as forming the universe through endless collisions, by chance.

904 Barca . . . Cyrene. Cities in the Libyan desert. 905 Levied. Enlisted as troops, also, raised up. poise. Add weight to.

Of Erebus. She op’nd, but to shut Excel’d her power; the Gates wide op’n stood, That with extended wings a Bannerd Host° army waving banners Under spread Ensigns° marching might pass through flags, standards With Horse and Chariots rankt in loose array; So wide they stood, and like a Furnace mouth Cast forth redounding° smoak and ruddy flame. billowing Before thir eyes in sudden view appear The secrets of the hoarie° deep, a dark ancient Illimitable° Ocean without bound, without limit Without dimension, where length, breadth, & highth, And time and place are lost; where eldest Night And Chaos, Ancestors of Nature, hold Eternal Anarchie, amidst the noise Of endless Warrs, and by confusion stand. For hot, cold, moist, and dry, four Champions fierce Strive here for Maistrie, and to Battel bring Thir embryon Atoms; they around the flag Of each his Faction, in thir several Clanns, Light-arm’d or heavy, sharp, smooth, swift or slow, Swarm populous, unnumber’d as the Sands Of Barca or Cyrene’s torrid soil, Levied to side with warring Winds, and poise Thir lighter wings. To whom these most adhere, Hee rules a moment; Chaos Umpire sits, And by decision more imbroiles the fray By which he Reigns: next him high Arbiter Chance governs all. Into this wilde Abyss, The Womb of nature and perhaps her Grave,

62 Paradise Lost

885

890

895

900

905

910

921–2 to compare / Great things with small. A Virgilian formula (Eclogues 1.23; Georgics 4.176). Bellona. Roman goddess of war.

939 Syrtis. The Syrtes were shifting sandbars and dangerous quicksands off the North African coast. Lucan describes them (Pharsalia 9.303–4) as “ambiguous between sea and land.”

943–7 Gryfon. Griffins were fabulous creatures, half-eagle, half-lion, who guarded the gold of Scythia; it was stolen from them by the one-eyed “Arimaspian” people (Herodotus, 3.116).

Of neither Sea, nor Shore, nor Air, nor Fire, But all these in thir pregnant causes mixt Confus’dly, and which thus must ever fight, Unless th’ Almighty Maker them ordain His dark materials to create more Worlds, Into this wild Abyss the warie fiend Stood on the brink of Hell and look’d a while, Pondering his Voyage: for no narrow frith° channel, firth He had to cross. Nor was his eare less peal’d° dinned With noises loud and ruinous° (to compare crashing Great things with small) then when Bellona storms, With all her battering Engines bent to rase Som Capital City; or less then if this frame° structure Of Heav’n were falling, and these Elements In mutinie had from her Axle torn The stedfast Earth. At last his Sail-broad Vannes° wings He spreads for flight, and in the surging smoak Uplifted spurns the ground, thence many a League As in a cloudy Chair ascending rides Audacious, but that seat soon failing, meets A vast vacuitie: all unawares Fluttring his pennons° vain plumb down he drops feathers (pinions) Ten thousand fadom deep, and to this hour Down had been falling, had not by ill chance The strong rebuff° of som tumultuous cloud counterblast Instinct° with Fire and Nitre° hurried him infused / satlpeter As many miles aloft: that furie stay’d, Quencht in a Boggy Syrtis, neither Sea, Nor good dry Land: nigh founderd° on he fares, sunk, drowned Treading the crude consistence, half on foot, Half flying; behoves him now both Oare and Saile. As when a Gryfon through the Wilderness With winged course ore Hill or moarie° Dale marshy Pursues the Arimaspian, who by stelth Had from his wakeful custody purloind The guarded Gold: So eagerly the fiend

Book 2 63

915

920

925

930

935

940

945

960–7. Chaos’s court of personifications resembles the halls of Pluto in Aeneid 6.273–81. 964. Latin “Orcus” and Greek “Ades” (Hades) are names of Pluto, ruler of the underworld. 965 Demogorgon. Often taken to be the most ancient and terrible of the gods, associated with Night. In Bocaccio’s

De Genealogiis Deorum he is the parent of Night and the other dark gods, Erebus, Tumult, Discord, etc.

Ore bog or steep, through strait, rough, dense, or rare, With head, hands, wings, or feet pursues his way, And swims or sinks, or wades, or creeps, or flyes: At length a universal hubbub wilde Of stunning° sounds and voices all confus’d deafening Born through the hollow dark assaults his eare With loudest vehemence: thither he plyes,° makes his way Undaunted to meet there what ever power Or Spirit of the nethermost Abyss Might in that noise reside, of whom to ask Which way the neerest coast of darkness lyes Bordering on light; when strait° behold the Throne at once Of Chaos, and his dark Pavilion spread Wide on the wasteful° Deep; with him Enthron’d desolate Sat Sable-vested Night, eldest of things, The Consort of his Reign; and by them stood Orcus and Ades, and the dreaded name Of Demogorgon; Rumor next and Chance, And Tumult and Confusion all imbroild, And Discord with a thousand various mouths.

T’ whom Satan turning boldly, thus. Ye Powers And Spirits of this nethermost Abyss, Chaos and ancient Night, I come no Spy, With purpose to explore or to disturb The secrets of your Realm, but by constraint Wandring this darksome Desart, as my way Lies through your spacious Empire up to light, Alone, and without guide, half lost, I seek What readiest path leads where your gloomie bounds Confine° with Heav’n; or if som other place border on From your Dominion won, th’ Ethereal King Possesses lately, thither to arrive I travel this profound,° direct my course; deep abyss Directed no mean recompence it brings To your behoof,° if I that Region lost, on your behalf All usurpation thence expell’d, reduce To her original darkness and your sway

64 Paradise Lost

950

955

960

965

970

975

980

1017–18. Jason and his companions sailed in the “Argo” through the “Bosporus” to the Black Sea, passing between the Symplegades, or “justling Rocks.”

1019–20. Homer’s Odysseus (“Ulysses”) sailing through the Straits of Messina between Italy and Sicily avoids the whirlpool of “Charybdis” and steers by the “other” monster, Scylla (not a whirlpool in Homer) who devours six of his men (Odyssey 12.55–126, 222–59).

(Which is my present journey) and once more Erect the Standard there of ancient Night; Yours be th’ advantage all, mine the revenge.

Thus Satan; and him thus the Anarch old With faultring speech and visage incompos’d° disordered Answer’d. I know thee, stranger, who thou art, That mighty leading Angel, who of late Made head° against Heav’ns King, though overthrown. rose up I saw and heard, for such a numerous Host Fled not in silence through the frighted deep With ruin upon ruin, rout on rout, Confusion worse confounded; and Heav’n Gates Pourd out by millions her victorious Bands Pursuing. I upon my Frontieres here Keep residence; if all I can will serve, That little which is left so to defend, Encroacht on still° through [y]our intestine broiles° constantly / civil wars Weakning the Scepter of old Night: first Hell Your dungeon stretching far and wide beneath; Now lately Heaven° and Earth, another World the sky Hung ore my Realm, link’d in a golden Chain To that side Heav’n° from whence your Legions fell: the empyrean If that way be your walk, you have not farr; So much the neerer danger; go and speed; Havock and spoil and ruin are my gain.

He ceas’d; and Satan staid not to reply, But glad that now his Sea should find a shore, With fresh alacritie and force renew’d Springs upward like a Pyramid of fire Into the wilde expanse, and through the shock Of fighting Elements, on all sides round Environ’d wins his way; harder beset And more endanger’d, then when Argo pass’d Through Bosporus betwixt the justling Rocks: Or when Ulysses on the Larbord° shunnd port side Charybdis, and by th’ other whirlpool steard. So he with difficulty and labour hard

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985

990

995

1000

1005

1010

1015

1020

1024–32. See 10.293–305. 1050 living Saphire. Cf. Rev. 21:19. 1051. The “golden Chain” was commonly interpreted as a symbol of universal concord and divine design.

The figure appears in Iliad 8.18–27, Plato’s Theaetetus (153c–d), Spenser’s Faerie Queene 2.7.46, and in Milton’s “Prolusion 2.”

Mov’d on, with difficulty and labour hee; But hee once past, soon after when man fell, Strange alteration! Sin and Death amain° at full speed Following his track, such was the will of Heav’n, Pav’d after him a broad and beat’n way Over the dark Abyss, whose boiling Gulf Tamely endur’d a Bridge of wondrous length From Hell continu’d reaching th’ utmost Orbe° outermost sphere Of this frail World; by which the Spirits perverse With easie intercourse pass to and fro To tempt or punish mortals, except whom God and good Angels guard by special grace. But now at last the sacred influence Of light appears, and from the walls of Heav’n Shoots farr into the bosom of dim Night A glimmering dawn; here Nature first begins Her fardest verge,° and Chaos to retire extreme boundary As from her outmost works a brok’n foe With tumult less and with less hostile din, That Satan with less toil, and now with ease Wafts on the calmer wave by dubious° light wavering And like a weather-beaten Vessel holds° makes for Gladly the Port, though Shrouds° and Tackle° torn; sails / rigging Or in the emptier waste, resembling Air, Weighs° his spread wings, at leasure to behold holds steady Farr off th’ Empyreal Heav’n, extended wide In circuit, undetermind square or round, With Opal Towrs and Battlements adorn’d Of living Saphire, once his native Seat; And fast by hanging in a golden Chain This pendant world,° in bigness as a Starr universe Of smallest Magnitude close by the Moon. Thither full fraught° with mischievous revenge, freighted Accurst, and in a cursed hour he hies.° hastens

The End of the Second Book.

66 Paradise Lost

1025

1030

1035

1040

1045

1050

1055

BOOK 3 THE ARGUMENT

God sitting on his Throne sees Satan flying towards this world, then newly created; shews him to the Son who sat at his right hand; foretells the success of Satan in per- verting mankind; clears his own Justice and Wisdom from all imputation, having created Man free and able enough to have withstood his Tempter; yet declares his purpose of grace towards him, in regard he fell not of his own malice, as did Satan, but by him seduc’t. The Son of God renders praises to his Father for the manifes- tation of his gracious purpose towards Man; but God again declares, that Grace can- not be extended towards Man without the satisfaction of divine Justice; Man hath offended the majesty of God by aspiring to God-head, and therefore with all his Progeny devoted to death must dye, unless some one can be found sufficient to answer for his offence, and undergo his Punishment. The Son of God freely offers himself a Ransome for Man: the Father accepts him, ordains his incarnation, pronounces his exaltation above all Names in Heaven and Earth; commands all the Angels to adore him; they obey, and hymning to thir Harps in full Quire, celebrate the Father and the Son. Mean while Satan alights upon the bare Convex of this Worlds outermost Orb; where wandring he first finds a place since call’d The Lymbo of Vanity; what persons and things fly up thither; thence comes to the Gate of Heaven, describ’d ascending by staires, and the waters above the Firmament that flow about it: His passage thence to the Orb of the Sun; he finds there Uriel the Regient of that Orb, but first changes himself into the shape of a meaner Angel; and pretending a zealous desire to behold the new Creation and Man whom God had plac’t here, inquires of him the place of his habitation, and is directed; alights first on Mount Niphates.

Hail holy Light, offspring of Heav’n first-born, Or of th’ Eternal Coeternal beam May I express thee unblam’d? Since God is light, And never but in unapproached light Dwelt from Eternitie, dwelt then in thee, Bright effluence° of bright essence increate.° radiance / uncreated, eternal

16 Lymbo of Vanity. In Ariosto, Orlando Furioso 34., stanzas 72–87, the Knight Astolfo flies to the Limbo of Vanity in the moon, to recover Orlando’s lost wits. Milton refers to that Limbo as the recent name (“since call’d”) of the Paradise of Fools that Satan visits.

1–55. This second Proem or invocation is a hymn to Light, addressed either as the first creature of God (“first-born,” cf. 7.243–4, where light is termed the “first of things,” and Gen.1:3) or as coeternal with God, with allusion to 1 John 1:5, “God is Light, and in him is no darkness at all.”

4 unapproached. Cf. 1 Tim. 6:16: God dwells “in the light which no man can approach unto.”

Or hear’st thou rather pure Ethereal stream, Whose Fountain who shall tell? before the Sun, Before the Heavens thou wert, and at the voice Of God, as with a Mantle didst invest° cover The rising world of waters dark and deep, Won from the void and formless infinite. Thee I re-visit now with bolder wing, Escap’t the Stygian Pool, though long detain’d In that obscure sojourn, while in my flight Though utter and through middle darkness borne With other notes then to th’ Orphean Lyre I sing of Chaos and Eternal Night, Taught by the heav’nly Muse to venture down The dark descent, and up to reascend, Though hard and rare: thee I revisit safe, And feel thy sovran vital Lamp; but thou Revisit’st not these eyes, that rowle in vain To find thy piercing ray, and find no dawn; So thick a drop serene hath quencht thir Orbs, Or dim suffusion veild. Yet not the more Cease I to wander where the Muses haunt Cleer Spring, or shadie Grove, or Sunnie Hill, Smit with the love of sacred Song; but chief Thee Sion and the flowrie Brooks beneath That wash thy hallowd feet, and warbling flow, Nightly I visit: nor somtimes forget

68 Paradise Lost

7 hear’st thou rather. Would you rather be called (a Latinism). Ethereal. consisting of ether, the fifth, purest element.

11. Echoes Spenser, Faerie Queene 1.1.39, “the world of waters wide and deepe.” 12. Cf. 7.210–12, 233–4. 14 Stygian Pool. The river Styx, in the classical Hades. 17 Orphean Lyre. Orpheus, the Greek poet whose song could charm even trees and rocks, visited the under-

world to win back his wife, Eurydice; one of the poems attributed to him is the so-called Orphic hymn “To Night.” Milton’s song, Christian and epic, is of another kind, “other notes.”

19 heav’nly Muse. Urania, invoked at 1.6–16 but not named until 7.1. See note to that line. 20–1. Echoes the Sibyl’s warning to Aeneas (Aeneid 6.126–9). 25–6. Medical terms of Milton’s day for diseases of the eyes, one of which he thinks may have caused his

blindness: “drop serene” translates gutta serena, a form of blindness in which the vision is “quencht” but the eyes retain their clear appearance (as Milton’s did); “dim suffusion” translates suffusio nigra, a disease in which the vision is “veild” as with cataracts.

30 Sion. The mountain of scriptural inspiration, with its “flowrie Brooks” Siloa and Kidron (in contrast with Mount Parnassus and its stream, Helicon).

32. Milton composed chiefly at night.

Book 3 69

Those other two equal’d with me in Fate, So were I equal’d with them in renown, Blind Thamyris and blind Mæonides, And Tiresias and Phineus Prophets old. Then feed on thoughts, that voluntarie move Harmonious numbers;° as the wakeful Bird° verses / the nightingale Sings darkling,° and in shadiest Covert hid in the dark Tunes her nocturnal Note. Thus with the Year Seasons return, but not to me returns Day, or the sweet approach of Ev’n or Morn, Or sight of vernal° bloom, or Summers Rose, spring Or flocks, or heards, or human face divine; But cloud in stead, and ever-during dark Surrounds me, from the chearful wayes of men Cut off, and for the Book of knowledg° fair Book of Nature Presented with a Universal blanc Of Natures works to mee expung’d and ras’d,° erased And wisdome at one entrance quite shut out. So much the rather thou Celestial light Shine inward, and the mind through all her powers Irradiate, there plant eyes, all mist from thence Purge and disperse, that I may see and tell Of things invisible to mortal sight.

Now had the Almighty Father from above, From the pure Empyrean° where he sits highest heaven High Thron’d above all highth, bent down his eye, His own works and their works at once to view: About him all the Sanctities° of Heaven angels Stood thick as Starrs, and from his sight receiv’d Beatitude past utterance; on his right The radiant image of his Glory sat, His onely Son; On Earth he first beheld

35 Thamyris. A legendary Thracian poet who was punished with blindness for boasting he could sing better than the Muses (Iliad 2.594–600). Mæonides. Homer, said to be the son of Mæon, was often referred to by this patronymic.

36 Tiresias. A blind Theban seer who foretold many events in the mythical history of Thebes; he also revealed Oedipus’ guilt to him. Phineus. Thracian king said to have been blinded by the gods for revealing their counsels, but in the Second Defence Milton denies that his blindness was a punishment. In both, blind- ness and prophecy are linked.

37 voluntarie. Freely, as in a musical voluntary, added at will by the performer. 61–2. The sight of God is said to be the supreme joy of heaven, the greatest “Beatitude” (see Christian

Doctrine 1.33). 63. Cf. Heb. 1:3: “the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person.”

Our two first Parents, yet the onely two Of mankind, in the happie Garden plac’t, Reaping immortal fruits of joy and love, Uninterrupted joy, unrivald love In blissful solitude; he then survey’d Hell and the Gulf between, and Satan there Coasting° the wall of Heav’n on this side Night skirting In the dun° Air sublime,° and ready now dusky / aloft To stoop with wearied wings, and willing feet On the bare outside of this World,° that seem’d the universe Firm land imbosom’d without Firmament, Uncertain which, in Ocean or in Air. Him God beholding from his prospect° high, lookout point Wherein past, present, future he beholds, Thus to his onely Son foreseing spake.

Only begotten Son, seest thou what rage Transports our adversarie, whom no bounds Prescrib’d, no bars of Hell, nor all the chains Heapt on him there, nor yet the main° Abyss vast Wide interrupt can hold; so bent he seems On desparate reveng, that shall redound Upon his own rebellious head. And now Through all restraint broke loose he wings his way Not farr off Heav’n, in the Precincts° of light, environs Directly towards the new created World, And Man there plac’t, with purpose to assay° test If him by force he can destroy, or worse, By some false guile pervert; and shall pervert For man will hark’n to his glozing° lyes, flattering And easily transgress the sole Command, Sole pledge of his obedience: So will fall, Hee and his faithless Progenie: whose fault?

70 Paradise Lost

73 stoop. Descend swiftly (a term from hawking). 75 without Firmament. On the outside of the firmament (the sphere of the fixed stars that encloses the uni-

verse); also, without the shelter of any firmament. 76 Uncertain. It is not clear whether the universe floats in water or in air. 81 Transports. Conveys, moves passionately. adversarie. The literal meaning of Satan. 84 Wide interrupt. Chaos, that forms a wide “Abyss” or gulf between Heaven and Hell; “interrupt” keeps

its Latin meaning, broken open. 94 sole Command. Not to eat of the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. See Gen. 3:3, “Ye shall not eat

of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.” 96 faithless Progenie. Adam passes on to his descendants his original sin and its consequence, absence of

saving faith in God.

Book 3 71

Whose but his own? ingrate, he had of mee All he could have; I made him just and right, Sufficient to have stood, though free to fall. Such I created all th’ Ethereal Powers And Spirits, both them who stood and them who faild; Freely they stood who stood, and fell who fell. Not free, what proof could they have givn sincere Of true allegiance, constant Faith or Love, Where onely what they needs must do, appeard, Not what they would? what praise could they receive? What pleasure I from such obedience paid, When Will and Reason (Reason also is choice) Useless and vain, of freedom both despoild, Made passive both, had servd necessitie, Not mee. They therefore as to right belongd, So were created, nor can justly accuse Thir maker, or thir making, or thir Fate, As if predestination over-ruld Thir will, dispos’d by absolute Decree Of high foreknowledge; they themselves decreed Their own revolt, not I; if I foreknew, Foreknowledge had no influence on their fault, Which had no less prov’d certain unforeknown. So without least impulse or shadow of Fate, Or aught by me immutablie foreseen, They trespass, Authors to themselves in all Both what they judge and what they choose; for so I formd them free, and free they must remain, Till they enthrall themselves; I else must change Thir nature, and revoke the high Decree Unchangeable, Eternal, which ordain’d Thir freedom, they themselves ordain’d thir fall.

97–102. Milton insists that God created Adam and Eve and the angels with “sufficient” power and with rea- son and free will to resist evil. “The matter or object of the divine plan was that angels and men alike should be endowed with free will, so that they could either fall or not fall” (Christian Doctrine 1.3).

108–9 Reason also is choice. For example, reason is meaningless unless it can eventuate in choices which are free. Cf. Areopagitica, “When God gave him reason he gave him freedom to choose, for reason is but choosing.”

111–19. Summarizes Milton’s argument in Christian Doctrine 1.3–4, that God does not predestine any to sin or damnation and that his perfect foreknowledge of events does not amount to predestination; rather, he foresees because he knows past, present, and future at once. God knows what will happen (even as humans know what is happening or has happened) but does not cause the actions of humans or angels.

100

105

110

115

120

125

The first sort° by thir own suggestion fell, fallen angels Self-tempted, self-deprav’d: Man falls deceiv’d By the other first: Man therefore shall find grace, The other none: in Mercy and Justice both, Through Heav’n and Earth, so shall my glorie excel, But Mercy first and last shall brightest shine.

Thus while God spake, ambrosial fragrance fill’d All Heav’n, and in the blessed Spirits elect Sense of new joy ineffable° diffus’d: inexpressible Beyond compare the Son of God was seen Most glorious, in him all his Father shon Substantially express’d, and in his face Divine compassion visibly appeerd, Love without end, and without measure Grace, Which uttering thus he to his Father spake.

O Father, gracious was that word which clos’d Thy sovran sentence, that Man should find grace, For which both Heav’n and Earth shall high extoll Thy praises, with th’ innumerable sound Of Hymns and sacred Songs, wherewith thy Throne Encompass’d shall resound thee ever blest. For should Man finally be lost, should Man Thy creature late so lov’d, thy youngest Son Fall circumvented thus by fraud, though joynd With his own folly? that be from thee farr, That farr be from thee, Father, who art Judg Of all things made, and judgest onely right. Or shall the Adversarie thus obtain His end, and frustrate thine, shall he fulfill His malice, and thy goodness bring to naught, Or proud return though to his heavier doom, Yet with revenge accomplish’t and to Hell Draw after him the whole Race of mankind, By him corrupted? or wilt thou thy self

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136 Spirits elect. The unfallen angels. In Christian Doctrine 1.9 Milton insists that the angels “stand by their own strength” and are called “elect” (1 Tim. 5:21) only in the sense that they are “beloved, or excellent.” Cf. PL 5.535–7.

140. In Christian Doctrine 1.5 Milton argues that God imparted to his Son his divine substance but not his “whole essence,” as no two beings can have the same essence.

150–5. The Son echoes, or rather foreshadows, another mediator, Abraham, in his pleas to the Lord to spare Sodom, “That be far from thee to do after this manner, to slay the righteous with the wicked . . . that be far from thee. Shall not the Judge of all the earth do right?” (Gen. 18:25).

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Abolish thy Creation, and unmake, For him, what for thy glorie thou hast made? So should thy goodness and thy greatness both Be questiond and blaspheam’d° without defence. defamed

To whom the great Creatour thus reply’d. O Son, in whom my Soul hath chief delight, Son of my bosom, Son who art alone My word, my wisdom, and effectual might, All hast thou spok’n as my thoughts are, all As my Eternal purpose hath decreed: Man shall not quite be lost, but sav’d who will, Yet not of will in him, but grace in me Freely voutsaft;° once more I will renew granted His lapsed° powers, though forfeit and enthrall’d decayed By sin to foul exorbitant desires; Upheld by me, yet once more he shall stand On even ground against his mortal° foe, death-dealing By me upheld, that he may know how frail His fall’n condition is, and to me ow All his deliv’rance, and to none but me. Some I have chosen of peculiar° grace special Elect above the rest; so is my will: The rest shall hear me call, and oft be warnd Thir sinful state, and to appease betimes° in time Th’ incensed Deitie, while offerd grace Invites; for I will cleer thir senses dark, What may suffice, and soft’n stonie hearts To pray, repent, and bring obedience due. To Prayer, repentance, and obedience due, Though but endevord with sincere intent, Mine ear shall not be slow, mine eye not shut.

170–2. The Son is the agent through whom God’s power, “effectual might,” is exercised (cf. l Cor. 1:24), the “word” through whom his “wisdom” is made manifest and his creative will is performed ( John 1:1–3). See PL 6.710–14 and 7.163–6.

174–80. After the Fall salvation is only possible through God’s grace. Reason and will are so damaged that unless God renews them humans cannot resist sin or respond to the grace offered.

183–90. Milton’s God rejects the Calvinist doctrine that he had from the beginning predestined the damna- tion or salvation of each soul; rather, he associates himself with the Arminian doctrine that grace sufficient for salvation is offered to all, enabling each person, if he or she so chooses, to believe and persevere. He does, however, assert the right to give special grace to some, “elect above the rest.” See Christian Doctrine 1.4.

189 stonie hearts. Cf. Ezek. 11:19. “I will take the stony heart out of their flesh, and will give them an heart of flesh.” See PL 11.1–5.

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And I will place within them as a guide My Umpire Conscience, whom if they will hear, Light after light well us’d they shall attain, And to the end persisting, safe arrive. This my long sufferance and my day of grace They who neglect and scorn, shall never taste; But hard be hard’nd, blind be blinded more, That they may stumble on, and deeper fall; And none but such from mercy I exclude. But yet all is not don; Man disobeying, Disloyal breaks his fealtie, and sinns Against the high Supremacie of Heav’n, Affecting° God-head, and so loosing all, aspiring to To expiate his Treason hath naught left, But to destruction sacred° and devote,° set apart / consecrated He with his whole posteritie must dye, Dye hee or Justice must; unless for him Som other able, and as willing, pay The rigid satisfaction, death for death. Say Heav’nly powers, where shall we find such love, Which of ye will be mortal° to redeem human, subject to death Mans mortal crime, and just th’ unjust to save, Dwels in all Heaven charitie so deare?

He ask’d, but all the Heav’nly Quire stood mute, And silence was in Heav’n: on mans behalf Patron° or Intercessor none appeerd, advocate Much less that durst upon his own head draw The deadly forfeiture, and ransom set. And now without redemption all mankind Must have bin lost, adjudg’d to Death and Hell By doom severe, had not the Son of God, In whom the fulness dwels of love divine, His dearest mediation° thus renewd. intercession

Father, thy word is past, man shall find grace; And shall grace not find means, that finds her way,

74 Paradise Lost

200. By at long last withdrawing his offered grace God leaves such obdurate sinners to themselves, to become more and more hardened and blinded. See Christian Doctrine 1.8.

212 rigid satisfaction. Here and in Christian Doctrine 1.16 Milton’s God paraphrases the Anselmic theory of the Atonement: “Satisfaction means that Christ . . . fully satisfied divine justice by fulfilling the Law and paying the just price on behalf of all men.”

213–19. Cf. the devils in the Great Consult (2.402–26). charitie. Heavenly love, disinterested and altru- istic (Latin caritas).

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The speediest of thy winged messengers, To visit all thy creatures, and to all Comes unprevented,° unimplor’d unsought, prior, unanticipated Happie° for man, so coming; he her aid° fortunate / grace Can never seek, once dead in sins and lost; Atonement for himself or offering meet,° fitting, adequate Indebted and undon, hath none to bring: Behold mee then, mee for him, life for life I offer, on mee let thine anger fall; Account mee man; I for his sake will leave Thy bosom, and this glorie next to thee Freely put off, and for him lastly dye Well pleas’d, on me let Death wreck all his rage; Under his gloomie power I shall not long Lie vanquisht, thou hast givn me to possess Life in my self for ever, by thee I live, Though now to Death I yield, and am his due All that of me can die, yet that debt paid, Thou wilt not leave me in the loathsom grave His prey, nor suffer my unspotted Soule For ever with corruption there to dwell; But I shall rise Victorious, and subdue My vanquisher, spoild of his vanted spoile; Death his deaths wound shall then receive, and stoop Inglorious, of his mortall sting disarm’d. I through the ample Air in Triumph high Shall lead Hell Captive maugre° Hell, and show in spite of The powers of darkness bound. Thou at the sight Pleas’d, out of Heaven shalt look down and smile, While by thee rais’d I ruin all my Foes, Death last, and with his Carcass glut the Grave: Then with the multitude of my redeemd Shall enter Heaven long absent, and returne,

236–7. Echoes Nisus’ offer to save the life of his friend Euryalus, Aeneid 9.427–8: “Me, me adsum, qui feci, in me convertite ferrum, O Rutuli! mea fraus omnis.”

243–4. Cf. John 5:26: “For as the Father hath life in himself; so hath he given to the Son to have life in himself.”

247–9. Cf. Ps. 16:10: “Thou wilt not leave my soul in hell; neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption.”

253 mortall sting. Cf. 1 Cor. 15:55–6: “O death, where is thy sting? . . . The sting of death is sin.” 258 ruin. Throw down (the Latin sense). 259. Cf. 1 Cor. 15:26: “The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death.”

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Father, to see thy face, wherein no cloud Of anger shall remain, but peace assur’d, And reconcilement; wrauth shall be no more Thenceforth, but in thy presence Joy entire.

His words here ended, but his meek aspect Silent yet spake, and breath’d immortal love To mortal men, above which only shon Filial obedience: as a sacrifice Glad to be offer’d, he attends the will Of his great Father. Admiration° seis’d wonder All Heav’n, what this might mean, and whither tend Wondring, but soon th’ Almighty thus reply’d:

O thou in Heav’n and Earth the only peace Found out for mankind under wrauth, O thou My sole complacence!° well thou know’st how dear, pleasure, satisfaction To me are all my works, nor Man the least Though last created, that for him I spare Thee from my bosom and right hand, to save, By loosing thee a while, the whole Race lost. Thou therefore whom° thou only canst redeem, those whom Thir Nature also to thy Nature joyn; And be thy self Man among men on Earth, Made flesh, when time shall be, of Virgin seed, By wondrous birth: Be thou in Adams room The Head of all mankind, though Adams Son. As in him perish all men, so in thee As from a second root shall be restor’d, As many as are restor’d, without thee none. His crime makes guiltie all his Sons, thy merit Imputed shall absolve them who renounce Thir own both righteous and unrighteous deeds, And live in thee transplanted, and from thee Receive new life. So Man, as is most just, Shall satisfie for Man, be judg’d and die, And dying rise, and rising with him raise

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286 Head of all mankind. Cf. 1 Cor. 11:3: “The head of every man is Christ.” 288–9. Cf. 1 Cor. 15:22: “For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.” 290–4. Summarizes the reformed doctrine of justification by faith. The merit of Christ attributed vicariously

(“imputed”) to humans frees from original sin those who renounce their own deeds, both good and bad, and hope to be saved through faith.

293 transplanted. Cf. Christian Doctrine 1.21, “Of Ingrafting in Christ”: “God the Father plants believers in Christ. That is to say, he makes them sharers in Christ.” The first effect is “new life and growth.”

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His Brethren, ransomed with his own dear life. So Heav’nly love shall outdoo Hellish hate Giving° to death, and dying, to redeeme, submitting So dearly to redeem what Hellish hate So easily destroy’d, and still destroyes In those who, when they may, accept not grace. Nor shalt thou by descending to assume Mans Nature, less’n or degrade thine owne. Because thou hast, though Thron’d in highest bliss Equal to God, and equally enjoying God-like fruition,° quitted all to save pleasurable possession A World from utter loss, and hast been found By Merit more then Birthright Son of God, Found worthiest to be so by being Good, Farr more then Great or High; because in thee Love hath abounded more then Glory abounds, Therefore thy Humiliation shall exalt With thee thy Manhood also to this Throne; Here shalt thou sit Incarnate, here shalt Reign Both God and Man, Son both of God and Man, Anointed universal King; all Power I give thee, reign for ever, and assume Thy Merits;° under thee as Head Supream rewards Thrones, Princedoms, Powers, Dominions I reduce: All knees to thee shall bow; of them that bide In Heaven, or Earth, or under Earth in Hell; When thou attended gloriously from Heav’n Shalt in the sky appeer, and from thee send The summoning Arch-Angels to proclaime Thy dread Tribunal: forthwith from all Windes° directions The living, and forthwith the cited° dead summoned Of all past Ages to the general Doom Shall hast’n, such a peal shall rouse thir sleep.

297 ransomed. Cf. Matt. 20:28, “The Son of man came . . . to give his life a ransom for many.” 309. A heterodox doctrine, that the Son was Son of God by merit. In Ovid, Metamorphoses 2.42–3 (George

Sandys’ translation), Apollo says to his son, Phaeton, “by merit, as by birth, to thee is due that name.” Cf. PL 2.5.

320. Orders of angels. 321–2. Cf. Phil. 2:10: “At the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth,

and things under the earth.” 323–32. The description of the Last Judgment draws on several biblical texts, among them Matt. 24:30–1

and 25:31–2, 1 Cor. 15:51–2, and 1 Thess. 4:17.

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Then all thy Saints assembl’d, thou shalt judge Bad men and Angels, they arraignd° shall sink accursed Beneath thy Sentence; Hell her numbers full, Thenceforth shall be fore ever shut. Mean while The World shall burn, and from her ashes spring New Heav’n and Earth, wherein the just shall dwell, And after all thir tribulations long See golden days, fruitful of golden deeds, With Joy and Love triumphing, and fair Truth. Then thou thy regal Scepter shalt lay by, For regal Scepter then no more shall need, God shall be All in All. But all ye Gods,° angels Adore him, who to compass all this dies, Adore the Son, and honour him as mee

No sooner had th’ Almighty ceas’t, but all The multitude of Angels with a shout Loud as from numbers without number, sweet As from blest voices, uttering joy, Heav’n rung With Jubilee, and loud Hosanna’s filld Th’eternal Regions: lowly reverent Towards either Throne they bow, and to the ground With solemn adoration down they cast Thir Crowns inwove with Amarant and Gold, Immortal Amarant, a Flour which once In Paradise, fast by° the Tree of Life close by Began to bloom, but soon for mans offence To Heav’n remov’d where first it grew, there grows, And flours aloft shading the Fount of Life, And where the river of Bliss through midst of Heavn Rowls o’re Elisian Flours her Amber° stream; pure, clear With these° that never fade the Spirits elect amaranth flowers Bind thir resplendent locks inwreath’d with beams, Now in loose Garlands thick thrown off, the bright Pavement that like a Sea of Jasper shon

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334–5. For the fiery destruction and new heavens and earth, see 2 Pet. 3:12–13, and Rev. 21:1. 340–1. Cf. 1 Cor. 15:28: “And when all things shall be subdued unto him, then shall the Son also himself be

subject unto him that put all things under him, that God may be all in all.” 351 Amarant. In Greek, unfading, a legendary immortal flower. 350–71. Milton’s heaven draws upon imagery from Rev. 4 and 22:1–2 (thrones, harps, golden crowns, sea

of jasper, angelic hymns, pure river, tree of life); other details, e.g. the “Elisian” flowers, recall classical descriptions of the Elysian Fields.

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Impurpl’d with Celestial Roses smil’d. Then Crown’d again thir gold’n Harps they took, Harps ever tun’d, that glittering by thir side Like Quivers hung, and with Præamble° sweet musical prelude Of charming symphonie they introduce Thir sacred Song, and waken raptures high; No voice exempt,° no voice but well could joine excluded Melodious part, such concord is in Heav’n.

Thee Father first they sung Omnipotent, Immutable, Immortal, Infinite, Eternal King; thee Author of all being, Fountain of Light, thy self invisible Amidst the glorious brightness where thou sit’st Thron’d inaccessible, but° when thou shad’st except The full blaze of thy beams, and through a cloud Drawn round about thee like a radiant Shrine, Dark with excessive bright thy skirts appeer, Yet dazle Heav’n, that brightest Seraphim Approach not, but with both wings veil thir eyes. Thee next they sang of all Creation first, Begotten Son, Divine Similitude, In whose conspicuous count’nance, without cloud Made visible, th’ Almighty Father shines, Whom else no Creature can behold; on thee Impresst the effulgence° of his Glorie abides, radiance Transfus’d on thee his ample Spirit rests. Hee Heav’n of Heavens and all the Powers therein By thee created, and by thee threw down Th’ aspiring Dominations: thou that day Thy Fathers dreadful Thunder didst not spare, Nor stop thy flaming Chariot wheels, that shook

373. This line is a direct quote from Joshua Sylvester’s Divine Weeks and Works (1605) 1.1.45, a translation of Du Bartas’ La Semaine (1578).

381–2. Cf. Isa. 6:2, describing the seraphim around God’s throne, “each one had six wings; with twain he covered his face.”

383–7. Cf. Col. 1:15–16: “Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature: For by him were all things created, that are in heaven and that are in earth.” For Milton the Son is not eternal, as in Trinitarian doctrine, but is God’s first creation and the agent through whom he created all other beings. Neither is he omniscient, nor omnipotent, nor immutable, nor co-equal with the Father, but participates in those divine qualities only as the Father devolves them upon him. See Christian Doctrine 1.5.

389 ample Spirit. The power of God, not the Holy Spirit (see Christian Doctrine 1.6). 392 Dominations. An angelic order, standing here for all the rebel angels. 392–9. See 6.750–64, 824–92.

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Heav’ns everlasting Frame, while o’re the necks Thou drov’st of warring Angels disarraid.° confused Back from pursuit thy Powers° with loud acclaime angels Thee only extoll’d, Son of thy Fathers might, To execute fierce vengeance on his foes, Not so on Man; him through their malice fall’n, Father of Mercie and Grace, thou didst not doome° judge So strictly, but much more to pitie encline: No sooner did thy dear and onely Son Perceive thee purpos’d not to doom frail Man So strictly, but much more to pitie enclin’d, He to appease thy wrauth, and end the strife Of Mercy and Justice in thy face discern’d, Regardless of the Bliss wherein hee sat Second to thee, offerd himself to die For mans offence. O unexampl’d° love, without precedent Love no where to be found less then Divine! Hail Son of God, Saviour of Men, thy Name Shall be the copious matter of my Song Henceforth, and never shall my Harp thy praise Forget, nor from thy Fathers praise disjoine.

Thus they in Heav’n, above the starry Sphear, Thir happie hours in joy and hymning spent. Mean while upon the firm opacous° Glove opaque Of this round World, whose first convex divides The luminous inferior Orbs, enclos’d From Chaos and th’ inroad of Darkness old, Satan alighted walks: a Globe farr off It seem’d, now seems a boundless Continent Dark, waste, and wild, under the frown of Night Starless expos’d, and ever-threatning storms Of Chaos blustring round, inclement skie; Save on that side which from the wall of Heav’n Though distant farr som small reflection gaines Of glimmering air less vext° with tempest loud: tossed around Here walk’d the Fiend at large in spacious field.

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412–15. The shift to first person suggests that Milton is quoting the angels singing as a single chorus, or that he associates himself with their song, or both.

419–22 first convex. The outermost of the ten spheres that comprise the universe. Satan “alighted” (both landed, and was illumined by the dim light reflected from heaven) and “walks” on the outer shell of that sphere.

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As when a Vultur on Imaus bred, Whose snowie ridge the roving Tartar bounds, Dislodging from a Region scarce of prey To gorge the flesh of Lambs or yeanling° Kids newborn On Hills where Flocks are fed, flies toward the Springs Of Ganges or Hydaspes, Indian streams; But in his way lights on the barren Plaines Of Sericana, where Chineses drive With Sails and Wind thir canie Waggons light: So on this windie Sea of Land, the Fiend Walk’d up and down alone bent on his prey, Alone, for other Creature in this place Living or liveless to be found was none, None yet, but store° hereafter from the earth plenty Up hither like Aereal vapours flew Of all things transitorie and vain, when Sin With vanity had filld the works of men: Both all things vain, and all who in vain things Built thir fond° hopes of Glorie or lasting fame, foolish Or happiness in this or th’ other life; All who have thir reward on Earth, the fruits Of painful° Superstition and blind Zeal, painstaking Naught seeking but the praise of men, here find Fit retribution, emptie as thir deeds; All th’ unaccomplisht° works of Natures hand, imperfect Abortive,° monstrous, or unkindly° mixt, premature / unnaturally Dissolvd on Earth, fleet° hither, and in vain, float Till final dissolution, wander here, Not in the neighbouring Moon, as some have dreamd; Those argent Fields more likely habitants, Translated Saints, or middle Spirits hold Betwixt th’ Angelical and Human kinde:

431–9 Vultur. Vultures were said to be able to scent their prey across continents. Imaus. Mountain ridge extending north through Asia from modern Afghanistan to the Arctic Ocean, the regions (“bounds”) of the pillaging “roving Tartar.”

436. The rivers “Ganges” and “Hydaspes” (a tributary of the Indus) rise the mountains of northern India. 438–9 Sericana. A region in northwest China. canie Waggons. Juan Gonzales de Mendoza described these

Chinese landships, made of cane or bamboo. 440–97. Milton’s Paradise of Fools (named in line 496) was inspired by Ariosto’s ( less satiric) Limbo of Vanity

located in the moon (Orlando Furioso 34., stanzas 72–87; cf. PL 3.459). Milton’s region is reserved for deluded followers of misplaced devotion, chiefly Roman Catholics.

461 Translated Saints. Holy patriarchs like Enoch (Gen. 5:24) and Elijah (2 Kgs 2:11), carried to the heavens while yet alive.

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Hither of ill-joyned Sons and Daughters born First from the ancient World those Giants came With many a vain exploit, though then renownd: The builders next of Babel on the Plain Of Sennaar, and still with vain designe New Babels, had they wherewithall, would build: Others came single; he who to be deemd A God, leap’d fondly° into Ætna flames, foolishly Empedocles, and hee who to enuoy Plato’s Elysium, leap’d into the Sea, Cleombrotus; and many more too long, Embryo’s and Idiots, Eremits° and Friers hermits White, Black, and Grey, with all thir trumperie,° paraphernalia Here Pilgrims roam, that stray’d so farr to seek In Golgatha him dead, who lives in Heav’n; And they who to be sure of Paradise Dying put on the weeds° of Dominic, garments Or in Franciscan think to pass disguis’d; They pass the Planets seven, and pass the fixt, And that Crystalline Sphear whose ballance weighs The Trepidation talkt, and that first mov’d; And now Saint Peter at Heavn’s Wicket° seems small pedestrian gate To wait them with his Keys, and now at foot

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463–5 Giants. Born of the unnatural marriages between the “sons of God” and the daughters of men (Gen. 6:4). See also PL 11.573–627, 683–99.

466 Babel. The tower, intended to reach heaven (Gen. 11:3–9), became an emblem of pride and folly. 467 Sennaar. (the Vulgate form of Shinar), the plain of Babel on which the tower of “Babel” was built. 469–73 Empedocles. A Presocratic philosopher who threw himself into “Ætna” to conceal his mortality; the

volcano defeated his plan by casting up one of his sandals. Cleombrotus. A youth who drowned him- self to attain the immortality promised in Plato’s Phaedo.

474–5 Embryo’s and Idiots. Those not responsible morally, but still marked by original sin so they could not enter heaven, were said by Catholic theologians to be held in Limbo. The “White” friars (“Friers”) are Carmelites, the “Black” are Dominicans, and the “Grey” Franciscans.

477 Golgatha. Golgotha, “Place of the skull,” the hill where Christ was crucified. See Luke 24:5–6, “Why seek ye the living among the dead? He is not here, but is risen.”

478–80. Some try to ensure their salvation by wearing on their deathbed the robes of various religious orders. 481–5. These souls imagine their journey through the spheres in the Ptolemaic system: the seven then known

planets, the eighth sphere of the fixed stars, then the “Crystalline Sphear” (added to the Ptolemaic system to account for anomalies in astronomical observations). Its “Trepidation” (oscillation or trembling), meas- ured by Libra (the scales, “ballance”), was much disputed (“talkt”) in Milton’s time. After the tenth sphere, the Primum Mobile (“that first mov’d”) which imparts motion to all the rest, they imagine ascent to the empyreal Heaven.

485 Keys. Cf. Matt. 16:19: “And I will give unto thee [Peter] the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and what- soever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” See “Lycidas,” 110.

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Of Heav’ns ascent they lift thir Feet, when loe A violent cross wind from either Coast Blows them transverse ten thousand Leagues awry Into the devious° Air; then might ye see erratic Cowles, Hoods and Habits with thir wearers tost And flutterd into Raggs, then Reliques, Beads,° rosary beads Indulgences, Dispenses, Pardons, Bulls,° papal edicts The sport of Winds: all these upwhirld aloft Fly o’re the backside of the World farr off Into a Limbo large and broad, since calld The Paradise of Fools, to few unknown Long after, now unpeopl’d, and untrod; All this dark Globe the Fiend found as he pass’d, And long he wanderd, till at last a gleame Of dawning light turnd thither-ward in haste His travell’d° steps; farr distant he descries travel-weary Ascending by degrees magnificent Up to the wall of Heaven a Structure high, At top whereof, but farr more rich appeerd The work as of a Kingly Palace Gate With Frontispiece° of Diamond and Gold portal Imbellisht, thick with sparkling orient° Gemmes lustrous The Portal shon, inimitable on Earth By Model, or by shading Pencil drawn. The Stairs were such as whereon Jacob saw Angels ascending and descending, bands Of Guardians bright, when he from Esau fled To Padan-Aram in the field of Luz, Dreaming by night under the open Skie, And waking cri’d, This is the Gate of Heav’n. Each Stair mysteriously was meant, nor stood There alwayes, but drawn up to Heav’n somtimes

490. The dress of the various religious orders. 492 Indulgences, Dispenses [dispensations], Pardons. Various grants set forth by the Roman Catholic Church

that could be earned or purchased to free one from the punishment due to sin, or from some religious duty. They were seen as a scandal by the Protestant reformers. See the Pardoner’s Tale in Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales.

510–15 Jacob fled to “Padan-Aram” (in Syria) after cheating his brother “Esau” of their father’s blessing. En route, while sleeping in the field of “Luz” (Bethel ), he dreamed of a ladder reaching to heaven on which angels ascended and descended. When he awoke he cried, “this is none other but the house of God and this is the gate of heaven” (Gen. 28:10–17).

516 mysteriously. The episode and the ladder received numerous symbolic and allegorical interpretations.

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Viewless,° and underneath a bright Sea flow’d invisible Of Jasper, or of liquid Pearle, whereon Who after came from Earth, sayling arriv’d, Wafted by Angels, or flew o’re the Lake Rapt in a Chariot drawn by fiery Steeds. The Stairs were then let down, whether to dare The Fiend by easie ascent, or aggravate His sad exclusion from the dores of Bliss. Direct against which op’nd from beneath, Just o’re the blissful seat of Paradise, A passage down to th’ Earth, a passage wide, Wider by farr then that of after-times Over Mount Sion, and, though that were large, Over the Promis’d Land to God so dear, By which, to visit oft those happy Tribes, On high behests his Angels to and fro Pass’d frequent, and his eye with choice° regard discriminating From Paneas the fount of Jordans flood To Beersaba, where the Holy Land Borders on Æygpt and the Arabian shoare; So wide the op’ning seemd, where bounds were set To darkness, such as bound the Ocean wave. Satan from hence now on the lower stair That scal’d by steps of Gold to Heav’n Gate Looks down with wonder at the sudden view Of all this World at once. As when a Scout Through dark and desart wayes with peril gone All night; at last by break of chearful dawne Obtains the brow of some high-climbing Hill, Which to his eye discovers unaware The goodly prospect of some forein land First-seen, or some renown’d Metropolis With glistering Spires and Pinnacles adornd, Which now the Rising Sun guilds with his beams. Such wonder seis’d, though after Heaven seen, The Spirit maligne, but much more envy seis’d

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518–19. See Rev. 4:6 (“sea of glass like unto crystal”). 521–2. Lazarus was “Wafted” by the angels to heaven (Luke 16:22); Elijah was “Rapt” (carried away) up to

heaven in a “Chariot” of fire drawn by “fiery Steeds” (“horses of fire,” 2 Kgs 2:11). 535–7. This later opening to heaven stretched from “Paneas” (Greek name for the city of Dan) near the source

of the Jordan in the north of Canaan to “Beersaba” (Beersheba) near the Egyptian border in the south, giv- ing God a view of the entire land of Israel (cf. 1 Kgs 4:25).

552 though after Heaven seen. i.e., “even after having seen heaven.”

520

525

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535

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Book 3 85

At sight of all this World beheld so faire. Round he surveys, and well might, where he stood So high above the circling Canopie Of Nights extended shade; from Eastern Point Of Libra to the fleecie Starr that bears Andromeda farr off Atlantic Seas Beyond th’ Horizon; then from Pole to Pole He views in bredth, and without longer pause Down right into the Worlds first Region throws His flight precipitant,° and windes with ease rushing headlong Through the pure marble° Air his oblique way sparkling, smooth Amongst innumerable Starrs, that shon Stars distant, but nigh hand seemd other Worlds, Or other Worlds they seemd, or happy Iles, Like those Hesperian Gardens fam’d of old, Fortunate Fields, and Groves, and flourie Vales, Thrice happy Iles, but who dwelt happy there He stayd not to enquire; above them all The golden Sun in splendor likest Heaven Allur’d his eye: Thither his course he bends Through the calm Firmament;° but up or downe sky By center, or eccentric, hard to tell Or Longitude, where the great Luminarie° the sun Alooff ° the vulgar° Constellations thick, apart from / common That from his Lordly eye keep distance due, Dispenses Light from farr; they as they move Thir Starry dance in numbers° that compute rhythms Days, months, & years, towards his all-chearing Lamp Turn swift thir various motions, or are turned By his Magnetic beam, that gently warms The Univers, and to each inward part With gentle penetration, though unseen,

557–9. In the zodiac, “Libra” in the east is diametrically opposite Aries or the Ram (“the fleecie Starr”) that seems to carry the constellation “Andromeda” on its back in the west, in the Atlantic below the “Horizon.”

562–5 first Region. The upper air down to the Primum Mobile, the crystalline sphere and “innumerable Starrs.”

566–71 other Worlds. The plurality of worlds was a topic of much speculation in Milton’s day (see 8.140–52). The gardens of the Hesperides and the Fortunate Isles (“happy Iles”) of Greek mythology, were classical versions of paradise.

574–6. Satan cannot tell if he is flying up or down, or by a centric orbit that has the earth or the sun as its center, or by an eccentric orbit that does not. Nor can he tell the distance he flew measured by degrees (“Longitude”) along the ecliptic, the apparent orbit of the sun around the earth.

582–3. Kepler (in 1609) theorized that the sun’s magnetism caused planetary motion.

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Shoots invisible vertue° even to the deep: vigor, energy So wondrously was set his Station bright. There lands the Fiend, a spot like which perhaps Astronomer in the Sun’s lucent Orbe Through his glaz’d Optic Tube yet never saw. The place he found beyond expression bright, Compar’d with aught on Earth, Metal or Stone; Not all parts like, but all alike informd With radiant light, as glowing Iron with fire; If mettal, part seems Gold, part Silver cleer; If stone, Carbuncle most or Chrysolite, Rubie or Topaz, to the Twelve that shon In Aarons Brest-plate, and a stone besides Imagind rather oft then elsewhere seen, That stone, or like to that which here below Philosophers in vain so long have sought, In vain, though by thir powerful Art they binde Volatil Hermes, and call up unbound In various shapes old Proteus from the Sea, Draind through a Limbec to his Native forme. What wonder then if fields and regions here Breathe forth Elixir pure, and Rivers run Potable° Gold, when with one vertuous° touch drinkable / powerful Th’ Arch-chimic° Sun so farr from us remote chief alchemist Produces with Terrestrial Humor° mixt earth’s moisture Here in the dark so many precious things Of colour glorious and effect so rare? Here matter new to gaze the Devil met Undazl’d, farr and wide his eye commands, For sight no obstacle found here, nor shade,

86 Paradise Lost

588–90. Galileo first observed sunspots through his telescope (“glaz’d Optic Tube”) in 1610. 596 Carbuncle. Any red gemstone. Chrysolite. Any green gemstone. 597–8. In Exod. 28:15–21 “Aarons Brest-plate” is described as decorated with twelve different gems, corres-

ponding to the twelve tribes of Israel. 598–605. Alchemists identified the philosopher’s stone with the urim on Aaron’s breastplate (Exod. 28:30);

this stone reputedly could cure all diseases, restore paradise, and transmute base metals to gold. Alchemists would “binde” (solidify) mercury (“Volatil Hermes,” the winged god identified with that ele- ment) and dissolve, refine, or transform substances (identified with the shape-shifting god “Proteus”) to their “Native forme” in a “Limbec” (alembic, the distilling apparatus of alchemists).

607 Elixir. The liquid form of the philosopher’s stone. 609–12. The sun’s rays were thought to penetrate the earth and produce precious metals and gems. 615–17. Before the Fall (and the consequent tipping of the earth’s axis or change in the path of the sun, see

10.668–89) shadows would disappear daily at noon at the “Æquator,” where the sun’s beams reach their zenith (“Culminate”).

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Book 3 87

But all Sun-shine, as when his Beams at Noon Culminate from th’ Æquator, as they now Shot upward still direct, whence no way round Shadow from body opaque can fall, and the Aire, No where so cleer, sharp’nd his visual ray To objects distant farr, whereby he soon Saw within kenn° a glorious Angel stand, range of vision The same whom John saw also in the Sun: His back was turnd, but not his brightness hid; Of beaming sunnie Raies, a golden tiar° tiara, crown Circl’d his Head, nor less his Locks behind Illustrious° on his Shoulders fledge° with wings lustrous / feathered Lay waving round; on som great charge imploy’d He seemd, or fixt in cogitation deep. Glad was the Spirit impure as now in hope To find who might direct his wandring flight To Paradise the happie seat of Man, His journies end and our beginning woe. But first he casts° to change his proper shape, contrives Which else might work him danger or delay: And now a stripling Cherube he appeers, Not of the prime, yet such as in his face Youth smil’d Celestial, and to every Limb Sutable grace diffus’d, so well he feignd; Under a Coronet his flowing haire In curles on either cheek plaid, wings he wore Of many a colourd plume sprinkl’d with Gold, His habit fit for speed succinct,° and held close-fitting Before his decent° steps a Silver wand. decorous He drew not nigh unheard, the Angel bright, Ere he drew nigh, his radiant visage turnd, Admonisht by his ear, and strait° was known at once Th’ Arch-Angel Uriel, one of the seav’n Who in Gods presence, neerest to his Throne Stand ready at command, and are his Eyes

620 visual ray. The eye was thought to emit a beam onto the object perceived. 622–3. Cf. Rev. 19:17: “I saw an angel standing in the sun.” 636–7. A young “stripling” cherub not yet in the “prime” of life, or not of the first rank of angels. 648–53 Uriel. In Hebrew “Light [or fire] of God,” he is the angel named first among the seven who stood

before God’s “Throne” in the Apocryphal 1 Enoch 22:1. Zech. 4:10 states that “those seven . . . are the eyes of the Lord, which run to and fro through the whole earth,” but Uriel is not mentioned there or any- where else in the canonical Bible. See also Rev. 1:4.

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That run through all the Heav’ns, or down to th’ Earth Bear his swift errands over moist and dry, O’re Sea and Land: him Satan thus accostes.

Uriel, for thou of those seav’n Spirits that stand In sight of God’s high Throne; gloriously bright, The first art wont° his great authentic will accustomed Interpreter through highest Heav’n to bring, Where all his Sons° thy Embassie attend; angels And here art likeliest by supream decree Like honour to obtain, and as his Eye To visit oft this new Creation round; Unspeakable desire to see, and know All these his wondrous works, but chiefly Man, His chief delight and favour,° him for whom favorite All these his works so wondrous he ordaind, Hath brought me from the Quires of Cherubim Alone thus wandring. Brightest Seraph tell In which of all these shining Orbes hath Man His fixed seat, or fixed seat hath none, But all these shining Orbes his choice to dwell; That I may find him, and with secret gaze, Or open admiration him behold On whom the great Creator hath bestowd Worlds, and on whom hath all these graces powrd; That both in him and all things, as is meet, The Universal Maker we may praise; Who justly hath drivn out his Rebell Foes To deepest Hell, and to repair that loss Created this new happie Race of Men To serve him better: wise are all his wayes.

So spake the false dissembler unperceiv’d; For neither Man nor Angel can discern Hypocrisie, the onely evil that walks Invisible, except to God alone, By his permissive will, through Heav’n and Earth: And oft though wisdom wake, suspicion sleeps At wisdoms Gate, and to simplicitie Resigns her charge, while goodness thinks no ill Where no ill seems: Which now for once beguil’d Uriel, though Regent of the Sun, and held The sharpest sighted Spirit of all in Heav’n; Who to the fraudulent Imposter foule

88 Paradise Lost

655

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670

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Book 3 89

In his uprightness answer thus returnd. Fair Angel, thy desire which tends to know

The works of God, thereby to glorifie The great Work-Maister, leads to no excess That reaches blame, but rather merits praise The more it seems excess, that led thee hither From thy Empyreal Mansion thus alone, To witness with thine eyes what some perhaps Contented with report hear onely in heav’n: For wonderful indeed are all his works, Pleasant to know, and worthiest to be all Had in remembrance alwayes with delight; But what created mind can comprehend Thir number, or the wisdom infinite That brought them forth, but hid thir causes deep. I saw when at his Word the formless Mass, This worlds material mould,° came to a heap: substance Confusion heard his voice, and wilde uproar Stood rul’d, stood vast infinitude confin’d; Till at his second bidding darkness fled, Light shon, and order from disorder sprung: Swift to thir several Quarters hasted then The cumbrous Elements, Earth, Flood, Aire, Fire, And this Ethereal quintessence of Heav’n Flew upward, spirited with° various forms, animated by That rowled orbicular,° and turnd to Starrs in circular orbits Numberless, as thou seest, and how they move; Each had his place appointed, each his course, The rest in circuit walles this Universe. Look downward on that Globe whose hither side With light from hence, though but reflected, shines; That place is Earth the seat of Man, that light His day, which else as th’ other Hemisphere Night would invade, but there the neighbouring Moon (So call that opposite fair Starr) her aide

695–8. Aristotle in the Nicomachean Ethics locates virtue in the mean between excess and privation, but Uriel exempts the glorification of God from that dictum.

705–7. No creature, including the angels and even the Son, know the “secret purposes, the knowledge of which the Father has reserved to himself alone” (Christian Doctrine 1.5)

708–20. Compare Raphael’s story of the Creation to Adam in Book 7 below. 716. The fifth element (“quintessence,” ether) of which the incorruptible heavenly bodies were made. 721 The rest. The stars that form the sphere of the fixed stars, enclosing “this Universe.”

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Timely interposes, and her monthly round Still ending, still renewing, through mid Heav’n; With borrowed light her countenance triform Hence° fills and empties to enlighten th’ Earth, from the sun And in her pale dominion checks the night. That spot to which I point is Paradise, Adams abode, those loftie shades his Bowre. Thy way thou canst not miss, me mine requires.

Thus said, he turnd, and Satan bowing low, As to superior Spirits is wont in Heaven, Where honour due and reverence none neglects, Took leave, and toward the coast of Earth beneath, Down from the Ecliptic,° sped with hop’d success, the sun’s orbit Throws his steep flight in many an Aerie wheele, Nor staid, till on Niphates top he lights.

The End of the Third Book.

90 Paradise Lost

730 triform. Refers to the moon’s phases, but also to the ancient poets’ description of the moon’s triple nature: Luna in heaven, Diana on earth, Hecate in hell.

742 Niphates. A mountain on the border between Armenia and Assyria.

730

735

740

BOOK 4 THE ARGUMENT

Satan now in prospect of Eden, and nigh the place where he must now attempt the bold enterprize which he undertook alone against God and Man, falls into many doubts with himself, and many passions, fear, envy, and despare; but at length confirms himself in evil, journeys on to Paradise, whose outward prospect and scituation is discribed, overleaps the bounds, sits in the shape of a Cormorant on the Tree of life, as highest in the Garden to look about him. The Garden describ’d; Satans first sight of Adam and Eve; his wonder at thir excellent form and happy state, but with resolution to work thir fall; overhears thir discourse, thence gathers that the Tree of knowledge was forbidden them to eat of, under penalty of death; and thereon intends to found his Temptation, by seducing them to transgress: then leaves them a while, to know further of thir state by some other means. Mean while Uriel descending on a Sun-beam warns Gabriel, who had in charge the Gate of Paradise, that some evil spirit had escap’d the Deep, and past at Noon by his Sphere in the shape of a good Angel down to Paradise, discovered after by his furious gestures in the Mount. Gabriel promises to find him ere morning. Night coming on, Adam and Eve discourse of going to thir rest: thir Bower describ’d; thir Evening worship. Gabriel drawing forth his Bands of Night-watch to walk the round of Paradise, appoints two strong Angels to Adams Bower, least the evill spirit should be there doing some harm to Adam or Eve sleeping; there they find him at the ear of Eve, tempting her in a dream, and bring him, though unwilling, to Gabriel; by whom question’d, he scornfully answers, prepares resistance, but hinder’d by a Sign from Heaven, flies out of Paradise.

O For that warning voice, which he who saw Th’ Apocalyps, heard cry in Heaven aloud, Then when the Dragon, put to second rout, Came furious down to be reveng’d on men, Wo to the inhabitants on Earth! that now, While time was, our first-Parents had bin warnd The coming of thir secret foe, and scap’d Haply° so scap’d his mortal° snare; for now perhaps, happily / deadly

5. Cormorant. A large and voracious black sea-bird.

1–5. John of Patmos heard a cry warning of the “great dragon . . . called the Devil, and Satan” (Rev. 12:9) when he and his angels were put to “second rout” in a second war in heaven: “Woe to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea! for the devil is come down among you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time” (Rev. 12:12).

2 Apocalyps. Apocalypse, “unveiling,” the Greek title of the book of Revelation.

Satan, now first inflam’d with rage, came down, The Tempter ere° th’ Accuser of man-kind, before being To wreck° on innocent frail man his loss avenge Of that first Battel, and his flight to Hell: Yet not rejoycing in his speed, though bold, Far off and fearless, nor with cause to boast, Begins his dire attempt, which nigh the birth Now rowling,° boiles in his tumultuous brest, revolving And like a devillish Engine° back recoiles cannon, plot Upon himself; horror and doubt distract His troubl’d thoughts, and from the bottom stirr The Hell within him, for within him Hell He brings, and round about him, nor from Hell One step no more then from himself can fly By change of place: Now conscience wakes despair That slumberd, wakes the bitter memorie Of what he was, what is, and what must be Worse; of worse deeds worse sufferings must ensue. Sometimes towards Eden which now in his view Lay pleasant, his grievd look he fixes sad, Sometimes towards Heav’n and the full-blazing Sun, Which now sat high in his Meridian Towre:° the height of noon Then much revolving, thus in sighs began.

O thou that with surpassing Glory crownd, Look’st from thy sole Dominion like the God Of this new World; at whose sight all the Starrs Hide thir diminisht heads; to thee I call, But with no friendly voice, and add thy name O Sun, to tell thee how I hate thy beams That bring to my remembrance from what state I fell, how glorious once above thy Spheare; Till Pride and worse Ambition threw me down Warring in Heav’n against Heav’ns matchless King:

92 Paradise Lost

20–3. See note to lines 75–8. 27–8 Eden. The name derives from the Hebrew word for “delight.” 32–41. Milton’s nephew Edward Phillips wrote in his “Life of Milton” that these beginning lines of Satan’s

soliloquy were written several years before the poem was begun, intended then as the beginning of a tragedy on the Fall. See Appendix A for Milton’s sketches for such a tragedy. Cf. Aeschylus’ tragedy, Prometheus Bound, 88–112.

32–113. Compare Satan’s soliloquy with Adam’s after the Fall (10.720–844). 37. See John 3:20: “Every one that doeth evil hateth the light.”

Book 4 93

Ah wherefore! he deservd no such return From me, whom he created what I was In that bright eminence, and with his good Upbraided° none; nor was his service hard. reproached What could be less then to afford him praise, The easiest recompence, and pay him thanks, How due! yet all his good prov’d ill in me, And wrought but malice; lifted up so high I sdeind° subjection, and thought one step higher disdained Would set me highest, and in a moment quit° cancel The debt immense of endless gratitude, So burthensome, still° paying, still to ow; continually Forgetful what from him I still receivd, And understood not that a grateful mind By owing° owes not, but still pays, at once owning, acknowledging Indebted and dischargd; what burden then? O had his powerful Destiny ordaind Me some inferiour Angel, I had stood° remained Then happie; no unbounded hope had rais’d Ambition. Yet why not? som other Power° angel As great might have aspir’d, and me though mean° of low rank Drawn to his part; but other Powers as great Fell not, but stand unshak’n, from within Or from without, to all temptations arm’d. Hadst thou the same free Will and Power to stand? Thou hadst: whom hast thou then or what to accuse, But Heav’ns free Love dealt equally to all? Be then his Love accurst, since love or hate, To me alike, it deals eternal woe. Nay curs’d be thou; since against his thy will Chose freely what it now so justly rues. Me miserable! which way shall I flie Infinite wrauth, and infinite despaire? Which way I flie is Hell; my self am Hell; And in the lowest deep a lower deep Still threatning to devour me opens wide, To which the Hell I suffer seems a Heav’n.

43. Compare Satan’s claim at 5.857–61. 73 Me miserable! A Latinism, me miserum! 75–8. Contrast Satan’s boast at 1.254–5 and compare Marlowe’s Mephistopheles in Dr. Faustus 1.3.76, “Why,

this is hell, nor am I out of it.”

O then at last relent: is there no place Left for Repentance, none for Pardon left? None left but by submission; and that word Disdain forbids me, and my dread of shame Among the spirits beneath, whom I seduc’d With other promises and other vaunts Then to submit, boasting I could subdue Th’ Omnipotent. Ay me, they little know How dearly I abide° that boast so vaine, endure Under what torments inwardly I groane; While they adore me on the Throne of Hell, With Diadem° and Sceptre high advanc’d crown The lower still I fall, onely Supream In miserie; such joy Ambition findes. But say I could repent and could obtaine By Act of Grace my former state; how soon Would higth recal high thoughts, how soon unsay What feign’d submission swore: ease would recant Vows made in pain, as violent° and void. forced For never can true reconcilement grow Where wounds of deadly hate have peirc’d so deep: Which would but lead me to a worse relapse And heavier fall: so should I purchase deare Short intermission bought with double smart. This knows my punisher; therefore as farr From granting hee, as I from begging peace: All hope excluded thus, behold in stead Of us out-cast, exil’d, his new delight, Mankind created, and for him this World. So farwel Hope, and with Hope farwel Fear, Farwel Remorse: all Good to me is lost; Evil be thou my Good; by thee at least Divided Empire with Heav’ns King I hold By thee, and more then half perhaps will reigne;° govern As Man ere long, and this new World shall know.

Thus while he spake, each passion dimm’d his face Thrice chang’d with pale,° ire, envie and despair, pallor Which marrd his borrow’d visage, and betraid

94 Paradise Lost

79–80. See God’s speeches at 3.129–32 and 5.613–15. 94 Act of Grace. The legal term for a formal pardon; unmerited favor of God. 110. See Isa. 5:20: “Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil.”

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Book 4 95

Him counterfet, if any eye beheld. For heav’nly mindes from such distempers foule Are ever cleer. Whereof hee soon aware, Each perturbation smooth’d with outward calme, Artificer of fraud; and was the first That practisd° falshood under saintly shew, performed Deep malice to conceale, couch’t° with revenge: hidden Yet not anough had practisd to deceive Uriel once warnd; whose eye pursu’d him down The way he went, and on th’ Assyrian mount° Niphates Saw him disfigur’d, more then could befall Spirit of happie sort: his gestures fierce He markd and mad demeanour, then alone, As he suppos’d, all unobserv’d, unseen. So on he fares, and to the border comes, Of Eden, where delicious Paradise, Now nearer, Crowns with her enclosure green, As with a rural mound the champain head Of a steep wilderness, whose hairie sides With thicket overgrown, grottesque° and wilde, entangled Access deni’d; and over head up grew Insuperable highth of loftiest shade, Cedar, and Pine, and Firr, and branching Palm, A Silvan Scene, and as the ranks ascend Shade above shade, a woodie Theatre Of stateliest view. Yet higher then thir tops The verdurous wall of paradise up sprung: Which to our general Sire gave prospect large Into his neather Empire neighbouring round. And higher then that Wall a circling row Of goodliest Trees loaden with fairest Fruit, Blossoms and Fruits at once of golden hue Appeerd, with gay enameld° colours mixt: bright, variegated

118 distempers. Disorders arising from an imbalance of the four humors. 132–49. Paradise (paradeisos, garden) is a delightful (“delicious”) garden in a plateau (“champain head”) on

top of a steep, densely wooded hill situated in the east of the land of Eden, between the upper Tigris and Euphrates rivers. Cf. Spenser’s Garden of Adonis (Faerie Queene 3.6.42–5).

133–6. A Freudian reading interprets the garden as an image of the female body, with its “mound” sugges- tive of the mons veneris, as in Spenser’s Garden of Adonis (Faerie Queene 3.6.43).

140–2 Silvan Scene. Echoes “silvus scæna,” Aeneid 1.164. As in a Greek amphitheater, the trees are set row on row.

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On which the Sun more glad impress’d his beams Then in fair Evening Cloud, or humid Bow,° rainbow When God hath showrd the earth; so lovely seemd That Lantskip:° And of pure now purer aire landscape Meets his approach, and to the heart inspires Vernal delight and joy, able to drive All sadness but despair: now gentle gales° winds Fanning thir odoriferous° wings dispense fragrance-bearing Native perfumes, and whisper whence they stole Those balmie spoiles. As when to them who saile Beyond the Cape of Hope,° and now are past Cape of Good Hope Mozambic, off at Sea North-East windes blow Sabean Odours from the spicie shoare Of Arabie the blest, with such delay Well pleas’d they slack thir course, and many a League Chear’d with the grateful° smell old Ocean smiles. pleasing So entertaind those odorous sweets the Fiend Who came thir bane,° though with them better pleas’d poison Then Asmodeus with the fishie fume, That drove him, though enamourd, from the Spouse Of Tobits Son, and with a vengeance° sent curse From Media post to Ægypt, there fast bound.

Now to th’ ascent of that steep savage° Hill wooded, wild Satan had journied on, pensive and slow; But further way found none, so thick entwin’d, As one continu’d brake,° the undergrowth thicket Of shrubs and tangling bushes had perplext° would have entangled All path of Man or Beast that past that way: One Gate there only was, and that look’d East On th’ other side: which when th’ arch-fellon saw

96 Paradise Lost

156–9. See Orlando Furioso 34.51, Ariosto’s Paradise, where “from flowers, fruits and grass the breezes stole / The varied perfumes.”

161 Mozambic. Mozambique, off the southeast coast of Africa, noted for its fertility. 162 Sabean. Saba, the biblical Sheba (1 Kgs 10:1–13). 163 Arabie the blest. Arabia Felix, modern Yemen (incorporating Sheba, above), and noted for the “sweet odors

of myrrh and other odoriferous plants” that waft out to sea (Diodorus Siculus, Library of History 3.44). 165 old Ocean. The Titan Oceanus. 168–71. The Apocryphal book of Tobit (chapters 6–8) tells of Tobias, “Tobits Son,” who married Sara in “Media”

and avoided the fate of her previous seven husbands (killed on their wedding night by her demon lover “Asmodeus”) by following the instructions of the angel Raphael to burn the heart and liver of a fish, producing a fishy smell (“fishie fume”) to drive him off. Asmodeus then fled to Egypt where Raphael “bound” him.

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Book 4 97

Due entrance he disdaind, and in contempt, At one slight bound high over leap’d all bound Of Hill or highest Wall, and sheer° within straight down Lights on his feet. As when a prowling Wolfe, Whom hunger drives to seek new haunt for prey, Watching where Shepherds pen thir Flocks at eeve In hurdl’d Cotes° amid the field secure, pens of woven reeds Leaps o’re the fence with ease into the Fould: Or as a Thief bent to unhoord the cash Of some rich Burgher,° whose substantial dores, town-dweller Cross-barrd and bolted fast, fear no assault, In at the window climbs, or o’re the tiles; So clomb this first grand Thief into Gods Fould: So since into his Church lewd Hirelings climbe. Thence up he flew, and on the Tree of Life, The middle Tree and highest there that grew, Sat like a Cormorant; yet not true Life Thereby regaind, but sat devising Death To them who liv’d; nor on the vertue° thought power Of that life-giving Plant, but only us’d For prospect,° what well us’d had bin the pledge as a lookout Of immortality. So little knows Any, but God alone, to value right The good before him, but perverts best things To worst abuse, or to thir meanest use. Beneath him with new wonder now he views To all delight of human sense expos’d In narrow room Natures whole wealth, yea more, A Heaven on Earth, for blissful Paradise Of God the Garden was, by him in the East Of Eden planted; Eden stretchd her Line From Auran Eastward to the Royal Towrs

193 lewd Hirelings. Base men interested only in money. Milton would have clergy support themselves, doing away with tithes or state support. See his Considerations touching the Likeliest means to Remove Hirelings out of the Church (1659), the condemnation of “hireling wolves” in his sonnet “To the Lord Cromwell,” and “Lycidas,” 113–21.

194 Tree of Life. Cf. Gen. 2:9: “And out of the ground made the Lord God to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food; the tree of life also in the midst of the garden, and the tree of knowledge of good and evil.”

209–10. Cf. Gen. 2:8: “And the Lord God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed.”

211 Auran. The province of Haran or Hauran on the eastern border of Israel.

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Of Great Seleucia, built by Grecian Kings, Or where the Sons of Eden long before Dwelt in Telassar: in this pleasant soile His farr more pleasant Garden God ordaind; Out of the fertil ground he caus’d to grow All Trees of noblest kind for sight, smell, taste; And all amid them stood the Tree of Life, High eminent, blooming Ambrosial° Fruit divinely fragrant, immortal Of vegetable Gold; and next to Life Our Death the Tree of knowledge grew fast by, Knowledge of Good bought dear by knowing ill. Southward through Eden went a River large, Nor chang’d his course, but through the shaggie hill Pass’d underneath ingulft, for God had thrown That Mountain as his Garden mould° high rais’d form, rich earth Upon the rapid current, which through veins Of porous Earth with kindly° thirst up drawn, natural Rose a fresh Fountain, and with many a rill Waterd the Garden; thence united fell Down the steep glade, and met the neather Flood, Which from his darksom passage now appeers, And now divided into four main Streams, Runs divers, wandring many a famous Realme And Country whereof here needs no account, But rather to tell how, if Art could tell, How from that Saphire Fount the crisped° Brooks, wavy, rippling Rowling on Orient° Pearl and sands of Gold, lustrous, precious With mazie error under pendant shades Ran Nectar, visiting each plant, and fed Flours worthy of Paradise which not nice° Art fastidious, precise In Beds and curious Knots, but Nature boon

98 Paradise Lost

212–14 Great Seleucia. A powerful city on the Tigris, south of Baghdad, built by Seleucus Nicator, Alexander the Great’s general (“Grecian Kings”) as seat of government for his Syrian empire. Called “Great” to distinguish it from other cities with the same name, it marks the eastern boundary of Eden. Telassar. The ancient name of Seleucia, mentioned in the Old Testament twice as a place where the Assyrians destroyed “the Children of Eden” (2 Kgs 19:12 and Isa. 37:12).

221–2. See Christian Doctrine 1.10: “It was called the tree of knowledge of good and evil from the event, for since it was tasted, not only do we know evil, but we do not even know good except through evil.”

223 a River large. The Tigris, identified at 9.71. 229–35. Cf. Gen. 2:10: “a river went out of Eden to water the garden: and from thence it was parted, and

became into four heads.” 239 mazie error. Meandering as in a maze (“error” here keeps its Latin sense, errare, wandering). 242 curious Knots. Flower beds laid out in intricate regular designs, associated with Tudor garden art.

boon. Bountiful.

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Powrd forth profuse on Hill and Dale and Plaine, Both where the morning Sun first warmly smote The open field, and where the unpierc’t shade Imbround° the noontide Bowrs: Thus was this place, darkened A happy rural seat of various view; Groves whose rich Trees wept odorous Gumms and Balme, Others whose fruit burnisht with Golden Rinde Hung amiable,° Hesperian Fables true, lovely If true, here only, and of delicious taste: Betwixt them Lawns, or level Downs,° and Flocks open land Grasing the tender herb, were interpos’d, Or palmie hilloc, or the flourie lap° valley, hollow Of som irriguous° Valley spred her store, well-watered Flours of all hue, and without Thorn the Rose: Another side, umbrageous Grots° and Caves shady grottos Of coole recess, o’re which the mantling° vine enveloping Layes forth her purple Grape, and gently creeps Luxuriant; mean while murmuring waters fall Down the slope hills, disperst, or in a Lake, That to the fringed Bank with Myrtle crownd, Her chrystal mirror holds, unite thir streams. The Birds thir quire apply; aires, vernal aires, Breathing the smell of field and grove, attune The trembling leaves, while Universal Pan Knit° with the Graces and the Hours in dance clasping hands Led on th’ Eternal Spring. Not that faire field Of Enna, where Proserpin gathering flours Her self a fairer Floure by gloomie Dis Was gatherd, which cost Ceres all that pain To seek her through the world; nor that sweet Grove Of Daphne by Orontes, and th’ inspir’d Castalian Spring, might with this Paradise

247 seat. Like a country estate, with a variety of prospects (“various view”). 250–1 Hesperian Fables. By contrast to the feigned golden apples of the Hesperides (fabled paradisal islands

in the Western Ocean) Eden has “true” golden apples. 266–7 Universal Pan. The wood-god “Pan” was taken as a symbol of “Universal” nature since his name in

Greek means “all.” Graces. Euphrosyne, Aglaia, and Thalia attend upon Venus, as in Botticelli’s Primavera. Hours. Horae, goddesses of the seasons. See Milton’s “L’Allegro,” 11–24, and Comus 986.

268–84. Even as he denies the comparison Milton associates Eden with four famous beauty spots of clas- sical myth.

268–72. Enna. A lovely meadow in Sicily from which “Proserpin” was kidnapped by “gloomie Dis” (Pluto); her mother “Ceres” sought her throughout the world.

272–5 Grove / Of Daphne. A laurel grove on the river “Orontes” in Syria, whose “inspir’d/Castalian Spring” was named for the Muses’ fountain near Parnassus and was said to bestow prophetic powers.

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Of Eden strive; nor that Nyseian Ile Girt with the River Triton, where old Cham, Whom Gentiles Ammon call and Lybian Jove, Hid Amalthea and her Florid° Son wine-flushed Young Bacchus from his Stepdame Rhea’s eye; Nor where Abassin Kings thir issue Guard, Mount Amara, though this by som suppos’d True Paradise under the Ethiop Line By Nilus° head, enclosd with shining Rock, Nile’s A whole days journy high, but wide remote From this Assyrian Garden,° where the Fiend Eden Saw undelighted all delight, all kind Of living Creatures new to sight and strange: Two of far nobler shape erect and tall, Godlike erect, with native Honour clad In naked Majestie seemd Lords of all, And worthie seemd, for in thir looks Divine The image of thir glorious Maker shon, Truth, wisdome, Sanctitude severe° and pure, austere Severe but in true filial freedom plac’t; Whence true autoritie in men; though both Not equal, as thir sex not equal seemd; For contemplation hee and valour formd, For softness shee and sweet attractive Grace, Hee for God only, shee for God in him: His fair large Front° and Eye sublime° declar’d forehead / noble Absolute rule; and Hyacinthin Locks Round from his parted forelock manly hung Clustring, but not beneath his shoulders broad: Shee as a vail down to the slender waste

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275–9 Nyseian Ile. Nysa in the river “Triton” in Tunisia was where “Ammon,” an Egyptian god, identified with Jupiter (“Jove”) and with Noah’s son “Cham” (Ham) hid the nymph “Amalthea” and his child by her, “Bacchus,” from his wife “Rhea.”

280–4 Mount Amara. At the source of the Nile (“Nilus head”) at the Equator (“Ethiop Line”), in splendid palaces amid paradisal gardens, the “Abassin” (Abyssinian) kings kept their sons (“issue”) to avoid sedition. Peter Heylyn, in his Cosmographie (1652), said it was “a dayes journey high,” and that “some have taken (but mistaken) it for the place of Paradise” (4.64).

301 Hyacinthin. Curled. Cf. Odysseus’ hair that “hung down like hyacinthine petals” shining like “gold on silver” (Odyssey 6.231–2).

302–8. See 1 Cor. 11:14–15: “if a man have long hair, it is a shame unto him . . . But if a woman have long hair, it is a glory to her: for her hair is given her for a covering.” The AV glosses “covering” to indicate that “she is under the power of her husband.” Royalists were often derided by Puritans for their long hair. Compare Eve’s “Disheveld” and “wanton” ringlets to nature in Eden (4.236–43).

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Her unadorned golden tresses wore Disheveld, but in wanton° ringlets wav’d unrestrained, luxuriant As the Vine curles her tendrils, which impli’d Subjection, but requir’d with gentle sway,° persuasion And by her yielded, by him best receivd, Yielded with coy° submission, modest pride, shyly reserved And sweet reluctant amorous delay. Nor those mysterious° parts were then conceald, secret, awe-inspiring Then was not guiltie shame, dishonest° shame unchaste Of natures works, honor dishonorable, Sin-bred, how have ye troubl’d all mankind With shews instead, meer shews of seeming pure, And banisht from mans life his happiest life, Simplicitie and spotless innocence. So passd they naked on, nor shund the sight Of God or Angel, for they thought no ill: So hand in hand they passd, the lovliest pair That ever since in loves imbraces met, Adam the goodliest° man of men since borne most handsome His Sons, the fairest of her Daughters Eve. Under a tuft of shade that on a green Stood whispering soft, by a fresh Fountain side They sat them down, and after no more toil Of thir sweet Gardning labour then suffic’d To recommend coole Zephyr, and made ease More easie, wholsom thirst and appetite More grateful, to thir Supper Fruits they fell, Nectarine° Fruits which the compliant boughes sweet as nectar Yielded them, side-long as they sat recline On the soft downie Bank damaskt° with flours: interwoven, variegated The savourie pulp they chew, and in the rinde Still as they thirsted scoop the brimming stream; Nor gentle purpose,° nor endearing smiles conversation Wanted,° nor youthful dalliance as beseems lacked Fair couple, linkt in happie nuptial League, Alone as they. About them frisking playd All Beasts of th’ Earth, since wilde, and of all chase° animals (later) hunted In Wood or Wilderness, Forrest or Den; Sporting the Lion rampd,° and in his paw stood on hind legs

329 Zephyr. God of the west wind, hence, to make a cool breeze welcome.

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Dandl’d the Kid; Bears, Tygers, Ounces,° Pards° lynxes / leopards Gambold before them, th’ unwieldy Elephant To make them mirth us’d all his might, and wreathd His Lithe Proboscis;° close the Serpent sly trunk Insinuating, wove with Gordian twine His breaded train, and of his fatal guile Gave proof unheeded; others on the grass Coucht, and now fild with pasture gazing sat, Or Bedward ruminating:° for the Sun chewing the cud Declin’d° was hasting now with prone carreer° sinking / sharp descent To th’ Ocean Iles,° and in th’ ascending Scale° the Azores / Libra Of Heav’n the Starrs that usher Evening rose: When Satan still in gaze, as first he stood, Scarce thus at length faild speech recoverd sad.

O Hell! what doe mine eyes with grief behold, Into our room° of bliss thus high advanc’t place Creatures of other mould, earth-born perhaps, Not Spirits, yet to heav’nly Spirits bright Little inferior; whom my thoughts pursue With wonder, and could love, so lively shines In them Divine resemblance, and such grace The hand that formd them on thir shape hath pourd. Ah gentle pair, yee little think how nigh Your change approaches, when all these delights Will vanish and deliver ye to woe, More woe, the more your taste is now of joy; Happie, but for so happie° ill secur’d such happiness Long to continue, and this high seat your Heav’n Ill fenc’t for Heav’n to keep out such a foe As now is enterd; yet no purpos’d foe To you whom I could pittie thus forlorne Though I unpittied: League with you I seek, And mutual amitie so streight,° so close, intimate That I with you must dwell, or you with me Henceforth; my dwelling haply° may not please perhaps Like this fair Paradise, your sense, yet such

102 Paradise Lost

344. See Isa. 11:6: “The leopard shall lie down with the kid; and the calf and the young lion and the fatling together.”

348 Insinuating. moving sinuously, twisting. Gordian twine. cords as convoluted as the Gordian knot which Alexander the Great had to cut with his sword.

361–5. See Ps. 8:5: “For thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and honour.”

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Accept your Makers work; he gave it me, Which I as freely give; Hell shall unfold, To entertain you two, her widest Gates, And send forth all her Kings; there will be room, Not like these narrow limits,° to receive the garden’s bounds Your numerous ofspring; if no better place, Thank him who puts me loath to this revenge On you who wrong me not for° him who wrongd. in place of And should I at your harmless innocence Melt, as I doe, yet public reason just, Honour and Empire with revenge enlarg’d, By conquering this new World, compels me now To do what else though damnd I should abhorre.

So spake the Fiend, and with necessitie, The Tyrants plea, excus’d his devilish deeds. Then from his loftie stand on that high Tree Down he alights among the sportful Herd Of those fourfooted kindes, himself now one, Now other, as thir shape servd best his end Neerer to view his prey, and unespi’d To mark what of thir state he more might learn By word or action markt: about them round A Lion now he stalkes with fierie glare, Then as a Tyger, who by chance hath spi’d In some Purlieu° two gentle Fawnes at play, outskirts of a forest Strait couches close, then rising changes oft His couchant watch, as one who chose his ground Whence rushing he might surest seize them both Gript in each paw: When Adam first of men To first of women Eve thus moving speech, Turnd him all eare to hear new utterance flow.

Sole° partner and sole° part of all these joyes, only / unique Dearer thy self then all; needs must the Power That made us, and for us this ample World Be infinitly good, and of his good

383 Kings. Cf. Isaiah’s prophecy of the fall of Babylon (Isa. 14:9) promising to stir up to “meet thee at thy coming . . . all the chief ones of the earth . . . all the kings of the nations.” The reference suggests that Hell is (and will be) populated by kings. Some of the fallen angels bear monarchical titles: Princedoms, Dominations, Thrones, etc.

389–94. Satan is cast as a Machiavellian politician and tyrant, appealing to reason of state (“public reason”), “Honour and Empire,” and “necessitie, / The Tyrants plea” to justify evil deeds.

402–8. When Satan inhabits them, the future predators foreshadow their natures after the Fall. couchant. Lying close to the ground, ready to pounce.

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As liberal and free as infinite, That rais’d us from the dust and plac’t us here In all this happiness, who at his hand Have nothing merited, nor can performe Aught whereof hee hath need, hee who requires From us no other service then to keep This one, this easie charge, of all the Trees In Paradise that bear delicious fruit So various, not to taste that onely Tree Of knowledge, planted by the Tree of Life, So neer grows Death to Life, what ere Death is, Som dreadful thing no doubt; for well thou knowst God hath pronounc’t it death to taste that Tree, The only sign of our obedience left Among so many signes of power and rule Conferrd upon us, and Dominion giv’n Over all other Creatures that possess Earth, Aire, and Sea. Then let us not think hard One easie prohibition, who enjoy Free leave so large to all things else, and choice Unlimited of manifold delights: But let us ever praise him, and extoll His bountie, following our delightful task To prune these growing Plants, and tend these Flours, Which were it toilsom, yet with thee were sweet.

To whom thus Eve repli’d. O thou for whom And from whom I was formd flesh of thy flesh, And without whom am to no end,° my Guide have no purpose And Head, what thou hast said is just and right. For wee to him indeed all praises owe, And daily thanks, I chiefly who enjoy So farr the happier Lot, enjoying thee Præeminent by so much odds, while thou Like consort to thy self canst no where find.

104 Paradise Lost

423–7. See Gen. 2:16–17: “Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat: But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.”

430–2. See Gen. 1:26: “And God said, Let us make man in our image . . . and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle . . . , and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.”

443 Head. Cf. 1 Cor. 11:3: “the head of every man is Christ; and the head of the woman is the man; and the head of Christ is God.”

447 by so much odds. By such a large difference.

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That day I oft remember, when from sleep I first awak’t, and found my self repos’d° resting Under a shade of flours, much wondring where And what I was, whence thither brought, and how. Not distant far from thence a murmuring sound Of waters issu’d from a Cave and spread Into a liquid Plain, then stood unmov’d Pure as th’ expanse of Heav’n; I thither went With unexperienc’t thought, and laid me downe On the green bank, to look into the cleer Smooth Lake, that to me seemd another Skie. As I bent down to look, just opposite, A Shape within the watry gleam appeard Bending to look on me, I started back, It started back, but pleas’d I soon returnd, Pleas’d it returnd as soon with answering looks Of sympathie and love; there I had fixt Mine eyes till now, and pin’d with vain° desire, futile Had not a voice thus warnd me, What thou seest, What there thou seest fair Creature is thy self, With thee it came and goes: but follow me, And I will bring thee where no shadow staies° hinders, awaits Thy coming, and thy soft imbraces, hee Whose image thou art, him thou shalt enjoy Inseparablie thine, to him shalt beare Multitudes like thy self, and thence be call’d Mother of human Race: what could I doe, But follow strait,° invisibly thus led? at once Till I espi’d thee, fair indeed and tall, Under a Platan,° yet methought less faire, plane tree Less winning soft, less amiablie milde, Then that smooth watry image; back I turnd, Thou following cryd’st aloud, Return faire Eve, Whom fli’st thou? whom thou fli’st, of him thou art, His flesh, his bone; to give thee being I lent Out of my side to thee, neerest my heart

449–91. Compare Adam’s account of his creation and marriage to Eve (8.250–520). 456–76. Eve’s experience parallels, with significant differences, the story of Narcissus, who fell in love with

his own reflection and pined away; he was then transformed into the flower bearing his name (Ovid, Metamorphoses 3.402–510).

475 Mother of human Race. Cf. Gen. 3:20, “Adam called his wife’s name Eve, because she was the mother of all the living.”

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Substantial Life, to have thee by my side Henceforth an individual° solace dear; inseparable, separate Part of my Soul I seek thee, and thee claim My other half: with that thy gentle hand Seisd mine, I yielded, and from that time see How beauty is excelld by manly grace And wisdom, which alone is truly fair.

So spake our general Mother, and with eyes Of conjugal attraction unreprov’d, And meek surrender, half imbracing leand On our first Father, half her swelling Breast Naked met his under the flowing Gold Of her loose tresses hid: he in delight Both of her Beauty and submissive Charms Smil’d with superior Love, as Jupiter On Juno smiles, when he impregns° the Clouds impregnates That shed May Flowers; and press’d her Matron lip With kisses pure: aside the Devil turnd For envie, yet with jealous leer maligne Ey’d them askance, and to himself thus plaind.° complained

Sight hateful, sight tormenting! thus these two Imparadis’t in one anothers arms The happier Eden, shall enjoy thir fill Of bliss on bliss, while I to Hell am thrust, Where neither joy nor love, but fierce desire, Among our other torments not the least, Still° unfulfill’d with pain of longing pines; continually Yet let me not forget what I have gain’d From thir own mouths; all is not theirs it seems: One fatal Tree there stands of Knowledge call’d, Forbidden them to taste: Knowledge forbidd’n? Suspicious, reasonless. Why should thir Lord Envie° them that? can it be sin to know, begrudge Can it be death? and do they onely stand By Ignorance, is that thir happie state, The proof of thir obedience and thir faith? O fair foundation laid whereon to build Thir ruine! Hence I will excite thir minds

106 Paradise Lost

499–501. In Iliad 14.346–51 Zeus (“Jupiter”), god of the sky, and Hera (“Juno”), goddess of the air, make love under a cloud; their union was sometimes allegorized as a union of aether and air. Milton’s Jupiter impreg- nates the clouds with the seeds of flowers that grow after rain.

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Book 4 107

With more desire to know, and to reject Envious commands, invented with designe To keep them low whom knowledge might exalt Equal with Gods; aspiring to be such, They taste and die: what likelier can ensue? But first with narrow search I must walk round This Garden, and no corner leave unspi’d; A chance but chance may lead where I may meet Some wandring Spirit of Heav’n, by Fountain side, Or in thick shade retir’d, from him to draw What further would be learnt. Live while ye may, Yet happie pair; enjoy, till I return, Short pleasures, for long woes are to succeed.

So saying, his proud step he scornful turn’d, But with sly circumspection, and began Through wood, through waste, o’re hill, o’re dale his roam° wandering Mean while in utmost Longitude,° where Heav’n farthest west With Earth and Ocean meets, the setting Sun Slowly descended, and with right aspect Against the eastern Gate of Paradise Leveld his eevning Rayes: it was a Rock Of Alablaster, pil’d up to the Clouds, Conspicuous farr,° winding with one ascent from afar Accessible from Earth, one entrance high; The rest was craggie cliff, that overhung Still° as it rose, impossible to climbe. continually Betwixt these rockie Pillars Gabriel sat Chief of th’ Angelic Guards, awaiting night; About him exercis’d Heroic Games Th’ unarmed Youth of Heav’n, but nigh at hand Celestial Armourie, Shields, Helmes, and Speares, Hung high with Diamond flaming, and with Gold. Thither came Uriel, gliding through the Eeven On a Sun beam, swift as a shooting Starr In Autumn thwarts the night, when vapors fir’d Impress the Air, and shews the Mariner From what point of his Compass to beware

544–5 Alablaster. White, translucent marble veined with colors. 549 Gabriel. Hebrew, “Strength of God.” A tradition (see 1 Enoch 20:7) gave Gabriel charge of Paradise. 557–61 thwarts. Passes over, obstructs. vapors fir’d. Combustible exhalations from the earth,

thought to cause shooting stars, which would foretell storms, “Impetuous winds.”

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Impetuous winds: he thus began in haste. Gabriel, to thee thy course by Lot hath giv’n

Charge and strict watch that to this happie place No evil thing approach or enter in; This day at highth of Noon came to my Spheare A Spirit, zealous, as he seem’d, to know More of th’ Almighties works, and chiefly Man Gods latest Image: I describ’d° his way descried, observed Bent all on speed, and markt his Aerie Gate;° journey, gait But in the Mount that lies from Eden North, Where he first lighted, soon discernd his looks Alien from Heav’n, with passions foul obscur’d: Mine eye pursu’d him still, but under shade Lost sight of him; one of the banisht crew I fear, hath ventur’d from the deep, to raise New troubles; him thy care must be to find.

To whom the winged Warriour thus returnd: Uriel, no wonder if thy perfet sight, Amid the Suns bright circle where thou sitst, See farr and wide: in at this Gate none pass The vigilance° here plac’t, but such as come vigilant guard Well known from Heav’n; and since Meridian hour° noon No Creature thence: if Spirit of other sort, So minded, have oreleapt these earthie bounds On purpose, hard thou knowst it to exclude Spiritual substance with corporeal barr. But if within the circuit of these walks, In whatsoever shape he lurk, of whom Thou tellst, by morrow dawning I shall know.

So promis’d hee, and Uriel to his charge Returnd on that bright beam, whose point now rais’d Bore him slope downward to the Sun now fall’n Beneath th’ Azores; whither the prime Orb,° the sun Incredible how swift, had thither rowl’d° orbited Diurnal,° or this less volubil° Earth daily / swift-turning By shorter flight to th’ East, had left him there Arraying with reflected Purple and Gold The Clouds that on his Western Throne attend: Now came still Eevning on, and Twilight gray

108 Paradise Lost

592–5. Here and elsewhere Milton describes the cosmos in both Ptolemaic and Copernican terms.

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Book 4 109

Had in her sober Liverie all things clad; Silence accompanied, for Beast and Bird, They to thir grassie Couch, these to thir Nests Were slunk, all but the wakeful Nightingale; She all night long her amorous descant° sung; melody Silence was pleas’d: now glow’d the Firmament With living Saphirs:° Hesperus° that led stars / Venus, the evening star The starrie Host, rode brightest, till the Moon Rising in clouded Majestie, at length Apparent° Queen unvaild her peerless light, manifest And o’re the dark her Silver Mantle threw.

When Adam thus to Eve: Fair Consort, th’ hour Of night, and all things now retir’d to rest Mind us of like repose, since God hath set Labour and rest, as day and night to men Successive, and the timely dew of sleep Now falling with soft slumbrous weight inclines Our eye-lids; other Creatures all day long Rove idle unimploid, and less need rest; Man hath his daily work of body or mind Appointed, which declares his Dignitie, And the regard° of Heav’n on all his waies; attention, esteem While other Animals unactive range, And of thir doings God takes no account. To morrow ere fresh Morning streak the East With first approach of light, we must be ris’n, And at our pleasant labour, to reform Yon flourie Arbors, yonder Allies green, Our walk at noon, with branches overgrown, That mock our scant manuring,° and require cultivation More hands then ours to lop thir wanton growth: Those Blossoms also, and those dropping Gumms, That lie bestrowne unsightly and unsmooth, Ask riddance, if we mean to tread with ease; Mean while, as Nature wills, Night bids us rest.

To whom thus Eve with perfet beauty adornd. My Author° and Disposer, what thou bidst originator, authority Unargu’d I obey; so God ordains, God is thy Law, thou mine: to know no more Is womans happiest knowledge and her praise. With thee conversing I forget all time, All seasons° and thir change, all please alike. times of day

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Sweet is the breath of morn, her rising sweet, With charm° of earliest Birds; pleasant the Sun song When first on this delightful Land he spreads His orient° Beams, on herb, tree, fruit, and flour, from the east, lustrous Glistring with dew; fragrant the fertil earth After soft showers; and sweet the coming on Of grateful Eevning milde, then silent Night With this her solemn Bird° and this fair Moon, nightingale And these the Gemms of Heav’n, her starrie train: But neither breath of Morn when she ascends With charm of earliest Birds, nor rising Sun On this delightful land, nor herb, fruit, floure, Glistring with dew, nor fragrance after showers, Nor grateful Eevning mild, nor silent Night With this her solemn Bird, nor walk by Moon, Or glittering Starr-light without thee is sweet. But wherfore all night long shine these, for whom This glorious sight, when sleep hath shut all eyes?

To whom our general Ancestor repli’d. Daughter of God and Man, accomplisht Eve, Those have thir course to finish, round the Earth, By morrow Eevning, and from Land to Land In order, though to Nations yet unborn, Ministring light prepar’d, they set and rise; Least total darkness should by Night regaine Her old possession, and extinguish life In Nature and all things, which these soft fires Not only enlighten, but with kindly° heate natural, benign Of various influence foment° and warme, cherish with heat Temper or nourish, or in part shed down Thir stellar vertue on all kinds that grow On Earth, made hereby apter to receive Perfection from the Suns more potent Ray. These then, though unbeheld in deep of night, Shine not in vain, nor think, though men were none, That heav’n would want° spectators, God want praise; lack

110 Paradise Lost

641–56. This embedded love lyric, replete with striking rhetorical figures of circularity and repetition, dis- plays Eve’s poetic talents. It is constructed as an epanalepsis, a figure which begins and ends with the same word (“Sweet / sweet”) after intervening matter.

670–3 Temper. Heal or refresh by restoring the proper balance of elements or humors. The stars were thought to have their own occult influence, and also to moderate that of the sun.

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Millions of spiritual Creatures walk the Earth Unseen, both when we wake, and when we sleep: All these with ceasless praise his works behold Both day and night: how often from the steep Of echoing Hill or Thicket have we heard Celestial voices to the midnight air, Sole, or responsive each to others note Singing thir great Creator: oft in bands While they keep watch, or nightly rounding° walk, make their rounds With Heav’nly touch of instrumental sounds In full harmonic number joind, thir songs Divide the night, and lift our thoughts to Heaven.

Thus talking hand in hand alone they pass’d On to thir blissful Bower; it was a place Chos’n by the sovran Planter, when he fram’d° fashioned All things to mans delightful use; the roofe Of thickest covert was inwoven shade Laurel and Mirtle, and what higher grew Of firm and fragrant leaf; on either side Acanthus, and each odorous bushie shrub Fenc’d up the verdant wall; each beauteous flour, Iris all hues, Roses, and Gessamin° jasmine Rear’d high thir flourisht° heads between, and wrought flowering Mosaic; underfoot the Violet, Crocus, and Hyacinth with rich inlay Broiderd the ground, more colour’d then with stone Of costliest Emblem:° other Creature here inlaid with gemstones Beast, Bird, Insect, or Worm durst enter none; Such was thir awe of Man. In shadier Bower More sacred and sequesterd,° though but feignd, secluded Pan or Silvanus never slept, nor Nymph, Nor Faunus haunted. Here in close recess With Flowers, Garlands, and sweet-smelling Herbs Espoused Eve deckt first her Nuptial Bed, And heav’nly Quires the Hymenæan sung,

688 Divide the night. Mark the watches of the night; also, perform musical divisions, elaborate melodic passages.

691 sovran Planter. See Gen. 2:8: “God planted a garden eastward in Eden.” 707–8. Forest and field deities of classical mythology. “Pan,” “Silvanus,” and “Faunus” were fertility gods, half-

man, half-goat. 711 Hymenæan. Wedding song. Hymen was the classical god of marriage.

680

685

690

695

700

705

710

What day the genial° Angel to our Sire presiding over marriage Brought her in naked beauty more adorn’d, More lovely then Pandora, whom the Gods Endowd with all thir gifts, and O too like In sad event,° when to the unwiser Son outcome Of Japhet brought by Hermes, she ensnar’d Mankind with her faire looks, to be aveng’d On him who had stole Joves authentic° fire. own, original

Thus at thir shadie Lodge arriv’d, both stood, Both turnd, and under op’n Skie ador’d The God that made both Skie, Air, Earth and Heav’n Which they beheld, the Moons resplendent Globe And starrie Pole:° Thou also mad’st the Night, the sky Maker Omnipotent, and thou the Day, Which we in our appointed work imployd Have finisht happie in our mutual help And mutual love, the Crown of all our bliss Ordaind by thee, and this delicious place For us too large, where thy abundance wants Partakers, and uncropt falls to the ground. But thou hast promis’d from us two a Race To fill the Earth, who shall with us extoll Thy goodness infinite, both when we wake, And when we seek, as now, thy gift of sleep.

This said unanimous, and other Rites Observing none, but adoration pure Which God likes best, into thir inmost bowre Handed° they went; and eas’d° the putting off hand in hand / spared These troublesom disguises which wee wear, Strait side by side were laid, nor turnd I weene° surmise Adam from his fair Spouse, nor Eve the Rites Mysterious° of connubial Love refus’d: awe-inspiring, sacred

714–19 Pandora. Pandora (Greek, “all gifts”) was an artificial woman, molded of clay, bestowed by the gods on Epimetheus (“afterthought”), brother of Prometheus (“forethought”), who angered the gods by steal- ing Jove’s fire for man. She brought a box that foolish Epimetheus (“the unwiser Son / Of Japhet”) opened, releasing all the ills of the human race, leaving only hope trapped inside. The brothers were sons of the Titan Iapetos, who was often identified with Japhet, the third son of Noah. The Eve–Pandora parallel was often noted.

724–5. See Ps. 74:16: “The day is thine, the night also is thine: thou hast prepared the light and the sun.” 736–8 Rites. Like many Puritans, Milton objected to set forms of prayer, so Adam and Eve pray spontan-

eously, therefore sincerely, though paradoxically they pray together, “unanimous.”

112 Paradise Lost

715

720

725

730

735

740

Book 4 113

Whatever Hypocrites austerely talk Of puritie and place and innocence, Defaming as impure what God declares Pure, and commands to som, leaves free to all. Our Maker bids increase, who bids abstain But our destroyer, foe to God and Man? Haile wedded Love, mysterious Law, true source Of human ofspring, sole proprietie,° only exclusive possession In Paradise of all things common else. By thee adulterous lust was driv’n from men Among the bestial herds to raunge, by thee Founded in Reason, Loyal, Just, and Pure, Relations dear, and all the Charities° loves, affections Of Father, Son, and Brother first were known. Farr be it, that I should write thee sin or blame, Or think thee unbefitting holiest place, Perpetual Fountain of Domestic sweets, Whose bed is undefil’d and chaste pronounc’t, Present, or past, as Saints and Patriarchs us’d. Here Love his golden shafts imploies, here lights His constant Lamp, and waves his purple wings, Reigns here and revels; not in the bought smile Of Harlots, loveless, joyless, unindeard,° lacking affection Casual fruition, nor in Court Amours Mixt Dance, or wanton Mask, or Midnight Bal, Or Serenate, which the starv’d Lover sings To his proud fair, best quitted with disdain. These lulld by Nightingales imbraceing slept,

744–9. 1 Tim. 4:1–3, applied by Protestants to the Roman Church, warns that “in the latter times some shall depart from the faith . . . Forbidding to marry.” Cf. 1 Cor. 7:9, “But if they cannot contain, let them marry: for it is better to marry than to burn,” and Gen. 1:28: “And God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multi- ply, and replenish the earth.”

750–75. An embedded epithalamium (wedding song originally sung outside the bridal chamber). The Bard takes on the role of celebrator singing outside Adam and Eve’s bower as they prepare for sex and sleep, though this couple’s wedding night took place at some earlier time.

761. Cf. Heb. 13:4: “Marriage is honourable in all, and the bed undefiled.” 762 Saints and Patriarchs. Many of them were married. 763. The “golden shafts” (arrows) of Cupid (Love) were said to produce true love; his lead-tipped arrows, hate. 768 Mixt Dance. Men and women dancing together. wanton Mask. The ostentatious entertainments

of the Stuart court. 769–70 Serenate. Milton imagines a Petrarchan serenade (night song) by a lover perishing from the cold

(“starv’d”) his “proud” lady exudes by her refusals of love (a typical Petrarchan conceit).

745

750

755

760

765

770

And on thir naked limbs the flourie roof Showrd Roses, which the Morn repair’d.° Sleep on replaced Blest pair; and O yet happiest if ye seek No happier state, and know to know no more.

Now had night measur’d with her shaddowie Cone Half way up Hill this vast Sublunar Vault, And from thir Ivorie Port the Cherubim Forth issuing at th’ accustomd hour stood armd To thir night watches in warlike Parade, When Gabriel to his next in power thus spake.

Uzziel, half these draw off, and coast° the South traverse With strictest watch; these other wheel° the North, turn, as around a pivot Our circuit meets full West. As flame they part Half wheeling to the Shield,° half to the Spear.° left / right From these, two strong and suttle Spirits he calld That neer him stood, and gave them thus in charge.

Ithuriel and Zephon, with wingd speed Search through this Garden, leave unsearcht no nook, But chiefly where those two fair Creatures Lodge, Now laid perhaps asleep secure of harme. This Eevning from the Sun’s decline arriv’d Who° tells of som infernal Spirit seen one who Hitherward bent (who could have thought?) escap’d The barrs of Hell, on errand bad no doubt: Such where ye find, seise fast, and hither bring.

So saying, on he led his radiant Files, Daz’ling the Moon; these to the Bower direct In search of whom they sought: him there they found Squat like a Toad, close at the eare of Eve; Assaying by his Devilish art to reach The Organs of her Fancie, and with them forge Illusions as he list,° Phantasms and Dreams, pleased Or if, inspiring° venom, he might taint breathing into (her)

114 Paradise Lost

776–7. The conical shadow cast by the earth has moved “Half way up Hill,” i.e., halfway between the hori- zon and the zenith, so it is 9 p.m.

778 Ivorie Port. The source of false dreams in Homer (Odyssey 6.562–5), dreams whose message is never accomplished.

782 Uzziel. Hebrew, “Strength of God.” Cabbalistic tradition identified him as one of the seven angels before God’s throne.

788 Ithuriel. Hebrew, “Discovery of God.” Zephon. Hebrew, “Look-out.” There is no biblical account of angels so named.

802 Organs. Instruments. Fancie. The faculty that forms mental images.

775

780

785

790

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Th’ animal Spirits that from pure blood arise Like gentle breaths from Rivers pure, thence raise At least distemperd,° discontented thoughts, disordered, troubled Vaine hopes, vaine aimes, inordinate desires Blown up with high conceits° ingendring pride. notions Him thus intent Ithuriel with his Spear Touch’d lightly; for no falshood can endure Touch of Celestial temper, but returns Of force to its own likeness: up he starts Discoverd and surpriz’d. As when a spark Lights° on a heap of nitrous Powder,° laid alights, kindles / gunpowder Fit for the Tun° som Magazin° to store barrel / storehouse for explosives Against° a rumord Warr, the Smuttie° graine in preparation for / black With sudden blaze diffus’d, inflames the Aire: So started up in his own shape the Fiend. Back stept those two fair Angels half amaz’d So sudden to behold the grieslie King; Yet thus, unmovd with fear, accost him soon.

Which of those rebell Spirits adjudg’d to Hell Com’st thou, escap’d thy prison, and transform’d, Why satst thou like an enemie in waite Here watching at the head of these that sleep?

Know ye not then said Satan, fill’d with scorn, Know ye not mee? ye knew me once no mate° equal For you, there sitting where ye durst not soare; Not to know mee argues your selves unknown, The lowest of your throng; or if ye know, Why ask ye, and superfluous begin Your message, like to end as much in vain? To whom thus Zephon, answering scorn with scorn. Think not, revolted Spirit, thy shape the same, Or undiminisht brightness, to be known As when thou stoodst in Heav’n upright and pure; That Glorie then, when thou no more wast good, Departed from thee, and thou resembl’st now Thy sin and place of doom obscure° and foule. dark, lowly, unknown But come, for thou, be sure, shalt give account

805 animal Spirits. The highest of the three kinds of fine vapors produced in the human body: ascending from the blood to the brain, they convey sense data from past experiences, and issue through nerves to impart motion to the body.

812 Celestial temper. Ithuriel’s spear “tempered” (prepared) in celestial ether.

805

810

815

820

825

830

835

840

To him who sent us, whose charge is to keep This place inviolable, and these from harm.

So spake the Cherube, and his grave rebuke Severe in youthful beautie, added grace Invincible: abasht the Devil stood, And felt how awful° goodness is, and saw awe-inspiring Vertue in her shape how lovly, saw, and pin’d° mourned His loss; but chiefly to find here observd His lustre visibly impar’d; yet seemd Undaunted. If I must contend, said he, Best with the best, the Sender not the sent, Or all at once; more glorie will be wonn, Or less be lost. Thy fear, said Zephon bold, Will save us trial what the least can doe Single° against thee wicked, and thence weak. in single combat

The Fiend repli’d not, overcome with rage; But like a proud Steed reind, went hautie on, Chaumping his iron curb: to strive or flie He held it vain; awe from above had quelld His heart, not else dismai’d. Now drew they nigh The western Point, where those half-rounding guards Just met, and closing stood in squadron joind Awaiting next command. To whom thir Chief Gabriel from the Front thus calld aloud.

O friends, I hear the tread of nimble feet Hasting this way, and now by glimps discerne Ithuriel and Zephon through the shade,° trees And with them comes a third of Regal port,° bearing But faded splendor wan; who by his gate And fierce demeanour seems the Prince of Hell, Not likely to part hence without contest; Stand firm, for in his look defiance lours.° scowls

He scarce had ended, when those two approachd And brief related whom they brought, where found, How busied, in what form and posture coucht.

To whom with stern regard thus Gabriel spake. Why hast thou, Satan, broke the bounds prescrib’d To thy transgressions, and disturbd the charge° responsibility Of others, who approve not to transgress By thy example, but have power and right

116 Paradise Lost

862 half-rounding. Completing the circle of the garden, half having swung left, half right.

845

850

855

860

865

870

875

880

Book 4 117

To question thy bold entrance on this place; Imploi’d it seems to violate sleep, and those Whose dwelling God hath planted here in bliss?

To whom thus Satan with contemptuous brow. Gabriel, thou hadst in Heav’n th’ esteem° of wise, reputation And such I held thee; but this question askt Puts me in doubt. Lives ther who loves his pain? Who would not, finding way, break loose from Hell, Though thither doomd? Thou wouldst thy self, no doubt, And boldly venture to whatever place Farthest from pain, where thou mightst hope to change Torment with ease, and soonest recompence° replace Dole° with delight, which in this place I sought; pain, grief To thee no reason; who knowst only good, But evil hast not tri’d: and wilt object His will who bound us? let him surer barr His Iron Gates, if he intends our stay In that dark durance:° thus much what was askt. imprisonment The rest is true, they found me where they say; But that implies not violence or harme.

Thus he in scorn. The warlike Angel mov’d, Disdainfully half smiling thus repli’d. O loss of one in Heav’n to judge of wise, Since Satan fell, whom follie overthrew, And now returns him from his prison scap’t, Gravely in doubt whether to hold them wise Or not, who ask what boldness brought him hither Unlicenc’t from his bounds in Hell prescrib’d; So wise he judges it to fly from pain However,° and to scape his punishment. in any way possible So judge thou still, presumptuous, till the wrauth, Which thou incurr’st by flying, meet thy flight Seavenfold, and scourge that wisdom back to Hell, Which taught thee yet no better, that no pain Can equal anger infinite provok’t. But wherefore thou alone? wherefore with thee Came not all Hell broke loose? is pain to them Less pain, less to be fled, or thou then they

896 object. Put forward as an objection. 904–5 O loss. Irony, i.e., O what a loss to Heaven to lose such a judge of wisdom as Satan, whose folly led

to his downfall.

885

890

895

900

905

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915

Less hardie to endure? courageous Chief, The first in flight from pain, had’st thou alleg’d To thy deserted host this cause of flight, Thou surely hadst not come sole fugitive.

To which the Fiend thus answerd frowning stern. Not that I less endure, or shrink from pain, Insulting Angel, well thou knowst I stood° withstood, endured Thy fiercest, when in Battel to thy aide The blasting volied Thunder made all speed And seconded thy else not dreaded Spear. But still thy words at random,° as before, wide of the mark Argue thy inexperience what behooves From° hard assaies° and ill successes past after / attacks, attempts A faithful Leader, not to hazard all Through wayes of danger by himself untri’d, I therefore, I alone first undertook To wing the desolate Abyss, and spie This new created World, whereof in Hell Fame° is not silent, here in hope to find rumor Better abode, and my afflicted Powers To settle here on Earth, or in mid Aire; Though for possession put° to try once more forced What thou and thy gay° Legions dare against; ostentatious Whose easier business were to serve thir Lord High up in Heav’n, with songs to hymne his Throne, And practis’d distances to cringe, not fight.

To whom the warriour Angel, soon repli’d. To say and strait unsay, pretending first Wise to flie pain, professing next the Spie, Argues no Leader but a lyar trac’t,° found out Satan, and couldst thou faithful add? O name, O sacred name of faithfulness profan’d! Faithful to whom? to thy rebellious crew? Armie of Fiends, fit body to fit head; Was this your discipline and faith ingag’d, Your military obedience, to dissolve Allegeance to th’ acknowledg’d Power supream? And thou sly hypocrite, who now wouldst seem

118 Paradise Lost

940 mid Aire. Satan will become “prince of the power of the air” (Eph. 2:2). 945 cringe. Satan contemptuously parallels the angels’ courtly deference, keeping various “distances” before

God’s throne, with keeping a safe distance from battle.

920

925

930

935

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Patron° of liberty, who more then thou advocate Once fawn’d, and cring’d, and servilly ador’d Heav’ns awful Monarch? wherefore but in hope To dispossess him, and thy self to reigne? But mark what I arreede° thee now, avant;° advise / be gone Flie thither whence thou fledst: if from this houre Within these hallowd limits thou appeer, Back to th’ infernal pit I drag thee chaind, And Seale thee so, as henceforth not to scorne The facil° gates of hell too slightly barrd. easily opened

So threatn’d hee, but Satan to no threats Gave heed, but waxing° more in rage repli’d. growing

Then when I am thy captive talk of chaines, Proud limitarie Cherube, but ere then Farr heavier load thy self expect to feel From my prevailing arme, though Heavens King Ride on thy wings, and thou with thy Compeers, Us’d to the yoak, draw’st his triumphant wheels In progress° through the rode of Heav’n Star-pav’d. a state procession

While thus he spake, th’ Angelic Squadron bright Turnd fierie red, sharpning in mooned hornes° crescent formation Thir Phalanx, and began to hemm him round With ported Spears, as thick as when a field Of Ceres ripe for harvest waving bends Her bearded Grove of ears, which way the wind Swayes them; the careful° Plowman doubting stands anxious Least on the threshing floore his hopeful sheaves Prove chaff. On th’ other side Satan allarm’d° called to arms Collecting all his might dilated stood, Like Teneriff or Atlas unremov’d: His stature reacht the Skie, and on his Crest Sat horror Plum’d; nor wanted in his graspe What seemd both Spear and Shield: now dreadful deeds Might have ensu’d, nor onely Paradise In this commotion, but the Starrie Cope° vault

958–60. See 5.617, 660–71, for Satan’s behavior on the day of the Son’s exaltation. 971 limitarie. Frontier guard, also one of limited authority. 980 ported Spears. Held slantways in front. 981 Ceres. Roman goddess of agriculture, here a metonymy for grain. 987 Teneriff. A mountain in the Canary Islands. Atlas. a mountain in Morocco.

unremov’d. immovable. 990–7. Cf. 6.668–77.

960

965

970

975

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985

990

Of Heav’n perhaps, or all the Elements At least had gon to rack, disturbd and torne With violence of this conflict, had not soon Th’ Eternal to prevent such horrid fray Hung forth in Heav’n his golden Scales, yet seen Betwixt Astrea and the Scorpion signe, Wherein all things created first he weighd, The pendulous round Earth with balanc’t Aire In counterpoise, now ponders° all events, weighs, considers Battels and Realms: in these he put two weights The sequel each of parting and of fight; The latter quick up flew, and kickt the beam; Which Gabriel spying, thus bespake the Fiend.

Satan, I know thy strength, and thou know’st mine, Neither our own but giv’n; what follie then To boast what Arms can doe, since thine no more Then Heav’n permits, nor mine, though doubld now To trample thee as mire: for proof look up, And read thy Lot in yon celestial Sign Where thou art weigh’d, and shown how light, how weak, If thou resist. The Fiend lookt up and knew His mounted scale aloft: nor more; but fled Murmuring, and with him fled the shades of night.

The End of the Fourth Book.

120 Paradise Lost

997–8 golden Scales. The constellation Libra (the Scales) is between Virgo (identified with “Astraea,” god- dess of Justice, who fled the earth at the end of the Golden Age) and Scorpio.

1002–3. In several classical epic similes the fates of opposing heroes are weighed in scales by the gods: cf. Iliad 8.69–72, where the destiny of the Greeks is weighed against that of the Trojans, and Virgil, Aeneid 12.725–7, where Aeneas’ fate is weighed against that of Turnus. See also Isa. 40:12: God “hath measured the waters in the hollow of his hand, and meted out heaven with the span, and comprehended the dust of the earth in a measure, and weighed the mountains in scales, and the hills in a balance.”

1004 kickt the beam. i.e., of the scales: the battle desired by Satan proved lighter. 1012. See Dan. 5:27, God’s warning to King Belshazzar, “Thou art weighed in the balances, and art found

wanting.”

995

1000

1005

1010

1015

Figure 5 Illustration to Book 5, 1688 ( John Baptista Medina)

BOOK 5 THE ARGUMENT

Morning approach’t, Eve relates to Adam her troublesome dream; he likes it not, yet comforts her: They come forth to thir day labours: Thir Morning Hymn at the Door of thir Bower. God to render Man inexcusable sends Raphael to admonish him of his obedience, of his free estate, of his enemy near at hand; who he is, and why his enemy, and whatever else may avail Adam to know. Raphael comes down to Paradise, his appearance describ’d, his coming discern’d by Adam afar off sitting at the door of his Bower; he goes out to meet him, brings him to his lodge, entertains him with the choycest fruits of Paradise got together by Eve; thir discourse at Table: Raphael per- forms his message, minds Adam of his state and of his enemy; relates at Adams request who that enemy is, and how he came to be so, beginning from his first revolt in Heaven, and the occasion thereof; how he drew his Legions after him to the parts of the North, and there incited them to rebel with him, perswading all but only Abdiel a Seraph, who in Argument diswades and opposes him, then forsakes him.

Now Morn her rosie steps in th’ Eastern Clime Advancing, sow’d the earth with Orient° Pearle, lustrous, eastern When Adam wak’t, so customd, for his sleep Was Aerie light from pure digestion bred, And temperat vapors bland,° which th’ only sound gentle, balmy Of leaves and fuming rills, Aurora’s fan, Lightly dispers’d, and the shrill Matin° Song morning Of Birds on every bough; so much the more His wonder was to find unwak’nd Eve With Tresses discompos’d, and glowing Cheek, As through unquiet rest: he on his side Leaning half-rais’d, with looks of cordial° Love heartfelt Hung over her enamour’d, and beheld Beautie, which whether waking or asleep, Shot forth peculiar Graces;° then with voice her own charms Milde, as when Zephyrus on Flora breathes,

13 diswades. To advise or exhort (a person) against.

1–2. Cf. the Homeric descriptive formula, “rosy-fingered dawn” (Iliad 1.477). 3–4. Cf. 9.1049–52. 6. Rustling leaves and foaming streams (“fuming rills”) are stirred by the morning breezes (“fan”) of “Aurora,”

goddess of the dawn. 16 Zephyrus. God of the west wind. Flora. Goddess of flowers. They were consorts in Ovid, Fasti 5.197–207.

Cf. Botticelli, Primavera.

Book 5 123

Her hand soft touching, whisperd thus. Awake My fairest, my espous’d, my latest found, Heav’ns last best gift, my ever new delight, Awake, the morning shines, and the fresh field Calls us, we lose the prime,° to mark how spring first hour of day, 6 a.m. Our tended Plants, how blows° the Citron Grove, blooms What drops the Myrrhe, and what the balmie Reed,° tree yielding balm How Nature paints her colours, how the Bee Sits on the Bloom extracting liquid sweet.

Such whispering wak’d her, but with startl’d eye On Adam, whom imbracing, thus she spake.

O Sole° in whom my thoughts find all repose, only one My Glorie, my Perfection, glad I see Thy face, and Morn return’d, for I this Night, Such night till this I never pass’d, have dream’d, If dream’d, not as I oft am wont,° of thee, accustomed Works of day pass’t, or morrows next designe, But of offence and trouble, which my mind Knew never till this irksom night; methought Close at mine ear one call’d me forth to walk With gentle voice, I thought it thine; it said, Why sleepst thou Eve? now is the pleasant time, The cool, the silent, save where silence yields To the night-warbling Bird,° that now awake the nightingale Tunes sweetest his love-labor’d song; now reignes Full Orb’d the Moon, and with more pleasing light Shadowie sets off the face of things; in vain, If none regard; Heav’n wakes with all his eyes,° stars Whom to behold but thee, Natures desire, In whose sight all things joy, with ravishment Attracted by thy beauty still° to gaze. continually I rose as at thy call, but found thee not; To find thee I directed then my walk; And on, methought, alone I pass’d through ways That brought me on a sudden to the Tree Of interdicted Knowledge: fair it seem’d,

17–25. Adam’s morning love song (aubade) works variations on Song of Solomon 2:10–12: “Rise up, my love, my fair one, and come away . . . The flowers appear on the earth; the time of the singing of birds is come.” Compare Satan’s serenade at 5.38–47.

41 love-labor’d. Produced by love and for love. 45–90. Cf. the temptation of Eve at 9.532–48, 568–612, 679–732.

Much fairer to my Fancie then by day: And as I wondring lookt, beside it stood One shap’d and wing’d like one of those from Heav’n By us oft seen; his dewie locks distill’d Ambrosia;° on that Tree he also gaz’d; heavenly perfume And O fair Plant, said he, with fruit surcharg’d,° overloaded Deigns none to ease thy load and taste thy sweet, Nor God,° nor Man; is Knowledge so despis’d? angel Or envie, or what reserve° forbids to taste? restriction Forbid who will, none shall from me withhold Longer thy offerd good, why else set here? This said he paus’d not, but with ventrous Arme He pluckt, he tasted; mee damp horror chil’d At such bold words voucht° with a deed so bold: backed But he thus overjoy’d, O Fruit Divine, Sweet of thy self, but much more sweet thus cropt, Forbidd’n here, it seems, as onely fit For God’s, yet able to make Gods of Men: And why not Gods of Men, since good, the more Communicated, more abundant growes, The Author not impair’d,° but honourd more? injured, diminished Here, happie Creature, fair Angelic Eve, Partake thou also; happie though thou art, Happier thou mayst be, worthier canst not be: Taste this, and be henceforth among the Gods Thy self a Goddess, not to Earth confind, But somtimes in the Air, as wee, somtimes Ascend to Heav’n, by merit thine, and see What life the Gods live there, and such live thou. So saying, he drew nigh, and to me held, Even to my mouth of that same fruit held part Which he had pluckt; the pleasant savourie° smell appetizing, fragrant So quick’nd appetite, that I, methought, Could not but taste. Forthwith up to the Clouds With him I flew, and underneath beheld The Earth outstretcht immense, a prospect wide And various: wondring at my flight and change To this high exaltation; suddenly My Guide was gon, and I, me thought, sunk down, And fell asleep; but O how glad I wak’d To find this but a dream! Thus Eve her Night Related, and thus Adam answerd sad.° gravely, soberly

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Book 5 125

Best Image of my self and dearer half, The trouble of thy thoughts this night in sleep Affects me equally; nor can I like This uncouth° dream, of evil sprung I fear; strange, unpleasant Yet evil whence? in thee can harbour none, Created pure. But know that in the Soule Are many lesser Faculties that serve Reason as chief; among these Fansie° next fancy, imagination Her office holds; of all external things, Which the five watchful Senses represent,° bring into the mind She forms Imaginations,° Aerie shapes, images Which Reason joyning or disjoyning, frames All what we affirm or what deny, and call Our knowledge or opinion; then retires Into her private Cell° when Nature rests. compartment of the brain Oft in her absence mimic Fansie wakes To imitate her; but misjoyning shapes, Wilde work produces oft, and most in dreams, Ill matching words and deeds long past or late.° recent Som such resemblances methinks I find Of our last Eevnings talk, in this thy dream, But with addition strange; yet be not sad. Evil into the mind of God or Man May come and go, so unapprov’d,° and leave not sanctioned, not acted on No spot or blame behind: Which gives me hope That what in sleep thou didst abhorr to dream, Waking thou never wilt consent to do. Be not disheart’nd then, nor cloud those looks That wont° to be more chearful and serene are accustomed Then when fair Morning first smiles on the World, And let us to our fresh imployments rise Among the Groves, the Fountains, and the Flours That open now thir choicest bosom’d° smells enclosed Reservd from night, and kept for thee in store.

So cheard he his fair Spouse, and she was cheard,

100–13. Adam’s explanation of the dream summarizes the orthodox faculty psychology and dream theory of Milton’s time, a knowledge unfallen man possesses. “Fansie” (fancy) forms images of the “external things” the “five watchful Senses” present; “Reason” connects or separates those images, producing “knowledge or opinion.” In sleep, reason withdraws and fancy takes over, “misjoyning shapes” and mismatching “words and deeds” from past experience, in “dreams.”

117 God. Probably angel, as elsewhere, but perhaps also God, whose omniscience includes knowledge of evil.

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But silently a gentle tear let fall From either eye, and wip’d them with her haire; Two other precious drops that ready stood, Each in thir Chrystal sluce, hee ere they fell Kiss’d as the gracious signs of sweet remorse And pious° awe, that feard to have offended. devout, dutiful

So all was cleard, and to the Field they haste. But first from under shadie arborous roof,° canopy of trees Soon as they forth were come to open sight Of day-spring,° and the Sun, who scarce up risen daybreak With wheels yet hov’ring o’re the Ocean brim, Shot paralel to the earth his dewie ray, Discovering° in wide Lantskip° all the East revealing / landscape Of Paradise and Edens happie Plains, Lowly they bow’d adoring, and began Thir Orisons,° each Morning duly paid prayers In various style, for neither various style Nor holy rapture wanted° they to praise lacked Thir Maker, in fit strains pronounc’t or sung Unmeditated, such prompt eloquence Flowd from thir lips, in Prose or numerous° Verse, rhythmic More tuneable° then needed Lute or Harp melodious To add more sweetness, and they thus began.

These are thy glorious works, Parent of good, Almightie, thine this universal Frame,° structure, the universe Thus wondrous fair; thy self how wondrous then! Unspeakable,° who sitst above these Heavens inexpressible To us invisible or dimly seen In these thy lowest works, yet these declare° show forth Thy goodness beyond thought, and Power Divine: Speak yee who best can tell, ye Sons of light, Angels, for yee behold him, and with songs And choral symphonies, Day without Night, Circle his Throne rejoycing, yee in Heav’n, On Earth joyn all ye Creatures to extoll Him first, him last, him midst, and without end.

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140 wheels. Helios, or Sol, god of the sun, was imagined to drive the chariot of the sun from east to west. 146–52 various style. Adam and Eve employ many forms of speech and song that harmonize together in

“fit strains” but are at the same time spontaneous and ecstatic, expressing “holy rapture.” Milton, like other Puritans, disapproved of set liturgical forms.

153–208. Their morning hymn works variations on Psalms 148, 104, and 19, as well as the canticle Benedicite.

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Fairest of Starrs, last in the train of Night, If better thou belong not to the dawn, Sure pledge of day, that crownst the smiling Morn With thy bright Circlet, praise him in thy Spheare While day arises, that sweet hour of Prime. Thou Sun, of this great World both Eye and Soule, Acknowledge him thy Greater, sound his praise In thy eternal course, both when thou climb’st, And when high Noon hast gaind, and when thou fallst. Moon, that now meetst the orient Sun, now fli’st With the fixt Starrs, fixt in thir Orb that flies, And yee five other wandring Fires that move In mystic Dance not without Song, resound His praise, who out of Darkness call’d up Light. Aire, and ye Elements the eldest birth Of Natures Womb, that in quaternion° run group of four Perpetual Circle, multiform; and mix And nourish all things, let your ceasless change Varie to our great Maker still° new praise. continually Ye Mists and Exhalations that now rise From Hill or steaming Lake, duskie or grey, Till the Sun paint your fleecie skirts with Gold, In honour to the Worlds great Author rise, Whether to deck with Clouds th’ uncolourd skie, Or wet the thirstie Earth with falling showers, Rising or falling still advance his praise. His praise ye Winds, that from four Quarters blow, Breathe soft or loud; and wave your tops, ye Pines, With every Plant, in sign of Worship wave. Fountains and yee, that warble, as ye flow, Melodious murmurs, warbling tune his praise. Joyn voices all ye living Souls; ye Birds, That singing up to Heaven Gate ascend, Bear on your wings and in your notes his praise;

166–8. Venus, the morning star, is the last star to disappear at dawn and (as Hesperus) the first to appear in the evening.

176–8 Orb that flies. The orb of the “fixt Starrs” revolves, though the stars remain “fixt” in place. five other wandring Fires. The other planets besides the moon and sun, already mentioned, are Mercury, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, and Venus (or earth), which change positions. These motions produce the music of the spheres, audible to unfallen humans.

180–3. The four elements – earth, water, air, fire – are the “eldest birth” of nature, and “nourish” all things by their “ceasless change” and orderly interactions.

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Yee that in Waters glide, and yee that walk The Earth, and stately tread, or lowly creep; Witness if I be silent, Morn or Eeven, To Hill, or Valley, Fountain, or fresh shade Made vocal by my Song, and taught his praise. Hail universal Lord, be bounteous still° always To give us onely good; and if the night Have gathered aught of evil or conceald, Disperse it, as now light dispels the dark.

So pray’d they innocent, and to thir thoughts Firm peace recoverd soon and wonted calm. On to thir mornings rural work they haste Among sweet dewes and flours; where any row Of Fruit-trees overwoodie° reachd too farr too bushy Thir pamperd° boughes, and needed hands to check not restrained Fruitless imbraces: or they led the Vine To wed her Elm; she spous’d about him twines Her marriageable arms, and with her brings Her dowr th’ adopted Clusters, to adorn His barren leaves. Them thus imploid beheld With pittie Heav’ns high King, and to him call’d Raphael, the sociable Spirit, that deign’d To travel with Tobias, and secur’d His marriage with the seaventimes-wedded Maid.

Raphael, said hee, thou hear’st what stir on Earth Satan from Hell scap’t through the darksom Gulf Hath raisd in Paradise, and how disturbd This night the human pair, how he designes In them at once to ruin all mankind. Go therefore, half this day as friend with friend Converse with Adam, in what Bowre or shade Thou find’st him from the heat of Noon retir’d, To respit his day-labour with repast, Or with repose; and such discourse bring on, As may advise him of his happie state,

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215–19. A familiar emblem of matrimony, the “Elm,” symbolizing masculine strength, and the “Vine,” fem- inine fruitfulness, softness, and sweetness. But “adopted Clusters” seems to carry matriarchal implications.

221–3 Raphael. In Hebrew, “Health of God.” He was the advisor of “Tobias” in winning his wife (see 4.168–71 and note), and told him how to cure Tobit’s blindness (Apocrypha: Tobit 11:7–14). In cabbalism he is one of the four angels (with Gabriel, Michael, and Uriel) in charge of the four corners of the earth.

229–30. God spoke to Moses, “face to face, as a man speaketh unto his friend” (Exod. 33:11).

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Happiness in his power left free to will, Left to his own free Will, his Will though free, Yet mutable; whence warne him to beware He swerve not too secure:° tell him withall overconfident His danger, and from whom, what enemie Late falln himself from Heav’n, is plotting now The fall of others from like state of bliss; By violence, no, for that shall be withstood, But by deceit and lies; this let him know, Least wilfully transgressing he pretend° plead Surprisal, unadmonisht, unforewarnd.

So spake th’ Eternal Father, and fulfilld All Justice: nor delaid the winged Saint° angel After his charge receivd; but from among Thousand Celestial Ardors, where he stood Vaild with his gorgeous wings, up springing light Flew through the midst of Heav’n; th’ angelic Quires On each hand parting, to his speed gave way Through all th’ Empyreal° road; till at the Gate heavenly Of Heav’n arriv’d, the gate self-opend wide On golden Hinges turning, as by work Divine the sov’ran Architect had fram’d. From hence, no cloud, or, to obstruct his sight, Starr interpos’d, however small he sees, Not unconform to other shining Globes, Earth and the Gard’n of God, with Cedars crownd Above all Hills. As when by night the Glass° telescope Of Galileo, less assur’d, observes Imagind Lands and Regions in the Moon: Or Pilot from amidst the Cyclades Delos or Samos first appeering kenns° discerns A cloudy spot. Down thither prone° in flight bent forward He speeds, and through the vast Ethereal Skie Sailes between worlds and worlds, with steddie wing

249 Ardors. Spirits (angels) burning in love, from the Latin ardere, “to burn.” 261–3 Galileo. Cf. 1.288–91. 264–6 Cyclades. A circular group of islands in the south Aegean sea. The two islands a “Pilot” might see as

“spots” from within the archipelago are “Delos” (the traditional center but famous for having floated adrift) and “Samos,” outside the group, off the coast of Asia Minor.

266–76. Raphael’s descent is an epic topos, modeled on the descents of Virgil’s Mercury (Aeneid 4.238–58) and Tasso’s Michael (Gerusalemme Liberata 9.60–2).

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Now on the polar windes, then with quick Fann° flutter Winnows the buxom° Air; till within soare° yielding / highest flight Of Towring Eagles, to all the Fowles he seems A Phænix, gaz’d by all, as that sole Bird When to enshrine his reliques in the Sun’s Bright Temple, to Ægyptian Theb’s he flies. At once on th’ Eastern cliff of Paradise He lights, and to his proper shape returns A Seraph wingd; six wings he wore, to shade His lineaments° Divine; the pair that clad parts of the body Each shoulder broad, came mantling° o’re his brest covering With regal Ornament; the middle pair Girt like a Starrie Zone° his waste, and round belt Skirted his loines and thighes with downie Gold And colours dipt in Heav’n; the third his feet Shaddowd from either heele with featherd maile° plumage like armor Skie-tinctur’d grain.° Like Maia’s son he stood, dye And shook his Plumes, that Heav’nly fragrance filld The circuit wide. Strait knew him all the Bands Of Angels under watch; and to his state,° rank And to his message high in honour rise; For on som message high they guessd him bound. Thir glittering Tents he passd, and now is come Into the blissful field, through Groves of Myrrhe, And flouring Odours, Cassia, Nard, and Balme; A Wilderness of sweets; for Nature here Wantond° as in her prime, and plaid° at will revelled / sported Her Virgin Fancies, pouring forth more sweet, Wilde above Rule or Art; enormous° bliss. immense, beyond rule Him through the spicie Forrest onward com Adam discernd, as in the dore he sat

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272 Phœnix. A mythical, unique bird (“sole”) who lived five hundred years, was consumed by fire, and was reborn from the ashes which it then carried to the Temple of the Sun at Heliopolis in Egypt (“Ægyptian Theb’s”).

276–85 proper shape. Modeled on the description of the Seraphim in Isa. 6:2; “each one had six wings; with twain he covered his face, and with twain he covered his feet, and with twain he did fly.”

285 Maia’s son. Mercury, messenger of the gods. 293 Cassia. A cinnamon. Nard. Spikenard. Balme. Balsam. All were used to make perfumed

ointments. 299–300. Raphael’s visit to Adam is modeled on Abraham’s entertainment of three angels: “[Abraham] sat

in the tent door in the heat of the day; And he lift up his eyes and looked, and, lo, three men stood by him.” He and his wife Sarah prepared a meal for the angels, but most Christian commentators agreed that these angels, being spirits, ate only in show (Gen. 18:1–8).

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Of his coole Bowre, while now the mounted Sun Shot down direct his fervid Raies to warme Earths inmost womb, more warmth then Adam needs; And Eve within, due° at her hour prepar’d fittingly For dinner savourie fruits, of taste to please True appetite, and not disrelish thirst Of nectarous draughts between, from milkie stream, Berrie or Grape: to whom thus Adam call’d.

Haste hither Eve, and worth thy sight behold Eastward among those Trees, what glorious shape Comes this way moving; seems another Morn Ris’n on mid-noon; som great behest from Heav’n To us perhaps he brings, and will voutsafe° grant This day to be our Guest. But goe with speed, And what thy stores contain, bring forth and poure Abundance, fit to honour and receive Our Heav’nly stranger; well we may afford Our givers thir own gifts, and large bestow From large bestowd, where Nature multiplies Her fertil growth, and by disburd’ning grows More fruitful, which instructs us not to spare.

To whom thus Eve. Adam, earths hallowd mould,° pattern, model Of God inspir’d,° small store will serve, where store, given breath of life All seasons, ripe for use hangs on the stalk; Save what by frugal storing firmness gains To nourish, and superfluous moist consumes: But I will haste and from each bough and break, Each Plant and juiciest Gourd° will pluck such choice type of melon To entertain our Angel guest, as hee Beholding shall confess that here on Earth God hath dispenst his bounties as in Heav’n.

So saying, with dispatchful looks in haste She turns, on hospitable thoughts intent What choice to chuse for delicacie best, What order, so contriv’d as not to mix Tastes, not well joynd, inelegant, but bring Taste after taste upheld° with kindliest° change, sustained / most natural

304–7. Eve prepared sweet drinks (“nectarous draughts”) from juices (“milkie stream”) of “Berrie or Grape,” to be enjoyed “between” courses of “savourie fruits.”

322 small store. Reserve. store. Abundance.

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Bestirs her then, and from each tender stalk Whatever Earth all-bearing Mother yields In India° East or West, or middle shoare Indies In Pontus or the Punic Coast, or where Alcinous reign’d, fruit of all kindes, in coate, Rough, or smooth rin’d, or bearded husk, or shell She gathers, Tribute large, and on the board Heaps with unsparing hand; for drink the Grape She crushes, inoffensive moust, and meathes From many a berrie, and from sweet kernels prest She tempers° dulcet° creams, nor these to hold blends / sweet Wants° her fit vessels pure, then strews the ground lacks With Rose and Odours from the shrub unfum’d. Mean while our Primitive° great Sire, to meet original His god-like Guest, walks forth, without more train° attendants Accompani’d then with his own compleat Perfections, in himself was all his state,° stateliness, rank More solemn then the tedious pomp that waits On Princes, when thir rich Retinue long Of Horses led, and Grooms besmeard with Gold Dazles the croud, and sets them all agape. Neerer his presence Adam though not awd, Yet with submiss approach and reverence meek, As to a superior Nature, bowing low,

Thus said. Native of Heav’n, for other place None can then Heav’n such glorious shape contain; Since by descending from the Thrones above, Those happie places thou hast deignd a while To want,° and honour these, voutsafe with us be parted from Two onely, who yet by sov’ran gift possess This spacious ground, in yonder shadie Bowre To rest, and what the Garden choicest bears To sit and taste, till this meridian° heat noontime Be over, and the Sun more coole decline.

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339–41 middle shoare. “Pontus,” the south coast of the Black Sea, was famous for nuts and fruits; the “Punic” (Carthaginian) coast of North Africa on the Mediterranean, was famous for figs; the garden of Alcinous in the mythical island of Scheria is described in Odyssey 7.113–28 as perpetually fruitful.

345 inoffensive moust. Unfermented grape juice. meathes. Meads, honey-sweetened drinks. 349 unfum’d. Naturally scented, not needing to be burned as incense. 354–7 tedious pomp. The showy display of kings like Charles II whose pageantry “Dazles the croud” but

falls far short of the “solemn” natural majesty of Adam.

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Whom thus the Angelic Vertue answerd milde. Adam, I therefore came, nor art thou such Created, or such place hast here to dwell, As may not oft invite, though Spirits of Heav’n To visit thee; lead on then where thy Bowre Oreshades; for these mid-hours, till Eevning rise I have at will. So to the Silvan Lodge They came, that like Pomona’s Arbour smil’d With flourets deck’t° and fragrant smells; but Eve covered Undeckt, save with her self more lovely fair Then Wood-Nymph, or the fairest Goddess feign’d Of three that in Mount Ida naked strove, Stood to entertain her guest from Heav’n; no vaile Shee needed, Vertue-proof,° no thought infirme armored in virtue Alterd her cheek. On whom the Angel Haile Bestowd, the holy salutation us’d Long after to blest Marie, second Eve.

Haile Mother of Mankind, whose fruitful Womb Shall fill the World more numerous with thy Sons Then with these various fruits the Trees of God Have heap’d this Table. Rais’d of grassie terf Thir Table was, and mossie seats had round, And on her ample Square from side to side All Autumn pil’d, though Spring and Autumn here Danc’d hand in hand. A while discourse they hold; No fear lest Dinner coole; when thus began Our Authour.° Heav’nly stranger, please to taste originator, ancestor These bounties which our Nourisher, from whom All perfet good unmeasur’d out, descends, To us for food and for delight hath caus’d

371 Vertue. One of the traditional nine orders of angels in the scheme of Dionysius the Areopagite: Seraphim, Cherubim, Thrones, Dominions, Virtues, Powers, Principalities, Archangels, Angels. Milton uses these titles freely, in the Protestant manner, without regard to this hierarchical order. Some angels are given more than one title: Raphael is called “Vertue” here, “Seraph” at line 277, and “Arch-Angel” at 7.41.

378 Pomona. Roman goddess of fruit trees. 381–2 three. On “Mount Ida,” Venus, Juno, and Minerva “naked strove” for the apple of discord inscribed

“for the fairest.” Paris awarded the prize to Aphrodite (“the fairest Goddess”) in return for the love of Helen, which led to her rape and the Trojan War.

385–8. Cf. the angel’s words to Mary announcing that she would bear a son, Jesus (Luke 1:28): “Hail, thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee: blessed art thou among women.” For Mary as “second Eve” see PL 10.183.

398–400 our Nourisher. Cf. Jas. 1:17, “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and cometh down from the Father of lights.”

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The Earth to yield; unsavourie food perhaps To spiritual Natures; only this I know, That one Celestial Father gives to all.

To whom the Angel. Therefore what he gives (Whose praise be ever sung) to man in part Spiritual, may of purest Spirits be found No ingrateful° food: and food alike those pure unwelcome Intelligential substances° require angels As doth your Rational; and both contain Within them every lower facultie Of sense, whereby they hear, see, smell, touch, taste, Tasting concoct, digest, assimilate, And corporeal to incorporeal turn. For know, whatever was created, needs To be sustaind and fed; of Elements The grosser feeds the purer, Earth the Sea, Earth and the Sea feed Air, the Air those Fires° heavenly bodies Ethereal, and as lowest first the Moon; Whence in her visage round those spots, unpurg’d Vapours not yet into her substance turnd. Nor doth the Moon no nourishment exhale From her moist Continent to higher Orbes. The Sun that light imparts to all, receives From all his alimental° recompence nourishing In humid exhalations, and at Even Sups with the Ocean: though in Heav’n the Trees Of life ambrosial° frutage bear, and vines heavenly, fragrant Yield Nectar, though from off the boughs each Morn

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404–500. Raphael’s discourse and dialogue about the nature of things recall Lucretius’ De Rerum Natura (“Of the Nature of Things”), often termed a philosophic epic; Raphael chooses a brief version of that genre for his exposition.

404–13. As a monist who believed that all creation is of “one first matter” (472; see also Christian Doctrine 1.7), Milton denied the more common (dualistic) idea that angels are pure spirits (who would not eat or have any experiences pertaining to the senses); he held instead that angels are of a very highly refined material substance .

412 concoct, digest, assimilate. The three stages of digestion. 414–26 The grosser feeds the purer. That all features of the natural world require sustenance from crea-

tures below them in the scale of being was a commonplace (Cf. Pliny, Natural History 2.9). Robert Fludd, Utriusque cosmi historia (1617), has an engraving that shows the sun supping with the ocean (1.5–6).

418–20 spots. Raphael describes moonspots as undigested vapors not yet assimilated to the moon’s substance. Cf. 1.287–91, where those spots are described in Galileo’s terms as features of the moon’s landscape.

427–30. “Nectar” and “ambrosia” are the drink and food of the classical gods; Milton adds “pearly grain,” like the manna showered on the Israelites in the desert (Cf. Exod. 16:14).

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We brush mellifluous° Dewes, and find the ground sweet, honey-flowing Cover’d with pearly grain: yet God hath here Varied his bounty so with new delights, As may compare with Heaven; and to taste Think not I shall be nice.° So down they sat, finicky, fastidious And to thir viands fell, nor seemingly° in show The Angel, nor in mist, the common gloss Of Theologians, but with keen dispatch Of real hunger, and concoctive° heate digestive To transubstantiate; what redounds, transpires Through Spirits with ease; nor wonder; if by fire Of sooty coal the Empiric° Alchimist experimental Can turn, or holds it possible to turn Metals of drossiest Ore to perfet Gold As from the Mine. Mean while at Table Eve Ministerd naked, and thir flowing cups With pleasant liquors crown’d:° O innocence filled to the brim Deserving Paradise! if ever, then, Then had the Sons of God excuse to have bin Enamour’d at that sight; but in those hearts Love unlibidinous° reign’d, nor jealousie without lust Was understood, the injur’d Lovers Hell.

Thus when with meats and drinks they had suffic’d Not burd’nd Nature, sudden mind arose In Adam, not to let th’ occasion pass Given him by this great Conference to know Of things above his World, and of thir being Who dwell in Heav’n, whose excellence he saw Transcend his own so farr, whose radiant forms Divine effulgence,° whose high Power so far shining Exceeded human, and his wary speech Thus to th’ Empyreal Minister he fram’d.

Inhabitant with God, now know I well

435 in mist. The usual explanation (“common gloss”) of orthodox theologians was that when angels appeared to humans they took bodies of air. See lines 299–300 above, and note.

438 transubstantiate. In common theological use, the Roman Catholic doctrine that the bread and wine of the eucharist are in their substance transformed into the body and blood of Christ. Milton vigorously denied that doctrine, describing as a true transubstantiation the angels’ transformation of earthly food into their more highly refined substance. The residue (“what redounds”) passes out as vapor through the pores (“tran- spires”) – the angelic form of excretion.

446–8 Sons of God. A patristic tradition identifies them with angels (as here) though they are usually said to be human sons of Seth, as in 11.621–2. Gen. 6:2 tells of their marriage to the daughters of men.

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Thy favour, in this honour done to man, Under whose lowly roof thou hast voutsaf ’t To enter, and these earthly fruits to taste, Food not of Angels, yet accepted so, As that more willingly thou couldst not seem At Heav’n’s high feasts to have fed: yet what compare?

To whom the winged Hierarch° repli’d. potentate O Adam, one Almightie is, from whom All things proceed, and up to him return, If not deprav’d from good, created all Such to perfection, one first matter all, Indu’d with various forms, various degrees Of substance, and in things that live, of life; But more refin’d, more spiritous, and pure, As neerer to him plac’t or neerer tending Each in thir several active Sphears assignd, Till body up to spirit work, in bounds° limits, leaps Proportiond to each kind. So from the root Springs lighter the green stalk, from thence the leaves More aerie, last the bright consummate° floure complete, perfect Spirits odorous breathes: flours and thir fruit Mans nourishment, by gradual scale sublim’d To vital Spirits aspire, to animal, To intellectual, give both life and sense, Fansie and understanding, whence the Soule Reason receives, and reason is her being, Discursive, or Intuitive; discourse Is oftest yours, the latter most is ours,

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469–79. Milton held that the universe was created out of Chaos, not out of nothing (ex nihilo), the orthodox position. The primal matter of Chaos had its origin in God, who subsequently created all things from that matter (see 7.168–73). This materialist monism denies sharp distinctions between angels and men, spirit and matter, all being of one substance with different degrees of refinement. The universe Raphael describes is hierarchical but also dynamic and striving, as beings become increasingly spiritual (“spiritous”) or increasingly gross depending on their moral choices (see Christian Doctrine 1.7).

479–87. The plant figure provides an illustration of the dynamism of being in Milton’s universe, and further explains why Raphael can eat the fruit. That fruit is transformed into various orders of “spirits”: “vital,” fluids in the blood sustaining life; “animal,” produced from the vital spirits and controlling sensation and motion; and “intellectual,” spirits controlling the faculties of the soul – fancy, understanding, and reason. The soul derives her being from the spirits and so is material.

483 sublim’d. Raised to a higher state, an alchemical term referring to the change of a solid into a gas. 488–90 Discursive, or Intuitive. According to the traditional dualist assumption, angels are pure spirits whose

intuition (immediate apprehension of truth) is absolutely distinct from human reason (which involved com- bining data and arguing from premises to conclusions). Milton makes the distinction only relative, “Differing but in degree.”

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Differing but in degree, of kind the same. Wonder not then, what God for you saw good If I refuse not, but convert, as you, To proper° substance; time may come when men my own With Angels may participate, and find No inconvenient Diet, nor too light Fare: And from these corporal nutriments perhaps Your bodies may at last turn all to Spirit, Improv’d by tract° of time, and wingd ascend passage Ethereal, as wee, or may at choice Here or in Heav’nly Paradises dwell; If ye be found obedient, and retain Unalterably firm his love entire Whose progenie you are. Mean while enjoy Your fill what happiness this happie state Can comprehend, incapable° of more. unable to contain

To whom the Patriarch of mankind repli’d. O favourable spirit, propitious° guest, gracious Well hast thou taught the way that might direct Our knowledge, and the scale of Nature set From center to circumference, whereon In contemplation of created things By steps we may ascend to God. But say, What meant that caution joind, if ye be found Obedient? can we want° obedience then lack To him, or possibly his love desert Who formd us from the dust, and plac’d us here Full to the utmost measure of what bliss Human desires can seek or apprehend?

To whom the Angel. Son of Heav’n and Earth, Attend: That thou art happie, owe to God; That thou continu’st such, owe to thy self, That is, to thy obedience; therein stand. This was that caution giv’n thee; be advis’d. God made thee perfet, not immutable;° unchangeable And good he made thee, but to persevere He left it in thy power, ordaind thy will

498–501. Cf. 7.157–61. 509 scale of Nature. The “Chain of Being” extending from God down to the lowest element of creation

(see, e.g., Macrobius, In Somnium Scipionis 1.14.15). 520–43. Cf. 3.93–128.

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By nature free, not over-rul’d by Fate Inextricable, or strict necessity; Our voluntarie service he requires, Not our necessitated, such with him Findes no acceptance, nor can find, for how Can hearts, not free, be tri’d whether they serve Willing or no, who will but what they must By Destinie, and can no other choose? My self and all th’ Angelic Host that stand In sight of God enthron’d, our happie state Hold, as you yours, while our obedience holds; On other surety° none; freely we serve, guarantee Because we freely love, as in our will To love or not; in this we stand or fall: And som are fall’n, to disobedience fall’n, And so from Heav’n to deepest Hell; O fall From what high state of bliss into what woe!

To whom our great Progenitor. Thy words Attentive, and with more delighted eare, Divine instructer, I have heard, then when Cherubic Songs° by night from neighbouring Hills songs of Cherubim Aereal Music send: nor knew I not To be both will and deed created free; Yet that we never shall forget to love Our maker, and obey him whose command Single, is yet so just, my constant thoughts Assur’d me, and still assure: though what thou tellst Hath past in Heav’n, som doubt within me move, But more desire to hear, if thou consent, The full relation, which must needs be strange, Worthy of Sacred silence to be heard; And we have yet large day, for scarce the Sun Hath finisht half his journey, and scarce begins His other half in the great Zone° of Heav’n. zodiac

Thus Adam made request, and Raphael After short pause assenting, thus began.

High matter thou injoinst me, O prime° of men, first, most excellent

138 Paradise Lost

557 Worthy of Sacred silence. Translates Horace, Odes 2.13.29, referring to songs sung by Alcaeus and Sappho in Hades; their words are “sacro digna silentio.”

563 High matter. Raphael’s account of the war in Heaven is an epic device, a narrative of past action; it is also a mini-epic itself, with traditional battles, challenges, and single combats. As an “epic” poet treating sacred matter, Raphael confronts a narrative challenge similar to Milton’s own.

530

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Book 5 139

Sad task and hard, for how shall I relate To human sense th’ invisible exploits Of warring Spirits; how without remorse° sorrow The ruin of so many glorious once And perfet while they stood; how last unfould The secrets of another world, perhaps Not lawful to reveal? yet for thy good This is dispenc’t,° and what surmounts the reach permitted Of human sense, I shall delineate so, By lik’ning spiritual to corporal forms, As may express them best, though what if Earth Be but the shaddow of Heav’n, and things therein Each to other like, more then on earth is thought?

As yet this World was not, and Chaos wilde Reignd where these Heav’ns now rowl, where Earth now rests Upon her Center pois’d, when on a day (For Time, though in Eternitie, appli’d To motion, measures all things durable By present, past, and future) on such day As Heav’ns great Year brings forth, th’ Empyreal Host Of Angels by Imperial summons call’d, Innumerable before th’ Almighties Throne Forthwith from all the ends of Heav’n appeerd Under thir Hierarchs° in orders bright leaders, potentates Ten thousand thousand Ensignes high advanc’d, Standards and Gonfalons twixt Van and Reare Streame in the Aire, and for distinction serve Of Hierarchies, of Orders, and Degrees; Or in thir glittering Tissues° bear imblaz’d fine cloth Holy Memorials, acts of Zeale and Love Recorded eminent. Thus when in Orbes Of circuit° inexpressible they stood, circumference Orb within Orb, the Father infinite,

571–6. Raphael first explains his narrative strategy in terms of the traditional notion of “accommodation,” couching spiritual matters in “corporal” terms that humans can understand; but he then extends the Platonic idea that earth is a shadow of heaven (Republic 10.397B–598D) to suggest that the two realms are more similar than earthly thinkers have supposed.

580–2. Countering a long philosophical tradition, Milton asserts the existance of time and motion in Heaven, before the creation of the universe (see Christian Doctrine 1.7).

583 great Year. The cycle completed when all the heavenly bodies simultaneously return to their original positions (see, e.g., Plato, Timaeus 39d). A common estimate of that cycle was 36,000 earth years.

589 Gonfalons. Flags hung from a crossbar. Van. Vanguard.

565

570

575

580

585

590

595

By whom in bliss imbosom’d sat the Son, Amidst as from a flaming Mount, whose top Brightness had made invisible, thus spake.

Hear all ye Angels, Progenie of Light, Thrones, Dominations, Princedoms, Vertues, Powers, Hear my Decree, which unrevok’t shall stand. This day I have begot whom I declare My onely Son, and on this holy Hill Him have anointed, whom ye now behold At my right hand; your Head I him appoint; And by my Self have sworn to him shall bow All knees in Heav’n, and shall confess him Lord: Under his great Vice-gerent° Reign abide deputy, vice-regent United as one individual° Soule inseparable, indivisible For ever happie: him who disobeyes Mee disobeyes, breaks union, and that day Cast out from God and blessed vision, falls Into utter° darkness, deep ingulft, his place total, outer Ordaind without redemption, without end.

So spake th’ Omnipotent, and with his words All seemd well pleas’d, all seem’d, but were not all. That day, as other solemn° dayes, they spent ceremonial, festival In song and dance about the sacred Hill, Mystical dance, which yonder starrie Spheare° the heavens Of Planets and of fixt° in all her Wheeles fixed stars Resembles nearest, mazes intricate, Eccentric, intervolv’d,° yet regular intertwined Then most, when most irregular they seem, And in thir motions harmonie Divine So smooths her charming tones, that Gods own ear Listens delighted. Eevning now approach’d (For wee have also our Eevning and our Morn,

140 Paradise Lost

603–5: Cf. Ps. 2:7: “I will declare the decree . . . Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee.” This episode refers to the exaltation of the Son as King, not his actual begetting, since he is elsewhere described as “of all Creation first” (3.383), and as God’s agent in creating the angels and everything else (5.835–8).

606. Cf. Col. 2:10: “Ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power.” 607–8 by my Self have sworn. At Gen. 22:16, God swears by himself to bless Abraham. See Phil. 2:9–11:

“God also hath highly exalted him . . . That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth” (cf. Isa. 45:23).

620–7 Mystical dance. The “intricate” dance of the angels produces “harmonie Divine,” like the “intricate” movements of the stars and the planets in both circular and noncircular (“Eccentric”) orbits that produce the music of the spheres according to the Pythagorean theory.

600

605

610

615

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625

Book 5 141

Wee ours for change delectable, not need) Forthwith from dance to sweet repast they turn Desirous; all in Circles as they stood, Tables are set, and on a sudden pil’d With Angels Food, and rubied Nectar flows In Pearl, in Diamond, and massie Gold, Fruit of delicious Vines, the growth of Heav’n. On flours repos’d, and with fresh flourets crownd, They eate, they drink, and in communion sweet Quaff immortalitie and joy, secure Of surfet where full measure onely bounds Excess, before th’ all bounteous King, who showrd With copious hand, rejoycing in thir joy. Now when ambrosial° Night with Clouds exhal’d fragrant From that high mount of God, whence light & shade Spring both, the face of brightest Heav’n had changd To grateful° Twilight (for Night comes not there pleasing In darker veile) and roseat° Dews dispos’d rose-scented All but the unsleeping eyes of God to rest, Wide over all the Plain, and wider farr Then all this globous Earth in Plain out spred, (Such are the Courts of God). Th’ Angelic throng Disperst in Bands and Files thir Camp extend By living Streams among the Trees of Life, Pavilions numberless, and sudden reard, Celestial Tabernacles, where they slept Fannd with coole Winds, save those who in thir course° appointed task Melodious Hymns about the sovran Throne Alternate all night long: but not so wak’d Satan, so call him now, his former name Is heard no more in Heav’n; he of the first, If not the first Arch-Angel, great in Power, In favour and præeminence, yet fraught With envie against the Son of God, that day Honourd by his great Father, and proclaimd Messiah King anointed, could not beare Through pride that sight, & thought himself impaird.° reduced, disrespected

658–9 former name. Traditionally understood to be Lucifer: “How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning” (Isa. 14:12). The poem claims that his former name was blotted from the books of life (see PL 1.361–5).

664 Messiah. In Hebrew the name means “anointed.”

630

635

640

645

650

655

660

665

Deep malice thence conceiving and disdain, Soon as midnight brought on the duskie houre Friendliest to sleep and silence, he resolv’d With all his Legions to dislodge,° and leave leave camp Unworshipt, unobey’d the Throne supream Contemptuous, and his next subordinate Awak’ning, thus to him in secret spake.

Sleepst thou, Companion dear, what sleep can close Thy eye-lids? and remembrest what Decree Of yesterday, so late hath past the lips Of Heav’ns Almightie. Thou to me thy thoughts Wast wont, I mine to thee was wont to impart; Both waking we were one; how then can now Thy sleep dissent? new Laws thou seest impos’d; New Laws from him who reigns, new minds may raise In us who serve, new Counsels, to debate° discuss What doubtful may ensue; more in this place To utter is not safe. Assemble thou Of all those Myriads which we lead the chief; Tell them that by command, ere yet dim Night Her shadowie Cloud withdraws, I am to haste, And all who under me thir Banners wave, Homeward with flying march where we possess The Quarters of the North, there to prepare Fit entertainment to receive our King The great Messiah, and his new commands, Who speedily through all the Hierarchies Intends to pass triumphant, and give Laws.

So spake the false Arch-Angel, and infus’d Bad influence into th’ unwarie brest Of his Associate; hee together calls, Or several one by one, the Regent Powers, Under him Regent, tells, as he was taught, That the most High commanding, now ere Night, Now ere dim Night had disincumberd Heav’n, The great Hierarchal Standard was to move;

142 Paradise Lost

671 next subordinate. His original name in Heaven is also lost, but he will come to be known as Beelzebub (2.299–300).

673 Sleepst thou. In many epics a voice awakens heroes or villains from sleep and lures them to rash or adventurous acts.

689 North. The traditional site of Lucifer’s throne. See Isa. 14:13: “I will exalt my throne above the stars of God . . . in the sides of the north.”

670

675

680

685

690

695

700

Book 5 143

Tells the suggested° cause, and casts between insinuated Ambiguous words and jealousies,° to sound° suspicions / test Or taint integritie; but all obey’d The wonted° signal, and superior voice customary Of thir great Potentate;° for great indeed leader His name, and high was his degree in Heav’n; His count’nance, as the Morning Starr that guides The starrie flock, allur’d them, and with lyes Drew after him the third part of Heav’ns Host: Mean while th’ Eternal eye, whose sight discernes Abstrusest° thoughts, from forth his holy Mount most secret And from within the golden Lamps that burne Nightly before him, saw without thir light Rebellion rising, saw in whom, how spred Among the sons of Morn,° what multitudes angels Were banded to oppose his high Decree; And smiling to his onely Son thus said.

Son, thou in whom my glory I behold In full resplendence, Heir of all my might, Neerly° it now concernes us to be sure urgently Of our Omnipotence, and with what Arms We mean to hold what anciently we claim Of Deitie or Empire, such a foe Is rising, who intends to erect his Throne Equal to ours, throughout the spacious North; Nor so content, hath in his thought to try° test In battel, what our Power is, or our right. Let us advise, and to this hazard draw With speed what force is left, and all imploy In our defense, lest unawares we lose This our high place, our Sanctuarie, our Hill.

To whom the Son with calm aspect and cleer Light’ning Divine, ineffable, serene, Made answer. Mightie Father, thou thy foes Justly hast in derision, and secure Laugh’st at thir vain designes and tumults vain,

708 Morning Starr. An allusion to Satan as Lucifer, compared to the star Venus or Hesperus which bore the name Lucifer when it appeared as the first star in the morning (see notes to lines 166 and 658 above).

710 third part. Cf. Rev. 12:4: “And his [the dragon’s] tail drew the third part of the stars of heaven, and did cast them to the earth.”

735–7. Cf. Ps. 2:4: “He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh: the Lord shall have them in derision.”

705

710

715

720

725

730

735

Matter to mee of Glory, whom thir hate Illustrates,° when they see all Regal Power makes illustrious Giv’n me to quell thir pride, and in event° by the outcome Know whether I be dextrous to subdue Thy Rebels, or be found the worst in Heav’n.

So spake the Son, but Satan with his Powers° armies Far was advanc’t on winged speed, an Host Innumerable as the Starrs of Night, Or Starrs of Morning, Dew-drops, which the Sun Impearls on every leaf and every flouer. Regions they pass’d, the mightie Regencies° dominions Of Seraphim and Potentates and Thrones In thir triple Degrees, Regions to° which compared to All thy Dominion, Adam, is no more Then what this Garden is to all the Earth, And all the Sea, from one entire globose° sphere, globe Stretcht into Longitude;° which having pass’d spread out flat At length into the limits° of the North regions They came, and Satan to his Royal seat High on a Hill, far blazing, as a Mount Rais’d on a Mount, with Pyramids and Towrs From Diamond Quarries hew’n, and Rocks of Gold, The Palace of great Lucifer, (so call That Structure in the Dialect of men Interpreted) which not long after, he Affecting° all equality with God, arrogating to himself In imitation of that Mount whereon Messiah was declar’d in sight of Heav’n, The Mountain of the Congregation call’d; For thither he assembl’d all his Train, Pretending so commanded to consult About the great reception of thir King, Thither to come, and with calumnious Art Of counterfeted truth thus held thir ears.

Thrones, Dominations, Princedoms, Vertues, Powers, If these magnific Titles yet remain

144 Paradise Lost

741 dextrous. Skillful, but also with the Latin meaning of “right hand,” in reference to the Son at God’s right hand (606 above).

750. See note to line 371, above. 766 Mountain of the Congregation. Cf. Isa. 14:13–14, where Lucifer is quoted, “I will sit also upon the mount

of the congregation, in the sides of the north: . . . I will be like the most High.”

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745

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755

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Book 5 145

Not meerly titular, since by Decree Another now hath to himself ingross’t° monopolized All Power, and us eclipst under the name Of King anointed, for whom all this haste Of midnight march, and hurried meeting here, This onely to consult how we may best With what may be devis’d of honours new Receive him coming to receive from us Knee-tribute yet unpaid, prostration vile, Too much to one, but double how endur’d, To one and to his image now proclaim’d? But what if better counsels might erect Our minds and teach us to cast off this Yoke? Will ye submit your necks, and chuse to bend The supple knee? ye will not, if I trust To know ye right, or if ye know your selves Natives and Sons of Heav’n possest before By none, and if not equal all, yet free, Equally free; for Orders and Degrees Jarr not with liberty, but well consist. Who can in reason then or right assume Monarchie over such as live by right His equals, if in power and splendor less, In freedome equal? or can introduce Law and Edict on us, who without law Erre not, much less for this to be our Lord, And look for adoration to th’ abuse Of those Imperial Titles which assert Our being ordain’d to govern, not to serve?

Thus farr his bold discourse without controule° hindrance Had audience,° when among the Seraphim hearing Abdiel, then whom none with more zeale ador’d The Deitie, and divine commands obei’d, Stood up, and in a flame of zeale severe The current of his fury thus oppos’d.

787–802. Compare Milton’s republican theory, stated in the Tenure of Kings and Magistrates: “No man who knows ought, can be so stupid to deny that all men naturally were borne free, being the image and resem- blance of God himself, and were by privilege above all the creatures, born to command and not to obey: and that they liv’d so” (until Adam’s sin necessitated magistrates and laws, though sovereign power always remained with the people). Cf. Adam’s natural republicanism, when learning of the first king, Nimrod (PL 12.64–71).

805 Abdiel. Hebrew, “Servant of God.”

775

780

785

790

795

800

805

O argument blasphemous, false and proud! Words which no eare ever to hear in Heav’n Expected, least of all from thee, ingrate In place thy self so high above thy Peeres. Canst thou with impious obloquie° condemne abusive speech The just Decree of God, pronounc’t and sworn, That to his only Son by right endu’d With Regal Scepter, every Soule in Heav’n Shall bend the knee, and in that honour due Confess him rightful King? unjust thou saist Flatly unjust, to binde with Laws the free, And equal over equals to let Reigne, One over all with unsucceeded° power. without successor Shalt thou give Law to God, shalt thou dispute With him the points of libertie, who made Thee what thou art, and formd the Pow’rs of Heav’n Such as he pleasd, and circumscrib’d thir being? Yet by experience taught we know how good, And of our good, and of our dignitie How provident he is, how farr from thought To make us less, bent rather to exalt Our happie state under one Head more neer United. But to grant it thee unjust, That equal over equals Monarch Reigne: Thy self though great and glorious dost thou count, Or all Angelic Nature joind in one, Equal to him begotten Son, by whom As by his Word the mighty Father made All things, ev’n thee, and all the Spirits of Heav’n By him created in thir bright degrees,° illustrious ranks Crownd them with Glory, and to thir Glory nam’d Thrones, Dominations, Princedoms, Vertues, Powers, Essential Powers, nor by his Reign obscur’d, But more illustrious made, since he the Head

146 Paradise Lost

811 ingrate. Cf. 3.97. 822–5. Cf. Rom. 9:20: “O man, who art thou that repliest against God? Shall the thing formed say to him

that formed it, Why hast thou made me thus?” 833–40. Cf. Col. 1:16: “For by him [the Son, the image of God] were all things created, that are in heaven,

and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers, all things were created by him, and for him.” Milton believed that God created the Son “the firstborn of every creature” (Col. 1:15), who then created the angels; as Abdiel argues, there can be no equality between Creator and creature.

810

815

820

825

830

835

840

Book 5 147

One of our number thus reduc’t becomes, His Laws our Laws, all honour to him done Returns our own. Cease then this impious rage, And tempt not these; but hast’n to appease Th’ incensed Father, and th’ incensed Son, While Pardon may be found in time besought.

So spake the fervent Angel, but his zeale None seconded, as out of season judg’d, Or singular and rash, whereat rejoic’d Th’ Apostat, and more haughty thus repli’d. That we were formd then saist thou? and the work Of secondarie hands, by task transferd From Father to his Son? strange point and new! Doctrin which we would know whence learnt: who saw When this creation was? rememberst thou Thy making, while the Maker gave thee being? We know no time when we were not as now; Know none before us, self-begot, self-rais’d By our own quick’ning power, when fatal course° ordained by fate Had circl’d his full Orbe, the birth mature Of this our native Heav’n, Ethereal Sons. Our puissance° is our own, our own right hand power Shall teach us highest deeds, by proof to try Who is our equal: then thou shalt behold Whether by supplication we intend Address,° and to begirt° th’ Almighty Throne dutiful approach / surround Beseeching or besieging. This report, These tidings carrie to th’ anointed King; And fly, ere evil intercept thy flight.

He said, and as the sound of waters deep Hoarce murmur echo’d to his words applause Through the infinite Host, nor less for that The flaming Seraph fearless, though alone Encompass’d round with foes, thus answerd bold.

O alienate from God, O spirit accurst, Forsak’n of all good; I see thy fall Determind, and thy hapless crew involv’d In this perfidious fraud, contagion spred

843 reduc’t. Suggests something like an incarnation of the Son for the angels. 856–9. Cf. 8.250–1, 276–82, Adam’s comment on his recollection of origins; also cf. 4.43–5. 875 Seraph. Hebrew, “to burn.”

845

850

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860

865

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Both of thy crime and punishment: henceforth No more be troubl’d how to quit the yoke Of Gods Messiah; those indulgent Laws Will not now be voutsaf ’t, other Decrees Against thee are gon forth without recall; That Golden Scepter which thou didst reject Is now an Iron Rod to bruise and breake Thy disobedience. Well thou didst advise, Yet not for thy advise or threats I fly These wicked Tents devoted,° least the wrauth doomed Impendent,° raging into sudden flame impending Distinguish not: for soon expect to feel His Thunder on thy head, devouring fire. Then who created thee lamenting learne, When who can uncreate thee thou shalt know.

So spake the Seraph Abdiel faithful found, Among the faithless, faithful only hee; Among innumerable false, unmov’d, Unshak’n, unseduc’d, unterrifi’d His Loyaltie he kept, his Love, his Zeale; Nor number, nor example with him wrought To swerve from truth, or change his constant mind Though single. From amidst them forth he passd, Long way through hostile scorn, which he susteind Superior, nor of violence fear’d aught; And with retorted° scorn his back he turn’d returned On those proud Towrs to swift destruction doom’d.

The End of the Fifth Book.

148 Paradise Lost

882–8. Abdiel speaks as an inspired prophet. 887 Iron Rod. See 2.327–8 and note. 889–93. Cf. Moses’ warning to the Israelites not to join Korah’s rebellion: “Depart, I pray you, from the tents

of these wicked men . . . lest ye be consumed in all their sins” (Num. 16:26). Cf. also Heb. 12:29: “For our God is a consuming fire.”

885

890

895

900

905

BOOK 6 THE ARGUMENT

Raphael continues to relate how Michael and Gabriel were sent forth to battel against Satan and his Angels. The first Fight describ’d: Satan and his Powers retire under Night: He calls a Councel, invents devilish Engines, which in the second dayes Fight put Michael and his Angels to some disorder; but, they at length pulling up Mountains overwhelm’d both the force and Machins of Satan: Yet the Tumult not so ending, God on the third day sends Messiah his Son, for whom he had reserv’d the glory of that Victory: Hee in the Power of his Father coming to the place, and causing all his Legions to stand still on either side, with his Chariot and Thunder driving into the midst of his Enemies, pursues them unable to resist towards the wall of Heaven; which opening, they leap down with horrour and confusion into the place of punishment prepar’d for them in the Deep: Messiah returns with triumph to his Father.

All night the dreadless° Angel unpursu’d fearless Through Heav’ns wide Champain° held his way, till Morn, plain Wak’t by the circling Hours, with rosie hand Unbarr’d the gates of Light. There is a Cave Within the Mount of God, fast by his Throne, Where light and darkness in perpetual round Lodge and dislodge by turns, which makes through Heav’n Grateful vicissitude,° like Day and Night; delightful change Light issues forth, and at the other dore Obsequious° darkness enters, till her houre dutiful To veile the Heav’n, though darkness there might well Seem twilight here; and now went forth the Morn Such as in highest Heav’n, arrayd in Gold Empyreal,° from before her vanisht Night, heavenly Shot through with orient° Beams: when all the Plain from the east, lustrous Coverd with thick embatteld° Squadrons bright, set in battle array Chariots and flaming Armes, and fierie Steeds Reflecting blaze on blaze, first met his view: Warr he perceav’d, warr in procinct,° and found readiness

3 devilish Engines. Artillery, cannon.

2–3 Morn. Aurora, goddess of the dawn. Hours. daughters of Jove who control the seasons and guard the gates of Heaven. rosie hand. echoes the Homeric formula “rosy-fingered dawn” (Iliad 1.477).

4–14. Hesiod’s cave in the abyss where Night and Day alternate (Theogony 744–57), here relocated “fast by” (next to) God’s throne.

Already known what he for news had thought To have reported: gladly then he mixt Among those friendly Powers who him receav’d With joy and acclamations loud, that one That of so many Myriads fall’n, yet one Returnd not lost: On to the sacred hill They led him high applauded, and present Before the seat supream; from whence a voice From midst a Golden Cloud thus milde was heard.

Servant of God, well done, well hast thou fought The better fight, who single hast maintaind Against revolted multitudes the Cause Of Truth, in word mightier then they in Armes; And for the testimonie of Truth hast born Universal reproach, far worse to beare Then violence: for this was all thy care To stand approv’d in sight of God, though Worlds Judg’d thee perverse: the easier conquest now Remains thee, aided by this host of friends, Back on thy foes more glorious to return Then scornd thou didst depart, and to subdue By force, who reason for thir Law refuse, Right reason for thir Law, and for thir King Messiah, who by right of merit Reigns. Go Michael of Celestial Armies Prince, And thou in Military prowess next Gabriel, lead forth to Battel these my Sons° angels Invincible, lead forth my armed Saints By Thousands and by Millions rang’d for fight; Equal in number to that Godless crew Rebellious, them with Fire and hostile Arms Fearless assault, and to the brow° of Heav’n edge

150 Paradise Lost

29–30 Servant of God. Literal translation of the Hebrew name Abdiel. Echoes the parable of the talents (Matt. 25:21), “Well done, thou good and faithful servant.” better fight. Cf. 1 Tim. 6:12, “Fight the good fight of faith.”

42 Right reason. True, upright reason, translating the Stoic and Scholastic recta ratio. 43 by right of merit. See 3.309 and 2.5–6. 44 Michael. Hebrew, “Who is like God”; in Jewish and patristic tradition he is prince of the angels. Cf. Rev.

12:7–9 for his role in the battle in Heaven. 46 Gabriel. Hebrew, “Strength of God.” 49 Equal in number. As one-third of the angels rebelled, God sends out only an equal number of those who

remained loyal.

Book 6 151

Pursuing drive them out from God and bliss, Into thir place of punishment, the Gulf Of Tartarus,° which ready opens wide Hell His fiery Chaos to receave thir fall.

So spake the Sovran voice, and Clouds began To darken all the Hill, and smoak to rowl In duskie wreathes, reluctant° flames, the signe writhing Of wrauth awak’t: nor with less dread the loud Ethereal Trumpet from on high gan° blow: began to At which command the Powers Militant, That stood for Heav’n, in mighty Quadrate° joyn’d square formation Of Union irresistible, mov’d on In silence thir bright Legions, to the sound Of instrumental Harmonie that breath’d Heroic Ardor to advent’rous deeds Under thir God-like Leaders, in the Cause Of God and his Messiah. On they move Indissolubly firm; nor obvious° Hill, standing in the way Nor streit’ning° Vale, nor Wood, nor Stream divides enclosing Thir perfet ranks; for high above the ground Thir march was, and the passive Air upbore Thir nimble tread, as when the total kind Of Birds in orderly array on wing Came summond over Eden to receive Thir names of thee; so over many a tract Of Heav’n they march’d, and many a Province wide Tenfold the length of this terrene:° at last earth, terrain Farr in th’ Horizon to the North appeer’d From skirt to skirt° a fierie Region, stretcht edge to edge In battailous° aspect, and neerer view warlike Bristl’d with upright beams° innumerable shafts Of rigid Spears, and Helmets throng’d, and Shields Various, with boastful Argument° portraid, heraldic devices The banded Powers of Satan hasting on With furious expedition;° for they weend° speed / thought That self same day by fight, or by surprize To win the Mount of God, and on his Throne

64–6 instrumental Harmonie. Cf. 1.549–53, where the fallen angels march to music by flutes and recorders in the Dorian mode, also prompting to heroic action.

73–6. Similes comparing armies to birds are epic commonplaces (cf. Iliad 2.459–64, Aeneid 7.699–701), but Raphael adapts his simile to Adam’s experience (cf. PL 8.349–54).

To set the envier of his State, the proud Aspirer, but thir thoughts prov’d fond° and vain foolish In the mid way: though strange to us it seemd At first, that Angel should with Angel warr, And in fierce hosting° meet, who wont° to meet hostility / were used So oft in Festivals of joy and love Unanimous, as sons of one great Sire Hymning th’ Eternal Father: but the shout Of Battel now began, and rushing sound Of onset ended soon each milder thought. High in the midst exalted as a God Th’ Apostate in his Sun-bright Chariot sate Idol of Majesty Divine, enclos’d With Flaming Cherubim, and golden Shields; Then lighted from his gorgeous Throne, for now ‘Twixt Host and Host but narrow space was left, A dreadful intervall, and Front to Front Presented stood in terrible array Of hideous length: before the cloudie Van,° frowning vanguard On the rough edge° of battel ere it joyn’d, front line Satan with vast and haughtie strides advanc’t, Came towring, armd in Adamant and Gold; Abdiel that sight endur’d not, where he stood Among the mightiest, bent on highest deeds, And thus his own undaunted heart explores.

O Heav’n! that such resemblance of the Highest Should yet remain, where faith and realtie° sincerity Remain not; wherefore should not strength and might There fail where Vertue fails, or weakest prove Where boldest; though to sight° unconquerable? apparently His puissance,° trusting in th’ Almightie’s aide, power I mean to try, whose Reason I have tri’d° proved by trial Unsound and false; nor is it aught but just, That he who in debate of Truth hath won, Should win in Arms, in both disputes alike Victor; though brutish that contest and foule, When Reason hath to deal with force, yet so Most reason is that Reason overcome.

So pondering, and from his armed Peers

152 Paradise Lost

105 intervall. Latin, intervallum, the space between two armed camps. 110 Adamant. A mythical substance of great hardness.

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Forth stepping opposite, half way he met His daring foe, at this prevention° more obstruction Incens’t, and thus securely° him defi’d. confidently

Proud, art thou met? thy hope was to have reacht The highth of thy aspiring unoppos’d, The Throne of God unguarded, and his side Abandond at the terror of thy Power Or potent tongue; fool, not to think how vain Against th’ Omnipotent to rise in Arms; Who out of smallest things could without end Have rais’d incessant Armies to defeat Thy folly; or with solitarie hand Reaching beyond all limit at one blow Unaided could have finisht thee, and whelmd Thy Legions under darkness; but thou seest All are not of thy Train; there be° who Faith there are those Prefer, and Pietie to God, though then To thee not visible, when I alone Seemd in thy World erroneous to dissent From all: my Sect thou seest, now learn too late How few somtimes may know, when thousands err.

Whom the grand foe with scornful eye askance Thus answerd. Ill for thee, but in wisht houre Of my revenge, first sought for thou returnst From flight, seditious Angel, to receave Thy merited reward, the first assay° trial, attack Of this right hand provok’t, since first that tongue Inspir’d with contradiction durst oppose A third part of the Gods, in Synod met Thir Deities to assert, who while they feel Vigour Divine within them, can allow Omnipotence to none. But well thou comst Before thy fellows, ambitious to win

145–8 dissent. Puritans who refused to adhere to the national church after the Restoration were termed dissenters. Sect. A term used by adherents of the Church of England and by Presbyterians to smear those who separated from the national church. Abdiel’s terms align him with those Puritan schismatics – Baptists, Quakers, Socinians, and others – whom Milton often defended in his prose tracts; like them Abdiel claims that truth may reside with a single “dissenter” or sect of a few.

152–6 seditious. Treasonous. Satan’s language aligns him with those Anglicans after the Restoration who denounced dissenters as traitors, with Presbyterians who look to a “Synod” (a Presbyterian assembly) to define truth, and with conformists of all stripes who think truth is confirmed by numbers (“A third part of the Gods”).

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From me som Plume,° that thy success may show trophy Destruction to the rest: this pause between (Unanswerd least thou boast) to let thee know; At first I thought that Libertie and Heav’n To heav’nly Soules had bin all one; but now I see that most through sloth had rather serve, Ministring Spirits, traind up in Feast and Song; Such hast thou arm’d, the Minstrelsie of Heav’n, Servilitie with freedom to contend, As both thir deeds compar’d this day shall prove.

To whom in brief thus Abdiel stern repli’d. Apostat, still thou errst, nor end wilt find Of erring, from the path of truth remote: Unjustly thou deprav’st° it with the name vilify, pervert Of Servitude to serve whom God ordains, Or Nature; God and Nature bid the same, When he who rules is worthiest, and excells Them whom he governs. This is servitude, To serve th’ unwise, or him who hath rebelld Against his worthier, as thine now serve thee, Thy self not free, but to thy self enthrall’d; Yet leudly° dar’st our ministring upbraid. ignorantly, basely Reign thou in Hell thy Kingdom, let mee serve In Heav’n God ever blest, and his Divine Behests obey, worthiest to be obey’d, Yet Chains in Hell, not Realms expect: mean while From mee returnd, as erst° thou saidst, from flight, formerly This greeting on thy impious Crest receive.

So saying, a noble stroke he lifted high, Which hung not, but so swift with tempest fell On the proud Crest of Satan, that no sight, Nor motion of swift thought, less could his Shield Such ruin intercept: ten paces huge He back recoild; the tenth on bended knee

154 Paradise Lost

163 Unanswerd least thou boast. i.e., lest you boast that I did not answer your argument. 167–9 Ministring. Satan’s contemptuous pun links the angels’ service (“ministring”), which he terms

“Servilitie,” with the street songs of minstrels (“Minstrelsie of Heav’n”). 174–81 Nature. Abdiel cites a “natural law” principle set forth by Aristotle and by Milton in the Second Defense,

that when one man excels all the rest in worthiness he should rule. 178–81 servitude. See 12.90–101. Milton often invoked the principle that tyrants are enslaved to their own

passions. 183–4. Cf. Satan’s words at 1.263.

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His massie Spear upstaid; as if on Earth Winds under ground or waters forcing way Sidelong, had push’t a Mountain from his seat Half sunk with all his Pines. Amazement seis’d The Rebel Thrones, but greater rage to see Thus foil’d thir mightiest, ours joy filld, and shout, Presage of Victorie and fierce desire Of Battel: whereat Michael bid sound Th’ Arch-Angel trumpet; through the vast° of Heaven immense space It sounded, and the faithful Armies rung° proclaimed aloud Hosanna to the Highest: nor stood at gaze The adverse Legions, nor less hideous joyn’d The horrid shock: now storming furie rose, And clamour such as heard in Heav’n till now Was never, Arms on Armour clashing bray’d° made a harsh jarring noise Horrible discord, and the madding° Wheeles furiously whirling Of brazen Chariots rag’d; dire was the noise Of conflict; over head the dismal hiss Of fiery Darts in flaming volies flew, And flying vaulted either Host with fire. So under fierie Cope° together rush’d sky Both Battels maine,° with ruinous assault main sections of the armies And inextinguishable rage; all Heav’n Resounded, and had Earth bin then, all Earth Had to her Center shook. What wonder? when Millions of fierce encountring Angels fought On either side, the least of whom could weild These Elements, and arm him with the force Of all thir Regions: how much more of Power Armie against Armie numberless to raise Dreadful combustion° warring, and disturb, tumult Though not destroy, thir happie Native seat; Had not th’ Eternal King Omnipotent From his strong hold of Heav’n high over-rul’d And limited thir might; though numberd such° so numerous As each divided Legion might have seemd A numerous Host, in strength each armed hand

196 Winds under ground. The supposed cause of earthquakes. 199 Rebel Thrones. Here as elsewhere Milton uses the name of one angelic order to stand for all. But the

term is politically suggestive, linking monarchs with rebellion against God. Cf. 12.36, Michael’s comment that the first king, Nimrod, derived his name from “Rebellion.”

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A Legion; led in fight, yet Leader seemd Each Warriour single as in Chief, expert When to advance, or stand, or turn the sway° force Of Battel, open when, and when to close The ridges of grim Warr; no thought of flight, None of retreat, no unbecoming deed That argu’d fear; each on himself reli’d, As° onely in his arm the moment° lay as if / deciding factor Of victorie; deeds of eternal fame Were don, but infinite: for wide was spred That Warr and various; somtimes on firm ground A standing fight, then soaring on main° wing powerful Tormented° all the Air; all Air seemd then agitated Conflicting Fire: long time in eeven scale The Battel hung; till Satan, who that day Prodigious power had shewn, and met in Armes No equal, raunging through the dire attack Of fighting Seraphim confus’d, at length Saw where the Sword of Michael smote, and fell’d Squadrons at once, with huge two-handed sway Brandisht aloft the horrid edge came down Wide wasting; such destruction to withstand He hasted, and oppos’d the rockie Orb Of tenfold Adamant, his ample Shield A vast circumference: At his approach The great Arch-Angel from his warlike toile Surceas’d, and glad as hoping here to end Intestine° War in Heav’n, the arch foe subdu’d civil war Or Captive drag’d in Chains, with hostile frown And visage all enflam’d first thus began.

Author of evil, unknown till thy revolt, Unnam’d in Heav’n, now plenteous, as thou seest These Acts of hateful strife, hateful to all, Though heaviest by just measure on thy self And thy adherents: how hast thou disturb’d Heav’ns blessed peace, and into Nature brought Miserie, uncreated till the crime

156 Paradise Lost

232–5. i.e., they had leaders, yet each single warrior seemed like a commander-in-chief, skilled in all military operations.

254–5 rockie Orb. Satan’s “ample Shield” made of “tenfold Adamant,” a mythical impenetrable substance imagined as folded ten times in thickness. Cf. 542–3 below.

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Of thy Rebellion? how hast thou instill’d Thy malice into thousands, once upright And faithful, now prov’d false. But think not here To trouble Holy Rest; Heav’n casts thee out From all her Confines. Heav’n the seat of bliss Brooks° not the works of violence and Warr. endures Hence then, and evil go with thee along Thy ofspring, to the place of evil, Hell, Thou and thy wicked crew; there mingle° broiles, concoct Ere this avenging Sword begin thy doome, Or som more sudden vengeance wing’d from God Precipitate thee with augmented paine.

So spake the Prince of Angels; to whom thus The Adversarie. Nor think thou with wind Of airie threats to aw whom yet with deeds Thou canst not. Hast thou turnd the least of these To flight, or if to fall, but that they rise Unvanquisht, easier to transact with mee That thou shouldst hope, imperious, and with threats To chase me hence? erre not° that so shall end don’t falsely suppose The strife which thou call’st evil, but wee style The strife of Glorie: which we mean to win, Or turn this Heav’n it self into the Hell Thou fablest, here however to dwell free, If not to reign: mean while thy utmost force, And join him nam’d Almighty to thy aid, I flie not, but have sought thee farr and nigh.

They ended parle,° and both addresst° for fight parlay / prepared Unspeakable; for who, though with the tongue Of Angels, can relate, or to what things Liken on Earth conspicuous, that may lift Human imagination to such highth Of Godlike Power: for likest Gods they seemd, Stood they or mov’d, in stature, motion, arms Fit to decide the Empire of great Heav’n. Now wav’d thir fierie Swords, and in the Aire Made horrid Circles; two broad Suns thir Shields Blaz’d opposite, while expectation stood In horror; from each hand with speed retir’d

282 Adversarie. Literal translation of the Hebrew name Satan.

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Where erst° was thickest fight, th’ Angelic throng, formerly And left large field, unsafe within the wind Of such commotion, such as to set forth Great things by small, if Natures concord broke, Among the Constellations warr were sprung, Two Planets rushing from aspect maligne Of fiercest opposition in mid Skie, Should combat, and thir jarring Sphears confound. Together both with next to Almightie Arme, Uplifted imminent one stroke they aim’d That might determine,° and not need repeate, decide the issue As not of power,° at once; nor odds° appeerd not able / inequality In might or swift prevention;° but the sword preparation Of Michael from the Armorie of God Was giv’n him temperd so, that neither keen Nor solid might resist that edge: it met The sword of Satan with steep force to smite Descending, and in half cut sheere, nor staid, But with swift wheele reverse, deep entring shar’d° sheared, cut off All his right side; then Satan first knew pain, And writh’ d him to and fro convolv’d;° so sore° contorted / painfully The griding° sword with discontinuous° wound keenly cutting / gaping Pass’d through him, but th’ Ethereal substance clos’d Not long divisible, and from the gash A stream of Nectarous humor issuing flow’d Sanguin, such as Celestial Spirits may bleed, And all his Armour staind ere while so bright. Forthwith on all sides to his aide was run By Angels many and strong, who interpos’d Defence, while others bore him on thir Shields Back to his Chariot; where it stood retir’d From off the files of warr; there they him laid Gnashing for anguish and despite and shame To find himself not matchless, and his pride Humbl’d by such rebuke, so farr beneath His confidence to equal God in power.

158 Paradise Lost

310–15 to set forth / Great things by small. A Virgilian formula, here introducing an epic simile compar- ing the single combat of Satan and Michael (“great things”) with war among the planets (“small” by com- parison), prompted by the clash of two planets from opposed positions causing a “malign” influence and throwing into discord the music of the spheres (“jarring Sphears”).

330–3 Nectarous humor. The fluid angels bleed because they drink nectar; cf. the ichor that flows from Aphrodite’s wound, which also heals itself promptly (Iliad 5.339–42). Sanguin. Blood red.

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Yet soon he heal’d; for Spirits that live throughout Vital in every part, not as frail man In Entrailes, Heart or Head, Liver or Reines;° kidneys Cannot but by annihilating die; Nor in thir liquid texture mortal wound Receive, no more then can the fluid Aire: All Heart they live, all Head, all Eye, all Eare, All Intellect, all Sense, and as they please, They Limb themselves, and colour, shape or size Assume, as likes° them best, condense or rare. pleases

Mean while in other parts like deeds deservd Memorial, where the might of Gabriel fought, And with fierce Ensignes pierc’d the deep array Of Moloc furious King, who him defi’d And at his Chariot wheeles to drag him bound Threatn’d, nor from the Holie One of Heav’n Refrein’d his tongue blasphemous; but anon Down clov’n to the waste, with shatterd Armes And uncouth° paine fled bellowing. On each wing unfamiliar Uriel and Raphael his vaunting foe, Though huge, and in a Rock of Diamond Armd, Vanquish’d Adramelec, and Asmadai, Two potent Thrones, that to be less then Gods Disdain’d, but meaner thoughts learnd in thir flight, Mangl’d with gastly wounds through Plate and Maile, Nor stood unmindful Abdiel to annoy° injure The Atheist crew, but with redoubl’d blow Ariel and Arioc, and the violence Of Ramiel scorcht and blasted overthrew. I might relate of thousands, and thir names Eternize here on Earth; but those elect Angels contented with thir fame in Heav’n Seek not the praise of men: the other sort In might though wondrous and in Acts of Warr,

350–3. Cf. 1.423–31. limb themselves. Provide themselves with limbs, dense or aery. 355–6 might of Gabriel. Mighty Gabriel (Homeric diction). Ensignes. Banners, which identify the

several divisions of troops. array. Thick rows of troops. 365. Adramelec. King of fire, the Babylonian sun god worshiped in Samaria with human sacrifice (2 Kgs 17:31).

Asmadai. Asmodeus, creature of judgment, the evil spirit of the Apocryphal book of Tobit (see PL 4.168). 371–2 Ariel. “Lion of God.” Arioc. “Lion-like.” Ramiel. “Thunder of God,” one of the angels

fornicating with women in 1 Enoch 6:7. All three names are used of good and bad angels in rabbinical and demonological texts.

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Nor of Renown less eager, yet by doome Canceld from Heav’n and sacred memorie, Nameless in dark oblivion let them dwell. For strength from Truth divided and from Just, Illaudable,° naught merits but dispraise unworthy of praise And ignominie, yet to glorie aspires Vain glorious, and through infamie seeks fame: Therfore Eternal silence be thir doome.

And now thir Mightiest quelld, the battel swerv’d,° army fell back With many an inrode gor’d;° deformed rout passage penetrated Enter’d, and foul disorder; all the ground With shiverd armour strow’n, and on a heap Chariot and Charioter lay overturnd And fierie foaming Steeds; what° stood, recoyld those who Orewearied, through the faint Satanic Host Defensive scarse, or with pale fear surpris’d, Then first with fear surpris’d and sense of paine Fled ignominious, to such evil brought By sin of disobedience, till that hour Not liable to fear or flight or paine. Far otherwise th’ inviolable Saints° angels In Cubic Phalanx° firm advanc’t entire, cube formation Invulnerable, impenitrably arm’d: Such high advantages thir innocence Gave them above thir foes, not to have sinnd, Not to have disobei’d; in fight they stood Unwearied, unobnoxious° to be pain’d not liable, unable By wound, though from thir place by violence mov’d.

Now Night her course began, and over Heav’n Inducing darkness, grateful truce impos’d, And silence on the odious dinn of Warr: Under her Cloudie covert both retir’d, Victor and Vanquisht: on the foughten field° battlefield Michael and his Angels prevalent° victorious Encamping, plac’d in Guard thir Watches round, Cherubic waving fires: on th’ other part Satan with his rebellious disappeerd, Far in the dark dislodg’d,° and void of rest, shifted quarters

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383 ignominie. Literally, namelessness (Latin). 393 Defensive scarse. Scarcely able to defend themselves.

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His Potentates to Councel call’d by night; And in the midst thus undismai’d began.

O now in danger tri’d, now known in Armes Not to be overpowerd, Companions deare, Found worthy not of Libertie alone, Too mean pretense,° but what we more affect,° low aim / desire Honour, Dominion, Glorie, and renowne, Who have sustaind one day in doubtful° fight indecisive (And if one day, why not Eternal dayes?) What Heavens Lord had powerfullest to send Against us from about his Throne, and judg’d Sufficient to subdue us to his will, But proves not so: then fallible, it seems, Of future° we may deem him, though till now about the future Omniscient thought. True is, less firmly arm’d, Some disadvantage we endur’d and paine, Till now not known, but known as soon contemnd, Since now we find this our Empyreal form Incapable of mortal injurie Imperishable, and though pierc’d with wound, Soon closing, and by native vigour heal’d. Of evil then so small as easie think The remedie; perhaps more valid° Armes, powerful Weapons more violent, when next we meet, May serve to better us, and worse° our foes, make worse, injure Or equal what between us made the odds, In Nature none: if other hidden cause Left them Superiour, while we can preserve Unhurt our mindes, and understanding sound, Due search and consultation will disclose.

He sat; and in th’ assembly next upstood Nisroc, of Principalities the prime; As one he stood escap’t from cruel fight, Sore toild, his riv’n° Armes to havoc hewn, cut to pieces And cloudie in aspect thus answering spake. Deliverer from new Lords, leader to free Enjoyment of our right as Gods; yet hard

416. Nocturnal councils called by an army defeated in a battle are common in epic. 441–2 made the odds. Gave them the advantage, since “Nature” gives them none. 447 Nisroc. An Assyrian god worshiped by Sennacherib (2 Kgs 19:36–7). His Hebrew name means “flight.”

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For Gods, and too unequal work we find Against unequal arms to fight in paine, Against unpaind, impassive;° from which evil not liable to suffer Ruin must needs ensue; for what availes Valour or strength, though matchless, quelld with pain Which all subdues, and makes remiss° the hands slack, weak Of Mightiest. Sense of pleasure we may well Spare out of life perhaps, and not repine, But live content, which is the calmest life: But pain is perfet miserie, the worst Of evils, and excessive, overturnes All patience. He who therefore can invent With what more forcible we may offend° injure, attack Our yet unwounded Enemies, or arme Our selves with like defence, to me° deserves in my opinion No less then for deliverance what we owe.

Whereto with look compos’d Satan repli’d. Not uninvented that, which thou aright Believst so main° to our success, I bring; essential Which of us who beholds the bright surface Of this Ethereous mould° whereon we stand, ethereal ground This continent of spacious Heav’n, adornd With Plant, Fruit, Flour Ambrosial, Gemms & Gold, Whose Eye so superficially surveyes These things, as not to mind° from whence they grow remember, consider Deep under ground, materials dark and crude, Of spiritous and fierie spume, till toucht With Heav’ns ray, and temperd they shoot forth So beauteous, op’ning to the ambient° light. enveloping These in thir dark Nativitie the Deep Shall yield us pregnant with infernal° flame, from underground Which into hallow Engins° long and round cannon Thick-rammd, at th’ other bore with touch of fire Dilated and infuriate shall send forth

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468. i.e., We would owe such a one our deliverance. 477–82 spiritous and fiery spume. See below, lines 511–12, “Sulphurous and Nitrous Foame”; these “dark

and crude” materials touched by “Heav’ns ray” become all the “beauteous” features of Heaven’s land- scape (474–5). Satan proposes to mine these elements in their “dark Nativitie.”

485–6 Thick-rammd. Compactly packed. bore. The touch-hole into which gunpowder is poured to serve as fuse for the charge. Dilated and infuriate. Exploding violently. Cannon and gunpowder were often described as originating in hell.

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From far with thundring noise among our foes Such implements of mischief as shall dash To pieces, and orewhelm whatever stands Adverse, that they shall fear we have disarmd The Thunderer of his only° dreaded bolt. unique Nor long shall be our labour, yet ere dawne, Effect shall end our wish. Mean while revive; Abandon fear; to strength and counsel joind Think nothing hard, much less to be despaird. He ended, and his words thir drooping chere° spirits Enlightn’d, and thir languisht hope reviv’d. Th’ invention all admir’d,° and each, how hee marvelled at To be th’ inventor miss’d, so easie it seemd Once found, which yet unfound most would have thought Impossible: yet haply° of thy Race by chance In future dayes, if Malice should abound, Some one intent on mischief, or inspir’d With dev’lish machination might devise Like instrument to plague the Sons of men For sin, on warr and mutual slaughter bent. Forthwith from Councel to the work they flew, None arguing stood, innumerable hands Were ready, in a moment up they turnd Wide the Celestial soile, and saw beneath Th’ originals° of Nature in thir crude original elements Conception; Sulphurous and Nitrous° Foame saltpeter They found, they mingl’d, and with suttle Art, Concocted° and adusted° they reduc’d heated / dried To blackest grain, and into store convey’d: Part hidd’n veins diggd up (nor hath this Earth Entrails unlike) of Mineral and Stone, Whereof to found thir Engins and thir Balls Of missive ruin; part incentive reed Provide, pernicious° with one touch to fire. destructive So all ere day-spring,° under conscious° Night dawn / witnessing

493. i.e., we will achieve (“effect”) our “wish.” 515 blackest grain. Gunpowder; its ingredients are saltpeter and sulphur (512). 516–20 Part. Some of them cast (“found”) cannon and cannonballs (“Engins” and “Balls”) sending a message

of destruction (“missive ruin”), with a play on missile. part. Some “Provide” the kindling (“incen- tive reed”) to ignite (“fire”) the cannon.

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Secret they finish’d, and in order set, With silent circumspection unespi’d. Now when fair Morn Orient° in Heav’n appeerd East Up rose the Victor Angels, and to Arms The matin° Trumpet Sung: in Arms they stood morning Of Golden Panoplie,° refulgent° Host, full armor / shining Soon banded; others from the dawning Hills Lookd round, and Scouts each Coast light-armed scoure, Each quarter, to descrie the distant foe, Where lodg’d, or whither fled, or if for fight, In motion or in alt:° him soon they met halt Under spred Ensignes° moving nigh, in slow battle flags But firm Battalion; back with speediest Sail Zophiel, of Cherubim the swiftest wing, Came flying, and in mid Aire aloud thus cri’d.

Arme, Warriours, Arme for fight, the foe at hand, Whom fled we thought, will save us long pursuit This day, fear not his flight; so thick a Cloud He comes, and settl’d in his face I see Sad° resolution and secure:° let each sober / confident His Adamantine° coat gird well, and each impenetrable Fit well his Helme, gripe fast his orbed Shield, Born eevn° or high, for this day will pour down, in front If I conjecture aught, no drizling showr, But ratling storm of Arrows barbd with fire. So warnd he them aware themselves, and soon In order, quit of all impediment;° military baggage Instant without disturb they took Allarm, And onward move Embattelld;° when behold in battle formation Not distant far with heavie pace the Foe Approaching gross° and huge; in hollow Cube compact Training° his devilish Enginrie, impal’d° hauling / fenced in On every side with shaddowing Squadrons Deep, To hide the fraud. At interview° both stood mutual view A while, but suddenly at head appeerd Satan: And thus was heard Commanding loud.

Vanguard, to Right and Left the Front unfould; That all may see who hate us, how we seek

164 Paradise Lost

535 Zophiel. Hebrew, “Spy of God.” 549 without disturb. Without loss of composure. took Allarm. Responded to the call to arms.

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Peace and composure, and with open brest Stand readie to receive them, if they like Our overture, and turn not back perverse; But that I doubt, however witness Heaven, Heav’n witness thou anon, while we discharge Freely our part; yee who appointed stand Do as you have in charge, and briefly touch What we propound, and loud that all may hear.

So scoffing in ambiguous words, he scarce Had ended; when to Right and Left the Front Divided, and to either Flank retir’d. Which to our eyes discoverd new and strange, A triple mounted row° of Pillars laid in three tiers On Wheels (for like to Pillars most they seem’d Or hollow’d bodies made of Oak or Firr With branches lopt, in Wood or Mountain fell’d) Brass, Iron, Stonie mould,° had not thir mouthes composition With hideous orifice gap’t on us wide, Portending hollow° truce; at each behind insincere A Seraph stood, and in his hand a Reed Stood waving tipt with fire; while we suspense,° waiting Collected stood within our thoughts amus’d,° puzzled Not long, for sudden all at once thir Reeds Put forth, and to a narrow vent° appli’d touch hole With nicest° touch. Immediate in a flame, most exact But soon obscur’d with smoak, all Heav’n appeerd, From those deep throated Engins belcht, whose roar Emboweld° with outragious noise the Air, filled And all her entrails tore, disgorging foule Thir devilish glut, chaind Thunderbolts and Hail Of Iron Globes, which on the Victor Host Level’d, with such impetuous furie smote, That whom they hit, none on thir feet might stand,

560–7. The passage is full of puns, e.g., “Peace” (and piece, a weapon); “composure” (settlement of disputes and construction [of weapons]); “brest” (heart/the forward line of a military formation); “overture” (offer to negotiate/opening, the bore of the cannon); “discharge . . . charge” (perform our duty/fire our explo- sives); “appointed” (chosen/equipped); “touch” (state/ignite, touch off ); “propound” (propose/crush by beating).

576–90. These lines contain numerous debased puns relating to bodily functions, e.g., “mouthes,” “orifice,” “behind,” “narrow vent,” “deep throated,” “belcht,” “Emboweld,” “entrails,” “disgorging,” “glut,” “Iron Globes.”

589 chaind Thunderbolts. Chain shot, cannonballs linked together.

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Though standing else as Rocks, but down they fell By thousands, Angel on Arch-Angel rowl’d; The sooner for thir Arms, unarm’d they might Have easily as Spirits evaded swift By quick contraction or remove; but now Foule dissipation° follow’d and forc’t rout; dispersal Nor serv’d it to relax thir serried° files. close, tight What should they do? if on they rusht, repulse Repeated, and indecent° overthrow shameful, graceless Doubl’d, would render them yet more despis’d, And to thir foes a laughter; for in view Stood rankt of Seraphim another row In posture to displode° thir second tire° explode / volley Of Thunder: back defeated to return They worse abhorr’d. Satan beheld thir plight, And to his Mates thus in derision call’d.

O Friends, why come not on these Victors proud? Ere while they fierce were coming, and when wee, To entertain them fair with open Front And Brest, (what could we more?) propounded terms Of composition, strait they chang’d thir minds, Flew off, and into strange vagaries° fell, fantastic motions As they would dance, yet for a dance they seemd Somwhat extravagant and wilde, perhaps For joy of offerd peace: but I suppose If our proposals once again were heard We should compel them to a quick result.

To whom thus Belial in like gamesom mood. Leader, the terms we sent were terms of weight, Of hard contents, and full of force urg’d home, Such as we might perceive amus’d them all, And stumbl’d many, who receives them right, Had need from head to foot well understand; Not understood, this gift they have besides, They shew us when our foes walk not upright.

166 Paradise Lost

611–12. More puns: “entertain” (welcome/engage an enemy); “open Front” (candid face/front rank of troops); “Brest” (heart/forward line of a military company).

613 composition. Another pun (truce/composition of gunpowder). 621–7. Belial puns on “terms of weight” (solid negotiating terms/heavy cannonballs); “amus’d” (held their

attention/bewildered them); “stumbl’d” (nonplussed/tripped up); “understand” (comprehend/support); “walk not upright” (deal dishonestly/cannot stand on their feet).

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So they among themselves in pleasant° veine jesting Stood scoffing, highthn’d in thir thoughts beyond All doubt of Victorie, eternal might To match with thir inventions they presum’d So easie, and of his Thunder made a scorn, And all his Host derided, while they stood A while in trouble; but they stood not long, Rage prompted them at length, and found them arms Against such hellish mischief fit to oppose. Forthwith (behold the excellence, the power Which God hath in his mighty Angels plac’d) Thir Arms away they threw, and to the Hills (For Earth hath this variety from Heav’n Of pleasure situate in Hill and Dale) Light as the Lightning glimps they ran, they flew, From thir foundations loosning to and fro They pluckt the seated° Hills with all thir load, fixed Rocks, Waters, Woods, and by the shaggie tops Up lifting bore them in thir hands: Amaze,° astonishment Be sure, and terrour seis’d the rebel Host, When coming towards them so dread° they saw dreadful The bottom of the Mountains upward turn’d, Till on those cursed Engins triple-row They saw them whelm’d, and all thir confidence Under the weight of Mountains buried deep, Themselves invaded° next, and on thir heads attacked Main° Promontories flung, which in the Air massive, solid Came shadowing, and opprest° whole Legions arm’d, pressed down Thir armor help’d thir harm, crush’t in and bruis’d Into thir substance pent,° which wrought them pain confined Implacable,° and many a dolorous groan, impossible to relieve Long strugling underneath, ere they could wind Out of such prison, though Spirits of purest light, Purest at first, now gross by sinning grown. The rest in imitation to like Armes Betook them, and the neighbouring Hills uptore; So Hills amid the Air encounterd Hills Hurl’d to and fro with jaculation° dire, the action of throwing That under ground they fought in dismal shade;

643–6. The hurling of “Hills” as missiles is taken from the war between the Olympian gods and the Titans in Hesiod’s Theogony 713–20.

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645

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Infernal noise; Warr seem’d a civil° Game humane, civilized To° this uproar; horrid confusion heapt compared to Upon confusion rose: and now all Heav’n Had gone to wrack, with ruin overspred, Had not th’ Almightie Father where he sits Shrin’d in his Sanctuarie of Heav’n secure, Consulting° on the sum of things, foreseen deliberating This tumult, and permitted all, advis’d:° having considered That his great purpose he might so fulfill, To honour his Anointed Son aveng’d Upon his enemies, and to declare° show forth All power on him transferr’d: whence to his Son Th’ Assessor° of his Throne he thus began. associate, sharer

Effulgence of my Glorie, Son belov’d, Son in whose face invisible is beheld Visibly, what by Deitie I am, And in whose hand what by Decree I doe, Second Omnipotence, two dayes are past, Two dayes, as we compute the dayes of Heav’n, Since Michael and his Powers went forth to tame These disobedient; sore hath been thir fight, As likeliest was, when two such Foes met arm’d; For to themselves I left them, and thou knowst, Equal in thir Creation they were form’d, Save what sin hath impaird, which yet hath wrought Insensibly,° for I suspend thir doom; imperceptibly Whence in perpetual fight they needs must last Endless, and no solution will be found: Warr wearied hath perform’d what Warr can do, And to disorder’d rage let loose the reines, With Mountains as with Weapons arm’d, which makes Wild work in Heav’n, and dangerous to the maine.° whole place Two dayes are therefore past, the third is thine; For thee I have ordain’d it, and thus farr Have sufferd,° that the Glorie may be thine permitted Of ending this great Warr, since none but Thou Can end it. Into thee such Vertue and Grace

168 Paradise Lost

680–2 Effulgence. Radiance. cf. Heb. 1:3, describing the Son as “the brightness of his glory and the express image of his person.” invisible. Cf. Col. 1:15, “Who is the image of the invisible God.”

684 Second Omnipotence. Two omnipotences are a logical impossibility. Cf. John 5:19, “The Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do,” a text Milton cites in Christian Doctrine 1.5, to argue that the Son derives all power from the Father.

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Immense I have transfus’d, that all may know In Heav’n and Hell thy Power above compare, And this perverse Commotion governd thus, To manifest thee worthiest to be Heir Of all things, to be Heir and to be King By Sacred Unction,° thy deserved right. anointing Go then thou Mightiest in thy Fathers might, Ascend my Chariot, guide the rapid Wheeles That shake Heav’ns basis,° bring forth all my Warr, foundation My Bow and Thunder, my Almightie Arms Gird on, and Sword upon thy puissant Thigh; Pursue these sons of Darkness, drive them out From all Heav’ns bounds into the utter° Deep: outer There let them learn, as likes them, to despise God and Messiah his anointed King.

He said, and on his Son with Rayes direct Shon full, he all his Father full exprest Ineffably° into his face receiv’d, inexpressibly, mysteriously And thus the filial Godhead answering spake.

O Father, O Supream of heav’nly Thrones, First, Highest, Holiest, Best, thou alwayes seekst To glorifie thy Son, I alwayes thee, As is most just; this I my Glorie account, My exaltation, and my whole delight, That thou in me well pleas’d, declarst thy will Fulfill’d, which to fulfil is all my bliss. Scepter and Power, thy giving, I assume, And gladlier shall resign, when in the end Thou shalt be All in All, and I in thee For ever, and in mee all whom thou lov’st: But whom thou hat’st, I hate, and can put on Thy terrors, as I put thy mildness on, Image of thee in all things; and shall soon, Armd with thy might, rid heav’n of these rebell’d, To thir prepar’d ill Mansion driven down To chains of darkness, and th’ undying Worm, That from thy just obedience could revolt,

728–9. Cf. Matt. 3:17, “my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” 731–3. Cf. 1 Cor. 15:24, 28: “Then cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God . . .

then shall the Son also himself be subject unto him that put all things under him, that God may be all in all” (See PL 3.339–41).

739 undying Worm. Cf. Mark 9:44: “[Hell is] Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched.”

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720

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Whom to obey is happiness entire. Then shall thy Saints unmixt, and from th’ impure Farr separate, circling thy holy Mount Unfeigned Halleluiahs to thee sing, Hymns of high praise, and I among them chief. So said, he o’re his Scepter bowing, rose From the right hand of Glorie where he sate, And the third sacred Morn began to shine Dawning through Heav’n: forth rush’d with whirl-wind sound The Chariot of Paternal Deitie, Flashing thick flames, Wheele within Wheele undrawn, It self instinct° with Spirit, but convoyd animated by By four Cherubic shapes, four Faces each Had wondrous, as with Starrs thir bodies all And Wings were set with Eyes, with Eyes the wheels Of Beril, and careering° Fires between; moving back and forth Over thir heads a chrystal Firmament, Whereon a Saphir Throne, inlaid with pure Amber, and colours of the showrie Arch° rainbow Hee in Celestial Panoplie all armd Of radiant Urim, work divinely wrought, Ascended, at his right hand Victorie Sate Eagle-wing’d, beside him hung his Bow And Quiver with three-bolted Thunder stor’d, And from about him fierce Effusion° rowld copious emission Of smoak and bickering° flame, and sparkles dire; flickering Attended with ten thousand thousand Saints, He onward came, farr off his coming shon, And twentie thousand (I thir number heard) Chariots of God, half on each hand were seen: Hee on the wings of Cherub rode sublime° lifted up On the Chrystallin Skie, in Saphir Thron’d.

750–61 Chariot of Paternal Deitie. The Son’s living chariot, with its four-faced Cherubim – the faces being man, lion, ox (or cherub), and eagle – is taken from Ezek. 1 and 10. See especially 10:12, “And their whole body, and their backs, and their hands, and their wings, and the wheels, were full of eyes round about, even the wheels that they four had.”

751 Undrawn. Moving by its own power. 761 Urim. Gems worn by the high priest Aaron on his breastplate of judgment (Exod. 28:30). 762–4 Victorie. Milton’s personification is based on Nike, the winged Greek goddess of victory, and on Jove’s

bird, the eagle. three-bolted Thunder. Jove’s weapon is the three-forked thunderbolt. 769–72 Chariots of God. Cf. Ps. 68:17, “The chariots of God are twenty thousand, even thousands of angels:

the Lord is among them.” wings of Cherub. Cf. Ps. 18:10, “And he rode upon a cherub.” Saphir Thron’d. Cf. Ezek. 1:26, “the likeness of a throne, as the appearance of a sapphire stone.”

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Book 6 171

Illustrious° farr and wide, but by his own shining First seen, them unexpected joy surpriz’d, When the great Ensign of Messiah blaz’d Aloft by Angels born, his Sign in Heav’n: Under whose Conduct Michael soon reduc’d° led back His Armie, circumfus’d° on either Wing, spread about Under thir Head imbodied all in one. Before him Power Divine his way prepar’d; At his command the uprooted Hills retir’d Each to his place, they heard his voice and went Obsequious,° Heav’n his wonted face renewd, compliant And with fresh Flourets Hill and Valley smil’d. This saw his hapless Foes but stood obdur’d,° hardened And to rebellious fight rallied thir Powers Insensate,° hope conceiving from despair. senseless In heav’nly Spirits could such perverseness dwell? But to convince the proud what Signs availe, Or Wonders move th’ obdurate to relent? They hard’nd more by what might most reclame, Grieving° to see his Glorie, at the sight aggrieved Took envie, and aspiring to his highth, Stood reimbattell’d fierce, by force or fraud Weening° to prosper, and at length prevaile thinking Against God and Messiah, or to fall In universal ruin last, and now To final Battel drew, disdaining flight, Or faint retreat; when the great Son of God To all his Host on either hand thus spake.

Stand still in bright array ye Saints, here stand Ye Angels arm’d, this day from Battel rest; Faithful hath been your warfare, and of God Accepted, fearless in his righteous Cause, And as ye have receivd, so have ye don Invincibly; but of this cursed crew The punishment to other hand belongs, Vengeance is his, or whose he sole appoints; Number to this dayes work is not ordain’d Nor multitude, stand onely and behold

801–11 Stand still. Echoes Moses’ words when God destroyed the Egyptians in the Red Sea (Exod. 14:13): “Fear ye not, stand still, and see the salvation of the Lord which he will shew to you to day.”

808 Vengeance is his. Cf. Rom. 12:19, “Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord.”

775

780

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790

795

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Gods indignation on these Godless pourd By mee, not you but mee they have despis’d, Yet envied; against mee is all thir rage, Because the Father, t’ whom in Heav’n supream Kingdom and Power and Glorie appertains, Hath honourd me according to his will. Therefore to mee thir doom he hath assig’n’d; That they may have thir wish, to trie with mee In Battel which the stronger proves, they all, Or I alone against them, since by strength They measure all, of other excellence Not emulous, nor care who them excells; Nor other strife with them do I voutsafe.° grant

So spake the Son, and into terrour chang’d His count’nance too severe to be beheld And full of wrauth bent on his Enemies. At once the Four spred out thir Starrie wings With dreadful shade contiguous, and the Orbes Of his fierce Chariot rowld, as with the sound Of torrent Floods, or of a numerous Host. Hee on his impious Foes right onward drove, Gloomie° as Night; under his burning Wheeles dark The stedfast Empyrean shook throughout, All but the Throne it self of God. Full soon Among them he arriv’d; in his right hand Grasping ten thousand Thunders, which he sent Before him, such as in thir Soules infix’d Plagues; they astonisht° all resistance lost, bewildered, stupefied All courage; down thir idle weapons drop’d; O’re Shields and Helmes, and helmed heads he rode Of Thrones and mighty Seraphim prostrate, That wisht the Mountains now might be again Thrown on them as a shelter from his ire. Nor less on either side tempestuous fell His arrows, from the fourfold-visag’d Foure, Distinct° with eyes, and from the living Wheels, adorned

172 Paradise Lost

815 Kingdom and Power and Glorie. Cf. Matt. 6:13, “For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever.”

827 the Four. The Four “Cherubic shapes” of line 753. 842–3 Mountains . . . shelter. Cf. Rev. 6:16, the cry of the damned to the mountains, “Fall on us, and hide

us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb.” 845. See lines 753 and 827.

815

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Book 6 173

Distinct alike with multitude of eyes, One Spirit in them rul’d, and every eye Glar’d lightning, and shot forth pernicious° fire destructive Among th’ accurst, that witherd all thir strength, And of thir wonted° vigour left them draind, accustomed Exhausted, spiritless, afflicted, fall’n. Yet half his strength he put not forth, but check’d His Thunder in mid Volie,° for he meant salvo Not to destroy, but root them out of Heav’n: The overthrown he rais’d, and as a Heard Of Goats or timerous flock together throngd Drove them before him Thunder-struck, pursu’d With terrors and with furies to the bounds And Chrystal wall of Heav’n, which op’ning wide, Rowld° inward, and a spacious Gap disclos’d turned Into the wastful° Deep; the monstrous sight desolate Strook them with horror backward, but far worse Urg’d them behind; headlong themselves they threw Down from the verge of Heav’n, Eternal wrauth Burnt after them to the bottomless pit.

Hell heard th’ unsufferable noise, Hell saw Heav’n ruining° from Heav’n and would have fled falling Affrighted; but strict Fate had cast too deep Her dark foundations, and too fast had bound. Nine dayes they fell; confounded Chaos roard, And felt tenfold confusion in thir fall Through his wilde Anarchie, so huge a rout° defeated army Incumberd° him with ruin: Hell at last burdened Yawning receavd them whole, and on them clos’d, Hell thir fit habitation fraught with fire Unquenchable, the house of woe and paine. Disburdnd Heav’n rejoic’d, and soon repaird Her mural° breach, returning whence it rowld. in the wall Sole Victor from th’ expulsion of his Foes Messiah his triumphal Chariot turnd: To meet him all his Saints, who silent stood

853. Cf. Hesiod’s Zeus, who put forth all his strength against the Titans (Theogony 687–9). 856–7 Heard / Of Goats. In the parable of the sheep and the goats, the latter were sent “into everlasting

fire, prepared for the devil and his angels” (Matt. 25:33, 41). 871. In Hesiod’s Theogony (720–5) the Titans fell nine days from heaven to earth, and nine more days from

earth to Tartarus.

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Eye witnesses of his Almightie Acts, With Jubilie° advanc’d; and as they went, joyful shout Shaded with branching Palme, each order bright, Sung Triumph, and him sung Victorious King, Son, Heir, and Lord, to him Dominion giv’n, Worthiest to Reign: he celebrated rode Triumphant through mid Heav’n, into the Courts And Temple of his mightie Father Thron’d On high: who into Glorie him receav’d, Where now he sits at the right hand of bliss.

Thus measuring things in Heav’n by things on Earth At thy request, and that thou maist beware By what is past, to thee I have reveal’d What might have else to human Race bin hid; The discord which befel, and Warr in Heav’n Among th’ Angelic Powers,° and the deep fall armies Of those too high aspiring, who rebelld With Satan, hee who envies now thy state, Who now is plotting how he may seduce Thee also from obedience, that with him Bereavd of happiness thou maist partake His punishment, Eternal miserie; Which would be all his solace and revenge, As a despite don against the most High, Thee once to gaine Companion of his woe. But list’n not to his Temptations, warne Thy weaker; let it profit thee to have heard By terrible Example the reward Of disobedience; firm they might have stood, Yet fell; remember, and fear to transgress.

The End of the Sixth Book.

174 Paradise Lost

885 Palme. An emblem of victory, cf. Christ’s entry into Jerusalem (Matt. 21:5–9). 892 right hand. Cf. Heb. 1:2–3: “the Son . . . sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on High.” 909 weaker. Eve, as the “weaker vessel” (1 Pet. 3:7). She is present for this story, see PL 7.50–1.

885

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BOOK 7 THE ARGUMENT

Raphael at the request of Adam relates how and wherefore this world was first cre- ated; that God, after the expelling of Satan and his Angels out of Heaven, declar’d his pleasure to create another World and other Creatures to dwell therein; sends his Son with Glory and attendance of Angels to perform the work of Creation in six dayes: the Angels celebrate with Hymns the performance thereof, and his reascen- tion into Heaven.

Descend from Heav’n Urania, by that name If rightly thou art call’d, whose Voice divine Following, above th’ Olympian Hill I soare, Above the flight of Pegasean wing. The meaning, not the Name I call: for thou Nor of the Muses nine, nor on the top Of old Olympus dwell’st, but Heav’nlie borne, Before the Hills appeerd, or Fountain flow’d, Thou with Eternal Wisdom didst converse, Wisdom thy Sister, and with her didst play In presence of th’ Almightie Father, pleas’d With thy Celestial Song. Up led by thee Into the Heav’n of Heav’ns I have presum’d, An Earthlie Guest, and drawn Empyreal Aire, Thy tempring;° with like safetie guided down moderating Return me to my Native Element: Least from this flying Steed unrein’d, (as once Bellerophon, though from a lower Clime)° region

1–39. The third invocation or proem. 1 Descend from Heav’n. Echoes Horace’s invocation of the Muse Calliope, “Descende caelo” (Odes 3.4.1).

Urania. The classical Muse of astronomy who had been made into the Muse of Christian poetry by Du Bartas and other religious poets (“Urania” means “heavenly”). Milton constructs another derivation for her (5–12).

3 Olympian Hill. Mount Olympus, the home of the classical gods and Muses. 4 Pegasean. Pegasus, the winged horse of inspired poetry, had created the Muses’ spring, Hippocrene; he is

associated with Bellerophon (18–20 below, and note). 9–12 Eternal Wisdom. In Prov. 8:22–31 Wisdom tells of her activities before the Creation. “Then I was by

him [God], as one brought up with him: and I was daily his delight, rejoicing always before him.” Milton devises a myth in which that “Wisdom” which is a personification of God’s wisdom is the “Sister” of Urania as the Muse of divine poetry (“Celestial Song,” line 12); therefore, Urania also originates from God.

18–20 Bellerophon. He incurred the gods’ anger when he tried to fly to heaven on Pegasus. Zeus sent a gadfly to sting the horse, and Bellerophon fell down to the “Aleian Field,” where he wandered “Erroneous” (trans- lates “Aleian,” Greek for wandering), alone (“forlorne”), and in some accounts blind.

Dismounted, on th’ Aleian Field I fall Erroneous there to wander and forlorne. Half yet remaines unsung, but narrower bound Within the visible Diurnal Spheare; Standing on Earth, not rapt° above the Pole, transported, enraptured More safe I Sing with mortal voice, unchang’d To hoarce or mute, though fall’n on evil dayes, On evil dayes though fall’n, and evil tongues; In darkness, and with dangers compast round, And solitude; yet not alone, while thou Visit’st my slumbers Nightly, or when Morn Purples the East: still govern thou my Song, Urania, and fit audience find, though few. But drive farr off the barbarous dissonance Of Bacchus and his revellers, the Race Of that wilde Rout that tore the Thracian Bard In Rhodope, where Woods and Rocks had Eares To rapture, till the savage clamor dround Both Harp and Voice; nor could the Muse defend Her Son. So fail not thou, who thee implores: For thou art Heav’nlie, shee an empty dreame.

Say Goddess, what ensu’d when Raphael, The affable Arch-Angel, had forewarn’d Adam by dire example to beware Apostasie,° by what befell in Heaven renunciation of faith To those Apostates, least the like befall In Paradise to Adam or his Race, Charg’d not to touch the interdicted° Tree, forbidden If they transgress, and slight that sole command,

176 Paradise Lost

22 Diurnal Spheare. The universe, which seems to rotate daily, is the scene for the remainder of the epic. 25–8. After the Restoration of Charles II (May 1660) until the passage of the Act of Oblivion (August 1660),

Milton was in danger of death and dismemberment (like Orpheus, lines 34–5). Several of his republican colleagues were hanged, drawn, and quartered for their part in the revolution and regicide.

29–30. Milton’s early biographers report that he composed at night or in the early hours of the morning, then waited for a scribe to take down his dictation.

32–7 Thracian Bard. Orpheus, the archtypal poet, whose “Harp and Voice” charmed even “Woods and Rocks,” but were drowned out by the Bacchantes, a “wilde Rout” of screaming women who murdered and dis- membered him in the “Rhodope” mountains in Thrace, and threw his body parts into the river Hebrus (cf. “Lycidas,” 58–63). Milton fears that a similar “barbarous dissonance” unleashed by the Restoration royalists will drown his voice and threaten his life.

37–8 Muse. Calliope, the Muse of epic poetry, was the mother of Orpheus. 40–50. The second epic question (paralleling 1.27–33), signals that Book 7 is the beginning, structurally, of

the poem’s second half; Virgil makes a similar gesture in Book 7 of the Aeneid.

Book 7 177

So easily obeyd amid the choice Of all tastes else to please thir appetite, Though wandring. He with his consorted° Eve wedded, accompanied The storie heard attentive, and was fill’d With admiration,° and deep Muse° to heare wonder / meditation Of things so high and strange, things to thir thought So unimaginable as hate in Heav’n, And Warr so neer the Peace of God in bliss With such confusion: but the evil soon Driv’n back redounded° as a flood on those flowed back From whom it sprung, impossible to mix With Blessedness. Whence Adam soon repeal’d° abandoned The doubts that in his heart arose: and now Led on, yet° sinless, with desire to know still What neerer might concern him, how this World Of Heav’n and Earth conspicious° first began, visible When, and whereof created, for what cause, What within Eden or without was done Before his memorie, as one whose drouth° thirst Yet scarce allay’d still eyes the current° streame, flowing Whose liquid murmur heard new thirst excites, Proceeded thus to ask his Heav’nly Guest.

Great things, and full of wonder in our eares, Farr differing from this World, thou hast reveal’d Divine interpreter, by favour sent Down from the Empyrean to forewarne Us timely of what might else have bin our loss, Unknown, which human knowledg could not reach: For which to the infinitly Good we owe Immortal thanks, and his admonishment Receave with solemne purpose to observe Immutably his sovran will, the end° purpose Of what we are. But since thou hast voutsaf ’t° granted Gently for our instruction to impart Things above Earthly thought, which yet concernd Our knowing, as to highest wisdom seemd, Deign to descend now lower, and relate What may no less perhaps availe us known, How first began this Heav’n which we behold Distant so high, with moving Fires° adornd stars

72 Divine interpreter. Echoes Mercury’s title as messenger of the gods, “interpres divum” (Aeneid 4.378).

Innumerable, and this which yeelds or fills All space, the ambient Aire wide interfus’d Imbracing round this florid° Earth, what cause flourishing Mov’d the Creator in his holy Rest Through all Eternitie so late to build In Chaos, and the work begun, how soon Absolv’d,° if unforbid thou maist unfould finished What wee, not to explore the secrets aske Of his Eternal Empire, but the more To magnifie° his works, the more we know. glorify And the great Light of Day yet wants to run Much of his Race though steep, suspens° in Heav’n suspended, attentive Held by thy voice, thy potent voice he heares, And longer will delay to heare thee tell His Generation,° and the rising Birth of his creation Of Nature from the unapparent Deep: Or if the Starr of Eevning° and the Moon Hesperus Haste to thy audience, Night with her will bring Silence, and Sleep listning to thee will watch° stay awake Or we can bid his absence, till thy Song End, and dismiss thee ere the Morning shine.

Thus Adam his illustrious Guest besought: And thus the Godlike Angel answerd milde.

This also thy request with caution askt Obtaine: though to recount Almightie works What words or tongue of Seraph can suffice, Or heart of man suffice to comprehend? Yet what thou canst attain, which best may serve To glorifie the Maker, and inferr° cause to be Thee also happier, shall not be withheld Thy hearing, such Commission from above I have receav’d, to answer thy desire Of knowledge within bounds; beyond abstain To ask, nor let thine own inventions° hope speculations

178 Paradise Lost

88–9 ambient Aire. The surrounding air “yeelds” to solids or “fills” the spaces between them. interfus’d. Interfusus, poured between (Latin).

90–3. Adam’s question about God’s actions before the Creation was often cited by theologians as an exam- ple of presumptuous and dangerous speculation, especially when, as here, it implies mutability in God. But in Milton’s Eden error that is not deliberate is not sinful.

98–106. Pleas to continue a story are common in epic, see Odyssey 11.372–6, where Alcinous urges Odysseus to continue speaking until dawn.

103 Deep. Chaos, invisible (“unapparent”) because dark and without form.

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105

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Things not reveal’d, which th’ invisible King, Onely Omniscient, hath supprest in Night, To none communicable in Earth or Heaven: Anough is left besides to search and know. But Knowledge is as food, and needs no less Her Temperance over Appetite, to know In measure what the mind may well contain, Oppresses else with Surfet, and soon turns Wisdom to Folly, as Nourishment to Winde.

Know then, that after Lucifer from Heav’n (So call him, brighter once amidst the Host Of Angels, then that Starr the Starrs among) Fell with his flaming Legions through the Deep Into his place, and the great Son returnd Victorious with his Saints,° th’ Omnipotent angels Eternal Father from his Throne beheld Thir multitude, and to his Son thus spake.

At least our envious Foe hath fail’d, who thought All like himself rebellious, by whose aid This inaccessible high strength, the seat Of Deitie supream, us dispossest, He trusted to have seis’d, and into fraud° error, faithlessness Drew many, whom thir place knows here no more; Yet farr the greater part have kept, I see, Thir station, Heav’n yet populous retaines Number sufficient to possess her Realmes Though wide, and this high Temple to frequent With Ministeries due and solemn Rites: But least his heart exalt him in the harme Already done, to have dispeopl’d Heav’n My damage fondly° deem’d, I can repaire foolishly That detriment, if such it be to lose

126–30 Knowledge is as food. A commonplace. Cf. Davanant, Gondibert (1651): “For though books serve as diet for the mind, / If knowledge, early got, self-value breeds, / By false digestion it is turned to wind, / And what would nourish on the eater feeds” (2.8.22–5).

131–3 Lucifer. Now known as Satan, he is brighter among the angels than the morning star of that name is among the other stars.

142 us dispossest. Once he had dispossessed us (a Latinism). 144 thir place. Echoes Job 7:10, about the dead: “He shall return no more to his house, neither shall his

place know him any more.” 145 greater part. Cf. Satan’s conflicting representations of the numbers of the rebels (1.633, 6.156. 9.141–2)

and see 2.692.

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Self-lost, and in a moment will create Another World, out of one man a Race Of men innumerable, there to dwell, Not here, till by degrees of merit rais’d They open to themselves at length the way Up hither, under long obedience tri’d, And Earth be chang’d to Heav’n, & Heav’n to Earth, One Kingdom, Joy and Union without end. Mean while inhabit laxe,° ye Powers of Heav’n, spread out And thou my Word, begotten Son, by thee This I perform, speak thou, and be it don: My overshadowing Spirit and might with thee I send along, ride forth, and bid the Deep Within appointed bounds be Heav’n and Earth, Boundless the Deep, because I am who fill Infinitude, nor vacuous the space. Though I uncircumscrib’d my self retire, And put not forth my goodness, which is free To act or not, Necessitie and Chance Approach not mee, and what I will is Fate.

So spake th’ Almightie, and to what he spake His Word, the Filial Godhead, gave effect. Immediate are the Acts of God, more swift

180 Paradise Lost

154 in a moment. See below, 176–8. 156–9 under long obedience tri’d. Cf. Raphael’s explanation of how man was intended to improve

(5.469–503). See Areopagitica on human nature and life in Eden: “many there be that complain of divin Providence for suffering Adam to transgresse, foolish tongues! when God gave him reason, he gave him freedom to choose, for reason is but choosing . . . God therefore left him free, set before him a provok- ing object, ever almost in his eyes; herein consisted his merit, herein the right of his reward, the praise of his abstinence. Wherefore did he creat passions within us, pleasures round about us, but that these rightly temper’d are the very ingredients of vertu?”

163–5. Milton’s God identifies himself as Creator and the Son as his agent, speaking his creating word; cf. Christian Doctrine 1.5: “The Son . . . was the first of the whole creation, by whom afterwards all other things were made.” The “Spirit” probably means the power of God, as Christian Doctrine 1.7 indicates.

168–73. Milton’s God creates out of Chaos, not out of nothing (ex nihilo) as most theologians held. The mat- ter of Chaos emanated from God, and because God fills “Infinitude” Chaos (“the Deep”) is infinite. God chooses when to “retire” or restrict his “goodness” (active power) to the empyreal heavens, leaving Chaos subject to “Chance” and to other agents. God also freely chooses when to put forth that “goodness” into Chaos and create heaven, the universe, and all creatures from it; his power is limited neither by “Necessitie” nor “Chance,” which are causes of creation in some ancient philosophy (cf. Christian Doctrine 1.7; PL 2.955–1009, 10.282–305).

176–9. Raphael explains the principle of accommodation, whereby God’s acts, which are “Immediate” and so described in some commentary on Genesis, are translated into the narrative terms humans can under- stand, here, a six-day Creation. This principle allows an escape from biblical literalism. Cf. the Creation account given by Uriel to Satan disguised as a Cherub (3.705–21).

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Then time or motion, but to human ears Cannot without process of speech be told, So told as earthly notion° can receave. human understanding Great triumph and rejoycing was in Heav’n When such was heard declar’d the Almightie’s will; Glorie they sung to the most High, good will To future men, and in thir dwellings peace: Glorie to him whose just avenging ire Had driven out th’ ungodly from his sight And th’ habitations of the just; to him Glorie and praise, whose wisdom had ordain’d Good out of evil to create, in stead Of Spirits maligne a better Race to bring Into thir vacant room, and thence diffuse His good to Worlds° and Ages infinite. universes So sang the Hierarchies:° Mean while the Son angelic ranks On his great Expedition now appeer’d, Girt with Omnipotence, with Radiance crown’d Of Majestie Divine, Sapience° and Love wisdom Immense, and all his Father in him shon. About his Chariot numberless were pour’d° arrayed, spread out Cherub and Seraph, Potentates and Thrones, And Vertues, winged Spirits, and Chariots wing’d, From the Armoury of God, where stand of old Myriads between two brazen Mountains lodg’d Against° a solemn day, harnest at hand, in preparation for Celestial Equipage;° and now came forth chariots with horses Spontaneous, for within them Spirit livd, Attendant on thir Lord: Heav’n op’nd wide Her ever during° Gates, Harmonious sound everlasting On golden Hinges moving, to let forth The King of Glorie in his powerful Word And Spirit coming to create new Worlds. On heav’nly ground they stood, and from the shore They view’d the vast immeasurable Abyss Outrageous° as a Sea, dark, wasteful,° wilde, enormous, violent / desolate

182–3. Cf. Luke 2:14, the angels’ song at the birth of Jesus: “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.”

199–201 Chariots wing’d. Cf. Zech. 6:1, “behold, there came four chariots out from between two moun- tains . . . of brass.”

205–9 Harmonious sound. Cf. 2.880–1, and 565–8 below and note.

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Up from the bottom turn’d by furious windes And surging waves, as Mountains to assault Heav’ns highth, and with the Center mix the Pole.

Silence, ye troubl’d waves, and thou Deep, peace, Said then th’ Omnific° Word, your discord end: all-creating

Nor staid, but on the Wings of Cherubim Uplifted, in Paternal Glorie rode Farr into Chaos, and the World unborn; For Chaos heard his voice: him all his Traine Follow’d in bright procession to behold Creation, and the wonders of his might. Then staid the fervid° Wheeles, and in his hand burning He took the golden Compasses, prepar’d In Gods Eternal store, to circumscribe This Universe, and all created things: One foot he center’d, and the other turn’d Round through the vast profunditie obscure, And said, thus farr extend, thus farr thy bounds, This be thy just° Circumference, O World.° exact / universe Thus God the Heav’n created, thus the Earth, Matter unform’d and void: Darkness profound Cover’d th’ Abyss: but on the watrie calme His brooding wings the Spirit of God outspred, And vital vertue° infus’d, and vital warmth life-giving power Throughout the fluid Mass, but downward purg’d The black tartareous cold Infernal dregs Adverse to life: then founded,° then conglob’d° formed / gathered into spheres Like things to like, the rest to several place Disparted,° and between spun out the Air, distributed And Earth self ballanc’t on her Center hung.

Let ther be Light, said God, and forthwith Light Ethereal, first of things, quintessence pure

182 Paradise Lost

225 golden Compasses. Wisdom, in Prov. 8:27, declares, “When he prepared the heavens, I was there: when he set a compass upon the face of the depth.”

233–5 Matter unform’d and void. Cf. Gen. 1:2, “And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.” Cf. PL 1.21–2.

237–8 tartareous. Crusty, gritty matter (“infernal dregs”), purged from the universe and associated with Tartarus, hell.

243. God’s creating words, here and later, are quoted almost exactly from Gen. 1 (cf. chapters 1 and 2), but Milton freely elaborates the creatures’ responses.

244 Ethereal. Ether was thought to be a fifth element or “quintessence,” the substance of the celestial bodies above the moon.

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Book 7 183

Sprung from the Deep, and from her Native East To journie through the airie gloom began, Sphear’d in a radiant Cloud, for yet the Sun Was not; shee° in a cloudie Tabernacle° light / temporary dwelling Sojourn’d the while. God saw the Light was good; And light from darkness by the Hemisphere Divided: Light the Day, and Darkness Night He nam’d. Thus was the first Day Eev’n and Morn: Nor past uncelebrated, nor unsung By the Celestial Quires, when Orient° Light shining Exhaling° first from Darkness they beheld; rising as vapor Birth-day of Heav’n° and Earth; with joy and shout the sky The hollow Universal Orb they fill’d, And touch’d thir Golden Harps, and hymning prais’d God and his works, Creatour him they sung, Both when first Eevning was, and when first Morn.

Again, God said, let ther be Firmament Amid the Waters, and let it divide The Waters from the Waters: and God made The Firmament, expanse of liquid, pure, Transparent, Elemental Air, diffus’d In circuit to the uttermost convex° vault Of this great Round:° partition firm and sure, universe The Waters underneath from those above Dividing: for as Earth, so he the World Built on circumfluous° Waters calme, in wide flowing around Crystallin Ocean, and the loud misrule Of Chaos farr remov’d, least fierce extreames Contiguous might distemper° the whole frame: disturb And Heav’n° he nam’d the Firmament: So Eev’n the sky And Morning Chorus sung the second Day.

The Earth was form’d, but in the Womb as yet

252 Eev’n and Morn. One twenty-four-hour period measured from sundown to sundown, in the Jewish manner.

261–75 Firmament. The space between the earth and the outer shell (“uttermost convex”) of the universe, filled with transparent air; it is the visible “Heav’n” or sky (274), not the ethereal heaven where God and the angels reside. The “Waters underneath” are the oceans on which the earth rests; the waters “above” are the “circumfluous Waters,” comprising a “Crystallin Ocean” that surrounds the outer shell of the uni- verse; “Chaos” is thereby “farr remov’d” from creation.

276–81. Earth is at first an “Embryo” enveloped in a “Womb . . . / Of Waters”; then she is herself the “great Mother” made ready (“Fermented”) to conceive and bear every other creature. Milton draws on Lucretius, De Rerum Natura (2.991–8), for the concept of earth as Magna Mater and also on Ovid’s account of Creation (Metamorphoses 1.1–51).

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Of Waters, Embryon° immature involv’d,° embyro / enfolded Appeer’d not: over all the face of Earth Main° Ocean flow’d, not idle, but with warme continuous Prolific humour° soft’ning all her Globe, life-producing liquid Fermented the great Mother to conceave, Satiate with genial° moisture, when God said generative Be gather’d now ye Waters under Heav’n Into one place, and let dry Land appeer. Immediately the Mountains huge appeer Emergent, and thir broad bare backs upheave Into the Clouds, thir tops ascend the Skie: So high as heav’d the tumid° Hills, so low swollen Down sunk a hollow bottom broad and deep, Capacious bed of Waters: thither they Hasted with glad precipitance,° uprowld headlong fall As drops on dust conglobing° from the drie; forming round shapes Part rise in crystal Wall, or ridge direct,° throw up waves For haste; such flight the great command impress’d On the swift flouds: as Armies at the call Of Trumpet (for of Armies thou hast heard) Troop to thir Standard, so the watrie throng, Wave rowling° after Wave, where way they found, billowing If steep, with torrent rapture,° if through Plaine, powerful force Soft-ebbing; nor withstood them Rock or Hill, But they, or under ground, or circuit wide With Serpent errour° wandring, found thir way, winding course And on the washie Oose deep Channels wore; Easie, e’re God had bid the ground be drie, All but within those banks, where Rivers now Stream, and perpetual draw thir humid traine.° liquid currents The dry Land, Earth, and the great receptacle Of congregated Waters he call’d Seas: And saw that it was good, and said, Let th’ Earth Put forth the verdant Grass, Herb yielding Seed, And Fruit Tree yielding Fruit after her kind; Whose Seed is in her self upon the Earth. He scarce had said, when the bare Earth, till then Desert and bare, unsightly, unadorn’d, Brought forth the tender Grass, whose verdure clad Her Universal Face with pleasant green, Then Herbs of every leaf, that sudden flour’d Op’ning thir various colours, and made gay

184 Paradise Lost

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Her bosom smelling sweet: and these scarce blown,° blossomed Forth flourish’t thick the clustring Vine, forth crept The swelling Gourd, up stood the cornie Reed Embattell’d in her field: and the humble° Shrub, low-growing And Bush with frizl’d hair implicit:° last tangled branches Rose as in Dance the stately Trees, and spred° put forth Thir branches hung with copious Fruit; or gemm’d° adorned Thir blossoms: with high woods the hills were crownd, With tufts the vallies and each fountain side, With borders long the Rivers. That Earth now Seemd like to Heav’n, a seat where Gods might dwell, Or wander with delight, and love to haunt Her sacred shades: though God had yet not rain’d Upon the Earth, and man to till the ground None was, but from the Earth a dewie Mist Went up and waterd all the ground, and each Plant of the field, which e’re it was in the Earth God made, and every Herb, before it grew On the green stemm; God saw that it was good. So Eev’n and Morn recorded the Third Day.

Again th’ Almightie spake: Let there be Lights High in th’ expanse of Heaven° to divide the sky The Day from Night; and let them be for Signes, For Seasons, and for Dayes, and circling Years, And let them be for Lights as I ordaine Thir Office in the Firmament of Heav’n To give Light on the Earth; and it was so. And God made two great Lights, great for thir use To Man, the greater to have rule by Day, The less by Night alterne:° and made the Starrs, in turns And set them in the Firmament of Heav’n To illuminate the Earth, and rule the Day In thir vicissitude,° and rule the Night, alternation And Light from Darkness to divide. God saw, Surveying his great Work, that it was good: For of Celestial Bodies first the Sun

321–2 cornie Reed. Stalks bearing grain; they appear as a forest of spears uplifted by a battalion (“Embattell’d”). Cf. 4.980–3.

331–7. Cf. Gen. 2:5–6: “[God made] every plant of the field before it was in the earth, and every herb of the field before it grew: for the Lord God had not caused it to rain upon the earth, and there was not a man to till the ground. But there went up a mist from the earth, and watered the whole face of the ground.”

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A mightie Spheare he fram’d, unlightsom first, Though of Ethereal° Mould: then form’d the Moon fashioned from ether Globose, and every magnitude of Starrs, And sowd with Starrs the Heav’n thick as a field: Of Light by farr the greater part he took, Transplanted from her cloudie Shrine, and plac’d In the Suns Orb, made porous to receive And drink the liquid Light, firm to retaine Her gather’d beams, great Palace now of Light. Hither as to thir Fountain other Starrs Repairing, in thir gold’n Urns draw Light, And hence the Morning Planet guilds her horns; By tincture° or reflection they augment infusion Thir small peculiar,° though from human sight own small light So farr remote, with diminution seen. First in the East his glorious Lamp was seen, Regent of Day, and all th’ Horizon round Invested with bright Rayes, jocond° to run merry His Longitude through Heav’n’s high rode: the gray Dawn, and the Pleiades before him danc’d Shedding sweet influence: less bright the Moon, But opposite in leveld° West was set on the same plane His mirror, with full face borrowing her Light From him, for other light she needed none In that aspect,° and still that distance keepes when full Till night, then in the East her turn she shines, Revolvd on Heav’ns great Axle, and her Reign With thousand lesser Lights dividual° holds, divided, shared With thousand thousand Starres, that then appeer’d Spangling the Hemisphere: then first adornd With thir bright Luminaries that Set and Rose, Glad Eevning and glad Morn crownd the fourth day.

And God said, let the Waters generate

186 Paradise Lost

360 cloudie Shrine. The “cloudie Tabernacle” (248 above) where light had been stored. 366 Morning Planet. probably Venus, which Galileo’s telescope found to be crescent-shaped (“guilds her

horns”) in her first quarter. The 1667 edition has “his horns” which would refer to Lucifer, who was named by Raphael as the brightest star at 7.131 and is designated as the morning star in the Nativity Ode, 74. The change accommodates Gallileo’s finding.

373 Longitude. Course round the ecliptic, from east to west (not the modern use of the term). 374–5 Pleiades. Seven daughters of Atlas, transformed to a cluster of stars known as the Seven Sisters; they

rise in the spring and are thought to shed fertility (“sweet influence”) into the earth. Cf. Job 38:31, “Canst thou bind the sweet influences of Pleiades.”

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Reptil with Spawn abundant, living Soule: And let Fowle flie above the Earth, with wings Displayd° on the op’n Firmament of Heav’n. spread out And God created the great Whales, and each Soul living, each that crept, which plenteously The waters generated by thir kindes, And every Bird of wing after his kinde; And saw that it was good, and bless’d them, saying, Be fruitful, multiply, and in the Seas And Lakes and running Streams the waters fill; And let the Fowle be multiply’d on the Earth. Forthwith the Sounds and Seas, each Creek and Bay With Frie° innumerable swarme, and Shoales young fish Of Fish that with thir Finns and shining Scales Glide under the green Wave, in Sculles that oft Bank the mid Sea: part single or with mate Graze the Sea weed thir pasture, and through Groves Of Coral stray, or sporting with quick glance Show to the Sun thir wav’d° coats dropt° with Gold, striped / flecked Or in thir Pearlie shells at ease, attend° watch for Moist nutriment, or under Rocks thir food In jointed Armour watch: on smooth° the Seale, stretch of calm water And bended° Dolphins play: part huge of bulk curved in leaping Wallowing unweildie, enormous in thir Gate Tempest° the Ocean: there Leviathan stir up violently Hugest of living Creatures, on the Deep Stretcht like a Promontorie sleeps or swimmes, And seems a moving Land, and at his Gilles Draws in, and at his Trunck spouts out a Sea. Mean while the tepid Caves, and Fens and shoares Thir Brood as numerous hatch, from the Egg that soon Bursting with kindly° rupture forth disclos’d natural Thir callow young, but featherd soon and fledge They summ’d thir Penns, and soaring th’ air sublime° aloft With clang° despis’d the ground, under a cloud harsh cry

388 Reptil. All creatures that crawl or creep. They are the first animate creatures, having a “living Soule.” 402–3. The fishes’ darting motions resemble boats (“Sculles”) oared now on one side, now on the other; as

they turn they seem to form a “Bank” within the sea. 412 Leviathan. The great whale (cf. 1.200–8). 420–1 callow. Unfeathered, but soon they have full plumage (“fledge”) and the wing feathers (“summ’d thir

Penns”) needed for flight. 422–3 despis’d. Looked down upon (the literal meaning); the ground seemed to be under a cloud of birds.

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In prospect; there the Eagle and the Stork On Cliffs and Cedar tops thir Eyries build: Part loosly° wing the Region,° part more wise separately / sky In common, rang’d in figure wedge° thir way, fly in wedge formation Intelligent° of seasons, and set forth understanding Thir Aierie Caravan high over Sea’s Flying, and over Lands with mutual wing Easing thir flight; so stears the prudent Crane Her annual Voiage, born on Windes; the Aire, Floats,° as they pass, fann’d with unnumber’d plumes: undulates From Branch to Branch the smaller Birds with song Solac’d the Woods, and spred thir painted wings Till Ev’n, nor then the solemn Nightingal Ceas’d warbling, but all night tun’d her soft layes: Others on Silver Lakes and Rivers Bath’d Thir downie Brest; the Swan with Arched neck Between her white wings mantling proudly, Rowes Her state with Oarie feet: yet oft they quit The Dank,° and rising on stiff Pennons,° towre° water / wings / soar The mid Aereal Skie: Others on ground Walk’d firm; the crested Cock whose clarion° sounds shrill trumpet The silent hours, and th’ other° whose gay Traine the peacock Adorns him, colour’d with the Florid hue Of Rainbows and Starrie Eyes. The Waters thus With Fish replenisht, and the Aire with Fowle, Ev’ning and Morn solemniz’d the Fift day.

The Sixt, and of Creation last arose With Eevning Harps and Mattin,° when God said, morning chant Let th’ Earth bring forth Soul living in her kinde, Cattel° and Creeping things, and Beast of the Earth, domestic livestock Each in their kinde. The Earth obey’d, and strait Op’ning her fertile Woomb teem’d° at a Birth brought forth Innumerous° living Creatures, perfet formes, numberless Limb’d and full grown: out of the ground up rose As from his Laire the wilde Beast where he wonns° dwells In Forrest wilde, in Thicket, Brake, or Den; Among the Trees in Pairs they rose, they walk’d:

188 Paradise Lost

429–30 mutual wing. Birds were thought to support each other when they fly in formation. 438–40. The swan’s outstretched (“mantling”) wings seem to form a cloak; it resembles a monarch on a

royal barge (“state”), rowing itself with its “Oarie” feet.

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The Cattel in the Fields and Meddowes green: Those rare and solitarie, these in flocks Pasturing at once, and in broad Herds upsprung. The grassie Clods now Calv’d, now half appeer’d The Tawnie Lion, pawing to get free His hinder parts, then springs as broke from Bonds, And Rampant shakes his Brinded° main; the Ounce,° streaked / lynx The Libbard,° and the Tyger, as the Moale leopard Rising, the crumbl’d Earth above them threw In Hillocks; the swift Stag from under ground Bore up his branching head: scarse from his mould Behemoth biggest born of Earth upheav’d His vastness: Fleec’t the Flocks and bleating rose, As Plants: ambiguous° between Sea and Land amphibious The River Horse and scalie Crocodile. At once came forth whatever creeps the ground, Insect or Worme; those wav’d thir limber fans For wings, and smallest Lineaments exact In all the Liveries dect of Summers pride With spots of Gold and Purple, azure and green: These as a line thir long dimension drew, Streaking the ground with sinuous trace; not all Minims° of Nature; some of Serpent kinde smallest animals Wondrous in length and corpulence involv’d° coiled Thir Snakie foulds, and added wings. First crept The Parsimonious Emmet, provident Of future, in small room large heart enclos’d, Pattern of just equalitie perhaps Hereafter, join’d in her popular Tribes Of Commonaltie: swarming next appeer’d

460–2 Those. The wild beasts who come forth “in Pairs” and spread out (“rare”) at wide intervals. these. Domestic cattle, who come forth “in flocks” and “broad Herds,” and at once find pasture.

471 Behemoth. A huge biblical beast ( Job. 40:15–24), often identified with the elephant. 474 River Horse. Translates the Greek hippopotamus. 476 Worme. Any creeping creature, including serpents. 485–9 Parsimonious Emmet. The thrifty ant, with its capacious intellect (“large heart”) will become the

symbol of a frugal and self-governing republic (“Pattern of just equalitie”), with the “popular” (populous, plebeian) tribes of common people (“Commonaltie”) joining in rule. In The Ready and Easy Way, Milton makes ant colonies a symbol “of a frugal and self governing democratie or Commonwealth; safer and more thriving in the joint providence and counsel of many industrious equals, then under the single domina- tion of one imperious Lord.”

489–92 Deliciously. Bees here suggest delightful ease but become a symbol of monarchy associated with Hell (1.768–75).

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The Female Bee that feeds her Husband Drone Deliciously, and builds her waxen Cells With Honey stor’d: the rest are numberless, And thou thir Natures know’st, & gav’st them Names, Needless to thee repeated; nor unknown The Serpent suttl’st Beast of all the field, Of huge extent somtimes, with brazen Eyes And hairie Main terrific,° though to thee terrifying Not noxious,° but obedient at thy call. harmful Now Heav’n in all her Glorie shon, and rowld Her motions, as the great first-Movers hand First wheeld thir course; Earth in her rich attire Consummate° lovly smil’d; Aire, Water, Earth, complete, perfect By Fowl, Fish, Beast, was flown, was swum, was walkt Frequent;° and of the Sixt day yet remain’d; in throngs, abundantly There wanted yet the Master work, the end° purpose Of all yet don; a Creature who not prone And Brute as other Creatures, but endu’d With Sanctitie of Reason, might erect His Stature, and upright with Front° serene brow, face Govern the rest, self-knowing, and from thence Magnanimous to correspond with Heav’n, But grateful to acknowledge whence his good Descends, thither with heart and voice and eyes Directed in Devotion, to adore And worship God Supream, who made him chief Of all his works: therefore the Omnipotent Eternal Father (For where is not hee Present) thus to his Son audibly spake.

Let us make now Man in our image, Man In our similitude, and let them rule

190 Paradise Lost

493. See PL 8.342–4 and Gen. 2:19–20. 495–7 hairie Main. Evokes the sea serpents (Aeneid 2.203–11) who emerged from the sea to destroy Laocoon

and his sons, and so was instrumental in the fall of Troy. 508–9 erect. Both “stand erect” and “elevate his condition.” His erect stance was understood to signify that

he was intended for Heaven; see 8.257–61. 511 Magnanimous. Noble, great-souled. correspond. Both “be in harmony with” and “communicate

with.” 519–22 similitude. Likeness; cf. Gen. 1:26: “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.” The Geneva

Bible comments that humans were created “after God in righteousnes & true holines, meaning by these two wordes all perfection, as wisdome, trueth, innocencie, power.” Commenting on Gen. 1:27, “So God cre- ated man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them,” Milton in Tetrachordon defines the divine image in man as “Wisdom, Purity, Justice, and rule over all creatures.”

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Over the Fish and Fowle of Sea and Aire, Beast of the Field, and over all the Earth, And every creeping thing that creeps the ground. This said, he formd thee, Adam, thee O Man Dust of the ground, and in thy nostrils breath’d The breath of Life; in his own Image hee Created thee, in the Image of God Express,° and thou becam’st a living Soul. exact Male he created thee, but thy consort Female for Race;° then bless’d Mankinde, and said, propagation Be fruitful, multiplie, and fill the Earth, Subdue it, and throughout Dominion hold Over Fish of the Sea, and Fowle of the Aire, And every living thing that moves on the Earth. Wherever thus created, for no place Is yet distinct by name, thence,° as thou know’st from there He brought thee into this delicious° Grove, delightful This Garden, planted with the Trees of God, Delectable both to behold and taste; And freely all thir pleasant fruit for food Gave thee, all sorts are here that all th’ Earth yields, Varietie without end; but of the Tree Which tasted works knowledge of Good and Evil, Thou mai’st not; in the day thou eat’st, thou di’st; Death is the penaltie impos’d, beware, And govern well thy appetite, least sin Surprise° thee, and her black attendant Death. betray Here finish’d hee, and all that he had made View’d, and behold all was entirely good; So Ev’n and Morn accomplish’t the Sixt day: Yet not till the Creator from his work Desisting, though unwearied, up returnd Up to the Heav’n of Heav’ns his high abode, Thence to behold this new created World Th’ addition of his Empire, how it shew’d In prospect from his Throne, how good, how faire, Answering his great Idea. Up he rode Followd with acclamation and the sound

524–8. Cf. Gen. 2:7: “And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nos- trils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.”

557 Idea. Eternal archetype or pattern, as in Plato; concept in the mind of God.

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Symphonious of ten thousand Harpes that tun’d° performed Angelic harmonies: the Earth, the Aire Resounded, (thou remember’st for thou heardst) The Heav’ns and all the Constellations rung, The Planets in thir stations list’ning stood, While the bright Pomp° ascended jubilant. triumphal procession Open, ye everlasting Gates, they sung, Open, ye Heav’ns, your living dores; let in The great Creator from his work returnd Magnificent, his Six days work, a World; Open, and henceforth oft; for God will deigne To visit oft the dwellings of just Men Delighted, and with frequent intercourse° going back and forth Thither will send his winged Messengers On errands of supernal° Grace. So sung heavenly The glorious Train ascending: He through Heav’n, That open’d wide her blazing° Portals, led radiant To Gods Eternal house direct the way, A broad and ample rode, whose dust is Gold And pavement Starrs, as Starrs to thee appeer, Seen in the Galaxie, that Milkie way Which nightly as a circling Zone° thou seest belt Pouderd° with Starrs. And now on Earth the Seventh scattered thickly Eev’ning arose in Eden, for the Sun Was set, and twilight from the East came on, Forerunning Night; when at the holy mount Of Heav’ns high-seated top, th’ Impereal Throne Of Godhead, fixt for ever firm and sure, The Filial Power arriv’d, and sate him down With his great Father, for he° also went the Father Invisible, yet staid (such priviledge Hath Omnipresence) and the work ordain’d, Author and end of all things, and from work Now resting, bless’d and hallowd the Seav’nth day, As resting on that day from all his work, But not in silence holy kept; the Harp Had work and rested not, the solemn Pipe, And Dulcimer, all Organs° of sweet stop, wind instruments All sounds on Fret by String or Golden Wire

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565–7. Cf. Ps. 24:7: “Lift up your heads, O ye gates; and be ye lifted up, ye everlasting doors; and the King of glory shall come in.” See lines 205–9 above.

596–7 Dulcimer. The Hebrew bagpipe (Dan. 3:5). Fret. Bar on the fingerboard of a stringed instrument.

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Temper’d° soft Tunings,° intermixt with Voice harmonized / sounds Choral° or Unison; of incense Clouds in parts Fuming from Golden Censers hid the Mount. Creation and the Six dayes acts they sung, Great are thy works, Jehovah, infinite Thy power; what thought can measure thee or tongue Relate thee; greater now in thy return Then from the Giant Angels; thee that day Thy Thunders magnifi’d; but to create Is greater then created to destroy. Who can impair thee, mighty King, or bound Thy Empire? easily the proud attempt Of Spirits apostat and thir Counsels vaine Thou hast repeld, while impiously they thought Thee to diminish, and from thee withdraw The number of thy worshippers. Who seekes To lessen thee, against his purpose serves To manifest the more thy might: his evil Thou usest, and from thence creat’st more good. Witness this new-made World, another Heav’n From Heaven Gate not farr, founded in view On the cleer Hyaline, the Glassie Sea; Of amplitude almost immense,° with Starr’s immeasurable Numerous, and every Starr perhaps a World Of destind habitation; but thou know’st Thir seasons: among these the seat of men, Earth with her nether Ocean circumfus’d,° surrounded Thir pleasant dwelling place. Thrice happie men, And sons of men, whom God hath thus advanc’t, Created in his Image, there to dwell And worship him, and in reward to rule Over his Works, on Earth, in Sea, or Air, And multiply a Race of Worshippers

600 Golden Censers. Incense burners, cf. Rev. 8:3–4: “another angel came and stood at the altar, having a golden censer; and there was given unto him much incense, that he should offer it with the prayers of all the saints . . . And the smoke of the incense . . . ascended up before God.”

605 Giant Angels. This allusion to the Giants’ revolt against Jove implies that the Greek myth is a classical type or version of the angels’ rebellion.

618–20 Hyaline. From the Greek for glass (Rev. 4:6, “a sea of glass like unto crystal”). The universe is con- structed (“founded”) on this sea, the “Crystallin Ocean” above the firmament (see line 271 above), as opposed to the “nether Ocean” (624), the earth’s seas.

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Holy and just: thrice happie if they know Thir happiness, and persevere upright.

So sung they, and the Empyrean rung, With Halleluiahs: Thus was Sabbath kept. And thy request think now fulfill’d, that ask’d How first this World and face of things° began, outward form And what before thy memorie was don From the beginning, that posteritie Informd by thee might know; if else thou seek’st Aught, not surpassing human measure, say.

The End of the Seventh Book.

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631–2. Contrast Virgil, Georgics 2.458–9, on the happiness of farmers who live in harmony with an abundant nature: “O happy husbandmen! too happy, should they come to know their blessings!”

634 Halleluiahs. Hebrew, Praise the Lord.

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Figure 6 Illustration to Book 8, 1688 ( John Baptista Medina)

BOOK 8 THE ARGUMENT

Adam inquires concerning celestial Motions, is doubtfully answer’d, and exhorted to search rather things more worthy of knowledg: Adam assents, and still desirous to detain Raphael. relates to him what he remember’d since his own Creation, his placing in Paradise, his talk with God concerning solitude and fit society, his first meeting and Nuptials with Eve, his discourse with the Angel thereupon; who after admonitions repeated departs.

The Angel ended, and in Adams Eare So Charming° left his voice, that he a while spellbinding Thought him still speaking, still stood fixt to hear; Then as new wak’t thus gratefully repli’d. What thanks sufficient, or what recompence Equal have I to render thee, Divine Hystorian, who thus largely hast allayd The thirst I had of knowledge, and voutsaf ’t This friendly condescention° to relate courteous disregard of rank Things else by me unsearchable, now heard With wonder, but delight, and, as is due, With glorie attributed to the high Creator; something yet of doubt remaines, Which onely thy solution can resolve. When I behold this goodly Frame, this World° universe Of Heav’n and Earth consisting, and compute, Thir magnitudes, this Earth a spot, a graine, An Atom, with the Firmament compar’d And all her numberd° Starrs, that seem to rowle numerous Spaces incomprehensible (for such Thir distance argues and thir swift return Diurnal)° meerly to officiate° light daily / minister Round this opacous° Earth, this punctual° spot, dark / pointlike

1 doubtfully. Ambiguously.

14. Introducing Raphael’s prototype of astronomical treatises, notably Galileo’s Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems (Italian, 1632; Latin and English trans., 1635). Adam stands in the place of Galileo’s Sagredo, an intelligent inquirer who seeks to be informed about the movement of the planets, while Raphael takes on the role, first, of the Ptolemaic apologist (Simplicio), then of the Copernican (Salviati).

15–38. Relying on his senses, Adam assumes the universe is Ptolemaic, but finds logical difficulties in that system. Cf. Eve’s question at 4:657–8, and Adam’s answer.

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One day and night; in all thir vast survey Useless besides, reasoning I oft admire,° wonder How Nature wise and frugal could commit Such disproportions, with superfluous hand So many nobler Bodies to create, Greater so manifold° to this one use, so much greater than For aught appeers,° and on thir Orbs impose as it seems Such restless revolution day by day Repeated, while the sedentarie° Earth, motionless, slothful That better might with farr less compass° move, roundabout course Serv’d by more noble then her self, attaines Her end without least motion, and receaves, As Tribute such a sumless° journey brought incalculable Of incorporeal° speed, her warmth and light; like that of spirits Speed, to describe whose swiftness Number failes.

So spake our Sire, and by his count’nance seemd Entring on studious thoughts abstruse, which Eve Perceaving where she sat retir’d in sight, With lowliness Majestic from her seat, And Grace that won who saw to wish her stay, Rose, and went forth among her Fruits and Flours, To visit° how they prosper’d, bud and bloom, inspect Her Nurserie;° they at her coming sprung objects of care, garden nursery And toucht by her fair tendance gladlier grew. Yet went she not, as not with such discourse Delighted, or not capable her eare Of what was high: such pleasure she reserv’d, Adam relating, she sole Auditress; Her Husband the Relater she preferr’d Before the Angel, and of him to ask Chose rather; hee, she knew would intermix Grateful° digressions, and solve high dispute gratifying With conjugal Caresses, from his Lip Not Words alone pleas’d her. O when meet now Such pairs, in Love and mutual Honour joyn’d? With Goddess-like demeanour forth she went; Not unattended, for on her as Queen

52–7 preferr’d. The emphasis on Eve’s choice indicates that she is not bound by Paul’s prohibition in 1 Cor. 14:35, “If they will learn any thing, let them ask their husbands at home: for it is a shame for women to speak in the church,” but observes this hierarchical decorum for her own pleasure.

A pomp° of winning Graces waited still,° retinue / continually And from about her shot Darts of desire Into all Eyes to wish her still in sight. And Raphael now to Adam’s doubt propos’d Benevolent and facil° thus repli’d. easy, affable

To ask or search I blame thee not, for Heav’n Is as the Book of God before thee set, Wherein to read his wondrous Works, and learne His Seasons, Hours, or Dayes, or Months, or Yeares: This to attain, whether Heav’n move or Earth, Imports not, if thou reck’n right, the rest From Man or Angel the great Architect Did wisely to conceal, and not divulge His secrets to be scann’d° by them who ought examined Rather admire;° or if they list to try marvel Conjecture, he his Fabric° of the Heav’ns edifice, frame Hath left to thir disputes, perhaps to move His laughter at thir quaint° Opinions wide° ingenious / wide of the mark Hereafter, when they come to model Heav’n And calculate° the Starrs, how they will weild° predict the motions of /direct The mightie frame, how build, unbuild, contrive To save appeerances, how gird the Sphear With Centric and Eccentric scribl’d o’re, Cycle and Epicycle, Orb in Orb: Alreadie by thy reasoning this I guess, Who art to lead thy ofspring, and supposest That bodies bright and greater should not serve The less not bright, nor Heav’n such journies run, Earth sitting still, when she alone receaves

61 Graces. The attendants of Venus. 62–3 Darts of desire. The Petrarchan language identifies Eve’s graces as prompting desire, but the next line

redefines that desire in non-sexual terms. 67 Book of God. The Book of Nature, commonly understood as a second divine revelation. 71–5 the rest. Presumably, God’s purposes and designs throughout the whole universe (“His secrets”) – as

opposed to the specific factual issue, “whether Heav’n move or Earth” (70), which may be blamelessly searched but which “Imports not” to a proper admiration of God’s “wondrous Works” (68).

82 save appeerances. Find ways of explaining discrepancies between their astronomical theories and the observed movements of the heavenly bodies.

83–4 Eccentric. Off-center. In the Ptolemaic system, observed irregularities in the motion of heavenly bod- ies were first explained by hypothesizing orbits with the earth off-center, then by adding “Epicycles,” which were smaller orbits whose centers ride on fixed points on the circumferences of the main orbits, and carry the planets. The Copernican system also had some recourse to epicycles.

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The benefit: consider first, that Great Or Bright inferrs° not Excellence: the Earth implies Though, in comparison of Heav’n, so small, Nor glistering,° may of solid good containe gleaming More plenty then the Sun that barren shines, Whose vertue on it self workes no effect, But in the fruitful Earth; there first receavd His beams, unactive° else, thir vigour find. ineffective Yet not to Earth are those bright Luminaries Officious,° but to thee Earths habitant. attentive, dutiful And for the Heav’ns wide Circuit, let it speak The Makers high magnificence, who built So spacious, and his Line stretcht out so farr; That Man may know he dwells not in his own; An Edifice too large for him to fill, Lodg’d in a small partition, and the rest Ordain’d for uses to his Lord best known. The swiftness of those Circles° attribute, planets, orbits Though numberless,° to his Omnipotence, incalculable That to corporeal substances could adde Speed almost Spiritual;° mee thou thinkst not slow, as that of angels Who since the Morning hour set out from Heav’n Where God resides, and ere mid-day arriv’d In Eden, distance inexpressible By Numbers that have name. But this I urge, Admitting Motion in the Heav’ns, to shew Invalid that which thee to doubt it mov’d; Not that I so affirm, though so it seem To thee who hast thy dwelling here on Earth. God to remove his wayes from human sense, Plac’d Heav’n from Earth so farr, that earthly sight, If it presume, might erre in things too high, And no advantage gaine. What if the Sun Be Center to the World,° and other Starrs universe By his attractive vertue° and their own power, magnetism Incited, dance about him various rounds?° circular dances

90. Raphael here begins his rationale for the Ptolemaic system. 117–18 Not that I so affirm. Raphael refuses to “reveal” astronomical truth to Adam, leaving that matter

open to human scientific speculation. He suggests that Adam’s Ptolemaic assumptions result from his earth- bound perspective, and implies that angels from their perspective see the cosmos in other terms.

122–58. Raphael now argues the case for Copernican astronomy and introduces still more advanced scientific notions that Adam had not imagined – multiple universes and other inhabited planets.

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Thir wandring course now high, now low, then hid, Progressive, retrograde, or standing still, In six thou seest, and what if sev’nth to these The Planet Earth, so stedfast though she seem, Insensibly three different Motions move? Which else to several Spheres thou must ascribe, Mov’d contrarie with thwart obliquities, Or save the Sun his labour, and that swift Nocturnal and Diurnal rhomb suppos’d, Invisible else above all Starrs, the Wheele Of Day and Night; which needs not thy beleefe, If Earth industrious of her self fetch Day Travelling East, and with her part averse From the Suns beam meet Night, her other part Still luminous by his ray. What if that light Sent from her through the wide transpicuous° aire, transparent To the terrestrial Moon° be as a Starr earth’s moon Enlightning her by Day, as she by Night This Earth? reciprocal, if Land be there, Feilds and Inhabitants: Her spots thou seest As Clouds, and Clouds may rain, and Rain produce Fruits in her soft’nd Soile, for some to eate Allotted there; and other Suns perhaps With thir attendant Moons thou wilt descrie Communicating Male and Femal Light, Which two great Sexes animate the World,

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126 wandring. Elliptical. The word planet comes from the Greek word for wanderer. 127 Progressive. Moving west to east. retrograde. Moving east to west (contrary to the order of the

zodiac signs). 128 six. The six planets we see move: Saturn, Jupiter, Mars, Venus, Mercury, and the moon. Raphael suggests

that “the Planet Earth” rather than the sun may be the “sev’nth,” moving imperceptibly (“Insensibly”). 130 three differrent Motions. According to Copernicus the three motions are daily rotation, annual revo-

lution around the sun, and “motion in declination” to align the earth’s axis always with the same point in the celestial sphere.

132 thwart obliquities. Irregular and “contrarie” paths that cross each other, which, if the earth doesn’t rotate, you must “else” ascribe to the planets (131).

133–6 rhomb. Greek, wheel. The invisible tenth or outer sphere (Primum Mobile), “suppos’d” by Ptolemaic astronomers to revolve every twenty-four hours (“Nocturnal and Diurnal”) carrying the planets with it; this concept is necessary if you would “save the Sun his labour,” but if the earth rotates it “needs not thy beleefe.”

148–9 Moons. Planets “attendant” upon a sun; they exchange reflected light reciprocally but also have some “peculiar” light of their own (7.368). Galileo had discovered four of the moons of Jupiter.

150–1 Male and Femal Light. The sun and moon had long been gendered, through association of the sun with Apollo and the moon with Diana; here their light is imagined to be a sexually active force, “perhaps” endowing the several planets with life (“animate”).

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Stor’d in each Orb perhaps with some that live. For such vast room in Nature unpossest By living Soule, desert and desolate, Onely to shine, yet scarce to contribute Each Orb a glimps of Light, conveyd so farr Down to this habitable,° which returnes inhabited place, earth Light back to them, is obvious° to dispute. open But whether thus these things, or whether not, Whether the Sun predominant in Heav’n Rise on the Earth, or Earth rise on the Sun, Hee from the East his flaming rode begin, Or Shee from West her silent course advance With inoffensive° pace that spinning sleeps unobstructed, harmless On her soft Axle, while she paces Eev’n, And beares thee soft with the smooth Air along, Sollicit° not thy thoughts with matters hid, disturb, unsettle Leave them to God above, him serve and feare; Of other Creatures, as him pleases best, Wherever plac’t, let him dispose: joy thou In what he gives to thee, this Paradise And thy faire Eve; Heav’n is for thee too high To know what passes there; be lowlie wise: Think onely what concernes thee and thy being; Dream not of other Worlds, what Creatures there Live, in what state, condition or degree, Contented that thus farr hath been reveal’d Not of Earth onely but of highest Heav’n.

To whom thus Adam cleerd of doubt, repli’d. How fully hast thou satisfi’d me, pure Intelligence° of Heav’n, Angel serene, spirit And freed from intricacies, taught to live The easiest way, nor with perplexing thoughts To interrupt the sweet of Life, from which God hath bid dwell farr off all anxious cares, And not molest us, unless we our selves Seek them with wandring thoughts, and notions vain. But apt the Mind or Fancie is to roave Uncheckt, and of her roaving is no end;

152. Bruno and Descartes were among those who accepted the idea that suns, planets, and moons were inhab- ited; Kepler rejected the idea.

187–9. Cf. Belial’s “thoughts that wander through Eternity” (2.148).

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Till warn’d, or by experience taught, she learne, That not to know at large of things remote From use, obscure and suttle, but to know That which before us lies in daily life, Is the prime Wisdom, what is more, is fume,° vapor Or emptiness, or fond impertinence,° foolish irrelevance And renders us in things that most concerne Unpractis’d, unprepar’d, and still to seek.° always seeking Therefore from this high pitch° let us descend summit A lower flight, and speak of things at hand Useful, whence haply° mention may arise perhaps Of somthing not unseasonable to ask By sufferance,° and thy wonted° favour deign’d. permission / usual Thee I have heard relating what was don Ere my remembrance: now hear mee relate My Storie, which perhaps thou hast not heard; And Day is yet not spent; till then thou seest How suttly to detaine thee I devise, Inviting thee to hear while I relate, Fond,° were it not in hope of thy reply: foolish For while I sit with thee, I seem in Heav’n, And sweeter thy discourse is to my eare Then Fruits of Palm-tree pleasantest to thirst And hunger both, from labour, at the houre Of sweet repast; they satiate, and soon fill, Though pleasant, but thy words with Grace Divine Imbu’d, bring to thir sweetness no satietie.

To whom thus Raphael answer’d heav’nly meek. Nor are thy lips ungraceful, Sire of men, Nor tongue ineloquent; for God on thee Abundantly his gifts hath also pour’d Inward and outward both, his image faire: Speaking or mute all comliness and grace Attends thee, and each word, each motion formes, Nor less think wee in Heav’n of thee on Earth Then of our fellow servant, and inquire Gladly into the wayes of God with Man: For God we see hath honour’d thee, and set On Man his Equal Love: say therefore on; For I that Day was absent, as befell,° as it happened

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225. In Rev. 22:9 an angel says to St. John, “I am thy fellowservant.”

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Book 8 203

Bound on a voyage uncouth° and obscure, strange, unfamiliar Farr on excursion toward the Gates of Hell; Squar’d° in full Legion (such command we had) in square formation To see that none thence issu’d forth a spie, Or enemie, while God was in his work, Least hee incenst at such eruption bold, Destruction with Creation might have mixt. Not that they durst without his leave attempt, But us he sends upon his high behests For state,° as Sovran King, and to enure° ceremony / strengthen Our prompt obedience. Fast we found, fast shut The dismal Gates, and barricado’d° strong; barred But long ere our approaching heard within Noise, other then the sound of Dance or Song, Torment, and loud lament, and furious rage. Glad we return’d up to the coasts of Light Ere Sabbath Eev’ning: so we had in charge. But thy relation now; for I attend, Pleas’d with thy words no less then thou with mine.

So spake the Godlike Power, and thus our Sire. For Man to tell how human Life began Is hard; for who himself beginning knew? Desire with thee still longer to converse Induc’d me. As new wak’t from soundest sleep Soft on the flourie herb° I found me laid grass with flowers In Balmie° Sweat, which with his Beames the Sun fragrant Soon dri’d, and on the reaking° moisture fed. steaming Strait toward Heav’n my wondring Eyes I turnd, And gaz’d a while the ample Skie, till rais’d By quick instinctive motion up I sprung, As thitherward endevoring, and upright Stood on my feet; about me round I saw Hill, Dale, and shadie Woods, and sunnie Plaines, And liquid Lapse° of murmuring Streams; by these, gliding flow Creatures that livd, and movd, and walk’d, or flew, Birds on the branches warbling; all things smil’d, With fragrance and with joy my heart oreflow’d. My self I then perus’d, and Limb by Limb

250–333. Cf. Eve’s recollection of her earliest moments of consciousness (4.449–76). 250–1. Cf. Satan’s inability to remember his creation (5.859–63) and the very different inference he draws

from that fact.

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Survey’d, and sometimes went,° and sometimes ran walked With supple joints, as lively vigour led: But who I was, or where, or from what cause, Knew not; to speak I tri’d, and forthwith spake, My Tongue obey’d and readily could name What e’re I saw. Thou Sun, said I, faire Light, And thou enlight’nd Earth, so fresh and gay,° brightly colored Ye Hills and Dales, ye Rivers, Woods, and Plaines, And ye that live and move, fair Creatures, tell, Tell, if ye saw, how came I thus, how here? Not of my self; by some great Maker then, In goodness and in power præeminent; Tell me, how may I know him, how adore, From whom I have that thus I move and live, And feel that I am happier then I know. While thus I call’d, and stray’d I knew not whither, From where I first drew Aire, and first beheld This happie Light, when answer none return’d, On a green shadie Bank profuse of Flours Pensive I sate me down; there gentle sleep First found me, and with soft oppression° seis’d pressure My droused sense, untroubl’d, though I thought I then was passing to my former state Insensible, and forthwith to dissolve: When suddenly stood at my Head a dream, Whose inward apparition gently mov’d My fancy to believe I yet had being, And livd: One came, methought, of shape Divine, And said, thy Mansion wants° thee, Adam, rise, lacks First Man, of Men innumerable ordain’d First Father, call’d by thee I come thy Guide To the Garden of bliss, thy seat° prepar’d. residence So saying, by the hand he took me rais’d, And over Fields and Waters, as in Aire Smooth sliding without step, last led me up

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271–3. Many exegetes speculated that Adam spontaneously spoke Hebrew; Milton in his Art of Logic did not specify the language but wrote that it was “without doubt divinely given.” Adam’s ability to name the creatures was taken to indicate his intuitive understanding of their natures.

273–82. Adam instinctively works out the central principles of natural theology: that there is a Creator and that he should be adored.

292 at my Head a dream. In the Iliad (2.20) a dream sent by Zeus in the guise of Nestor stands at Agamemnon’s head. Compare Eve’s dream (4.800–9, 5.30–93).

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A woodie Mountain; whose high top was plaine, A Circuit wide, enclos’d, with goodliest Trees Planted, with Walks, and Bowers, that what I saw Of Earth before scarce pleasant seemd. Each Tree Load’n with fairest Fruit, that hung to the Eye Tempting, stirr’d in me sudden appetite To pluck and eate; whereat I wak’d, and found Before mine Eyes all real, as the dream Had lively° shadowd: Here had new begun realistically, vividly My wandring, had not hee who was my Guide Up hither, from among the Trees appeer’d Presence Divine. Rejoycing, but with aw In adoration at his feet I fell Submiss: he rear’d me, and Whom thou soughtst I am, Said mildely, Author of all this thou seest Above, or round about thee or beneath. This Paradise I give thee, count it thine To Till and keep,° and of the Fruit to eate: care for Of every Tree that in the Garden growes Eate freely with glad heart; fear here no dearth: But of the Tree whose operation° brings effect Knowledg of good and ill, which I have set The Pledge of thy Obedience and thy Faith, Amid the Garden by the Tree of Life, Remember what I warne thee, shun to taste, And shun the bitter consequence: for know, The day thou eat’st thereof, my sole command Transgrest, inevitably thou shalt dye; From that day mortal, and this happie State Shalt loose, expell’d from hence into a World Of woe and sorrow. Sternly he pronounc’d The rigid interdiction,° which resounds prohibition Yet dreadful in mine eare, though in my choice Not to incur; but soon his cleer aspect° benign look Return’d and gracious purpose° thus renew’d. discourse Not onely these fair bounds, but all the Earth To thee and to thy Race I give; as Lords Possess it, and all things that therein live, Or live in Sea, or Aire, Beast, Fish, and Fowle. In signe whereof each Bird and Beast behold

319–33. Cf. Gen. 1:29–30 and 2:16–17.

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After thir kindes; I bring them to receave From thee thir Names, and pay thee fealtie With low subjection; understand the same Of Fish within thir watry residence, Not hither summon’d, since they cannot change Thir Element to draw the thinner Aire. As thus he spake, each Bird and Beast behold Approaching two and two, These° cowring° low the beasts / bowing With blandishment, each Bird stoop’d on his wing. I nam’d them, as they pass’d, and understood Thir Nature, with such knowledg God endu’d My sudden apprehension: but in these I found not what me thought I wanted still; And to the Heav’nly vision thus presum’d.° dared to speak

O by what Name, for thou above all these, Above mankinde, or aught then mankinde higher, Surpassest farr my naming, how may I Adore thee, Author of this Universe, And all this good to man, for whose well being So amply, and with hands so liberal Thou hast provided all things: but with mee I see not who partakes. In solitude What happiness, who can enjoy alone, Or all enjoying, what contentment find? Thus I presumptuous; and the vision bright, As with a smile more bright’nd, thus repli’d.

What call’st thou solitude, is not the Earth With various living creatures, and the Aire Replenisht,° and all these at thy command fully stocked To come and play before thee, know’st thou not Thir language and thir wayes, they also know, And reason not contemptibly; with these Find pastime, and beare rule; thy Realm is large. So spake the Universal Lord, and seem’d So ordering. I with leave of speech implor’d, And humble deprecation° thus repli’d. intercession

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351. blandishment. Flattering gestures. stoop’d. Bowed. 352–4. Adam has already named the sun and features of the earth (272–3); here he names, and thereby under-

stands by intuition (“sudden apprehension”), all living creatures. 357–60. Adam cannot name, and thereby indicates that he cannot understand, God, except as God reveals

himself.

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Let not my words offend thee, Heav’nly Power, My Maker, be propitious° while I speak. gracious Hast thou not made me here thy substitute,° deputy And these inferiour farr beneath me set? Among unequals what societie° companionship Can sort,° what harmonie or true delight? suit, be fitting Which must be mutual, in proportion due Giv’n and receiv’d; but in disparitie The one intense, the other still remiss Cannot well suite with either, but soon prove Tedious alike: Of fellowship I speak Such as I seek, fit to participate° share All rational delight, wherein the brute Cannot be human consort; they rejoyce Each with thir kinde, Lion with Lioness; So fitly them in pairs thou hast combin’d; Much less can Bird with Beast, or Fish with Fowle So well converse,° nor with the Ox the Ape; associate Wors then can Man with Beast, and least of all. Whereto th’ Almighty answer’d, not displeas’d. A nice° and suttle happiness I see discriminating Thou to thyself proposest, in the choice Of thy Associates, Adam, and wilt taste No pleasure, though in pleasure, solitarie. What think’st thou then of mee, and this my State, Seem I to thee sufficiently possest Of happiness, or not? who am alone From all Eternitie, for none I know Second to mee or like, equal much less. How have I then with whom to hold converse Save with the Creatures which I made, and those To me inferiour, infinite descents Beneath what other Creatures are to thee?

He ceas’d, I lowly answer’d. To attaine The highth and depth of thy Eternal wayes All human thoughts come short, Supream of things; Thou in thy self art perfet, and in thee

384–8 harmonie. As with poorly matched musical instruments, Adam’s string is too taut (“intense”) and the animals’ string is too slack (“remiss”) to be in harmony (“suite”).

402 pleasure. “Eden” is Hebrew for “pleasure.” 415–17 perfet. God is absolutely perfect, man is perfect only “in degree,” relatively.

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Is no deficience found; not so is Man, But° in degree, the cause of his desire except By conversation with his like to help, Or solace° his defects. No need that thou alleviate, assuage Shouldst propagat, already infinite; And through all numbers absolute, though One; But Man by number is to manifest His single imperfection, and beget Like of his like, his Image multipli’d, In unitie° defective, which requires singleness Collateral° love, and deerest amitie. mutual Thou in thy secresie° although alone, seclusion Best with thy self accompanied, seek’st not Social communication, yet so pleas’d, Canst raise thy Creature to what highth thou wilt Of Union or Communion, deifi’d; I by conversing cannot these erect From prone, nor in thir wayes complacence° find. satisfaction, pleasure Thus I embold’nd spake, and freedom us’d Permissive,° and acceptance found, which gain’d allowed This answer from the gratious voice Divine.

Thus farr to try thee, Adam, I was pleas’d, And finde thee knowing not of Beasts alone, Which thou hast rightly nam’d, but of thy self, Expressing well the spirit within thee free, My Image, not imparted to the Brute, Whose fellowship therefore unmeet° for thee unsuitable Good reason was thou freely shouldst dislike, And be so minded still; I, ere thou spak’st, Knew it not good for Man to be alone, And no such companie as then thou saw’st Intended thee, for trial onely brought,

208 Paradise Lost

421. God, though One, contains all numbers. 423 single imperfection. The imperfection of being alone; humans need to perfect themselves through social

intercourse (“by number”). 431 deifi’d. Made, by grace, able to rise to “Union or Communion” with God. 437 try. God has played the role of a Socratic teacher, offering Adam erroneous formulations and thereby

prodding him to discover for himself essential truths about human nature. 444–50. Cf. Gen. 2:18: “And the Lord God said, It is not good that the man should be alone; I will make him

an help meet for him.” Milton’s gloss on “help meet” in Tetrachordon, “God as it were not satisfy’d with the naming of a help, goes on describing another self, a second self, a very self it self,” and God’s words in the epic, “Thy likeness, thy fit help, thy other self,” reinforce Milton’s ideal of companionate marriage. These words even seem to posit gender equality, by contrast to the hierarchy affirmed elsewhere.

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To see how thou could’st judge of fit and meet: What next I bring shall please thee, be assur’d, Thy likeness, thy fit help, thy other self, Thy wish exactly to thy hearts desire.

Hee ended, or I heard no more, for now My earthly° by his Heav’nly overpowerd, earthly nature Which it had long stood under,° streind to the highth been exposed to In that celestial Colloquie sublime, As with an object that excels° the sense, exceeds Dazl’d and spent, sunk down, and sought repair Of sleep, which instantly fell on me, call’d By Nature as in aide, and clos’d mine eyes. Mine eyes he clos’d, but op’n left the Cell Of Fancie my internal sight, by which Abstract° as in a transe methought I saw, withdrawn Though sleeping, where I lay, and saw the shape Still glorious before whom awake I stood; Who stooping op’nd my left side, and took From thence a Rib, with cordial spirits warme, And Life-blood streaming fresh; wide was the wound, But suddenly with flesh fill’d up and heal’d: The Rib he formd and fashond with his hands; Under his forming hands a Creature grew, Manlike, but different Sex, so lovly faire, That what seemd fair in all the World, seemd now Mean, or in her summ’d up, in her containd And in her looks, which from that time infus’d Sweetness into my heart, unfelt before, And into all things from her Aire° inspir’d° mien, manner / breathed The spirit of love and amorous delight. Shee disappeerd, and left me dark, I wak’d To find her, or for ever to deplore Her loss, and other pleasures all abjure: When out of hope, behold her, not farr off, Such as I saw her in my dream, adornd With what all Earth or Heaven could bestow To make her amiable:° On she came, lovable, lovely

460–1 Cell / Of Fancie. Cf. Adam’s explanation of the role of Fancy to Eve (5.100–13). 465 left side. Some commentators explained that the left side is nearest the heart; others pointed to the left

as the “sinister” side, foreshadowing Eve’s role in the Fall. 466 cordial spirits. The so-called “vital spirits” that the heart distributes throughout the body. 478–520. Cf. Eve’s version of these events (4.467–91).

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Led by her Heav’nly Maker, though unseen, And guided by his voice, nor uninformd Of nuptial Sanctitie and marriage Rites: Grace was in all her steps, Heav’n in her Eye, In every gesture dignitie and love. I overjoyd could not forbear° aloud. keep from (speaking)

This turn hath made amends; thou hast fulfill’d Thy words, Creator bounteous and benigne, Giver of all things faire, but fairest this Of all thy gifts, nor enviest.° I now see (do you) give reluctantly Bone of my Bone, Flesh of my Flesh, my Self Before me; Woman is her Name, of Man Extracted; for this cause he shall forgoe Father and Mother, and to his Wife adhere; And they shall be one Flesh, one Heart, one Soule.

She heard me thus, and though divinely brought, Yet Innocence and Virgin Modestie, Her vertue and the conscience° of her worth, consciousness That would be woo’d, and not unsought be won, Not obvious,° not obtrusive,° but retir’d, standing in the way / forward The more desirable, or to say all, Nature her self, though pure of sinful thought, Wrought in her so, that seeing me, she turn’d; I follow’d her, she what was Honour knew, And with obsequious° Majestie approv’d compliant My pleaded reason. To the Nuptial Bowre I led her blushing like the Morn: all Heav’n, And happie Constellations on that houre Shed thir selectest influence; the Earth Gave sign of gratulation,° and each Hill; rejoicing Joyous the Birds; fresh Gales° and gentle Aires° winds / breezes, melodies Whisper’d it to the Woods, and from thir wings Flung Rose, flung Odours from the spicie Shrub, Disporting,° till the amorous Bird of Night° frolicking / nightingale Sung Spousal, and bid haste the Eevning Starr

210 Paradise Lost

495–9. Cf. Gen. 2:23–4: “And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman, because she was taken out of Man. Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.”

511. Cf. Raphael’s “rosie red” glow at 8.618–19. 519–20 Eevning Starr. The rising of Hesperus was the signal among the ancients for lighting the “bridal

Lamp” and conducting the bride to the bridegroom.

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On his Hill top, to light the bridal Lamp. Thus I have told thee all my State,° and brought condition My Storie to the sum of earthly bliss Which I enjoy, and must confess to find In all things else delight indeed, but such As us’d or not, works in the mind no change, Nor vehement desire, these delicacies I mean of Taste, Sight, Smell, Herbs, Fruits and Flours, Walks, and the melodie of Birds; but here Farr otherwise, transported° I behold, enraptured Transported touch; here passion first I felt, Commotion strange, in all enjoyments else Superiour and unmov’d, here onely weake Against the charm of Beauties powerful glance. Or° Nature faild in mee, and left some part either Not proof° enough such Object to sustain,° strong / withstand Or from my side subducting,° took perhaps subtracting More then enough; at least on her bestow’d Too much of Ornament, in outward shew Elaborate, of inward less exact.° perfect, finished For well I understand in the prime end Of Nature her th’ inferiour, in the mind And inward Faculties, which most excell, In outward also her resembling less His Image who made both, and less expressing The character of that Dominion giv’n O’re other Creatures; yet when I approach Her loveliness, so absolute° she seems perfect, independent And in her self compleat, so well to know Her own, that what she wills to do or say, Seems wisest, vertuousest, discreetest,° best; most discerning All higher knowledge in her presence falls Degraded, Wisdom in discourse with her Looses discount’nanc’t, and like folly shewes; Authority and Reason on her waite, As one intended first, not after made Occasionally; and to consummate all,

543–4 resembling less. Most commentators on Genesis agreed that Eve was a less perfect image of God than was Adam.

553 Looses. Becomes unstable. discount’nanc’t. Disconcerted. 556 Occasionally. Contingently, to meet Adam’s need.

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555

Greatness of mind and nobleness thir seat Build in her loveliest, and create an awe About her, as a guard Angelic plac’t. To whom the Angel with contracted brow.

Accuse not Nature, she hath don her part; Do thou but thine, and be not diffident° mistrustful Of Wisdom, she deserts thee not, if thou Dismiss not her, when most thou needst her nigh, By attributing overmuch to things Less excellent, as thou thy self perceav’st. For what admir’st thou, what transports thee so, An outside? fair no doubt, and worthy well Thy cherishing, thy honouring, and thy love, Not thy subjection: weigh with her thy self; Then value: Oft times nothing profits more Then self esteem, grounded on just and right Well manag’d; of that skill the more thou know’st, The more she will acknowledge thee her Head, And to realities yield all her shows: Made so adorn for thy delight the more, So awful,° that with honour thou maist love awe-inspiring Thy mate, who sees when thou art seen least wise. But if the sense of touch whereby mankind Is propagated seem such dear delight Beyond all other, think the same voutsaf ’t To Cattel and each Beast; which would not be To them made common and divulg’d,° if aught imparted Therein enjoy’d were worthy to subdue The Soule of Man, or passion in him move. What higher in her societie thou findst Attractive, human, rational, love still; In loving thou dost well, in passion not, Wherein true Love consists not; love refines The thoughts, and heart enlarges,° hath his seat makes more capacious

212 Paradise Lost

557 Greatness of mind. Intellectual excellence and also magnanimity. 574 Head. See 1 Cor. 11:3, “The head of every man is Christ; and the head of the woman is the man; and

the head of Christ is God.” 585 passion. Most commentators on Genesis agreed that Adam and Eve did not feel passion before the Fall.

Raphael seems to indicate that they should not (588–9) but he may not understand the human condition fully, or he may mean simply that passions, which clearly Adam and Eve do feel in the state of innocence, must not overthrow reason. See Areopagitica: “Wherefore did he creat passions within us, pleasures round about us, but that these rightly temper’d are the very ingredients of vertu?”

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Book 8 213

In Reason, and is judicious, is the scale By which to heav’nly Love thou maist ascend, Not sunk in carnal pleasure, for which cause Among the Beasts no Mate for thee was found.

To whom thus half abash’t Adam repli’d. Neither her out-side formd so fair, nor aught In procreation common to all kindes (Though higher of the genial° Bed by far, marital, generative And with mysterious reverence I deem) So much delights me as those graceful acts, Those thousand decencies° that daily flow fitting acts From all her words and actions mixt with Love And sweet compliance, which declare unfeign’d Union of Mind, or in us both one Soule; Harmonie to behold in wedded pair More grateful then harmonious sound to the eare. Yet these subject not; I to thee disclose What inward thence I feel, not therefore foild,° overcome Who meet with various objects, from the sense Variously representing; yet still free Approve the best, and follow what I approve. To love thou blam’st me not, for love thou saist Leads up to Heav’n, is both the way and guide; Bear with me then, if lawful what I ask; Love not the heav’nly Spirits, and how thir Love Express they, by looks onely, or do they mix Irradiance, virtual or immediate° touch? actual

To whom the Angel with a smile that glow’d Celestial rosie red, Loves proper hue, Answer’d. Let it suffice thee that thou know’st Us happie, and without Love no happiness.

591–2 scale. Raphael summarizes the Neoplatonic ladder of love (see Plato, Symposium 211C–D), by which humans may move from sensual love to higher stages of human love, and ultimately to love of the Good, or God.

598–600. Adam takes respectful issue with Raphael’s apparent denigration of human sex in his account of the Neoplatonic ladder. mysterious. At Eph. 5:31–2 Paul speaks of the marital union (“one flesh”) as a “great mystery,” as it reflects the union of Christ and the Church.

609–10. i.e., “various objects, variously represented to me by my senses.” 619. Red is the color traditionally associated with Seraphim, who burn with ardor. Raphael’s smile also glows

with friendship for Adam, and appreciation of his perceptive inference about angelic sex. Given the monism Raphael explains in Book 5 (469–500) and demonstrates by eating human food, Raphael has to be made to qualify his apparent Neoplatonic dualism in seeming so sharply to separate physical and spiritual love.

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Whatever pure thou in the body enjoy’st (And pure thou wert created) we enjoy In eminence,° and obstacle find none superlatively Of membrane, joynt, or limb, exclusive barrs: Easier then Air with Air, if Spirits embrace, Total they mix, Union of Pure with Pure Desiring; nor restrain’d conveyance° need restricting sexual organs As Flesh to mix with Flesh, or Soul with Soul. But I can now no more; the parting Sun Beyond the Earths green Cape and verdant Isles Hesperean sets, my Signal to depart. Be strong, live happie, and love, but first of all Him whom to love is to obey, and keep His great command; take heed lest Passion sway Thy Judgment to do aught, which else free Will Would not admit; thine and of all thy Sons The weal or woe in thee is plac’t; beware. I in thy persevering shall rejoyce, And all the Blest: stand fast; to stand or fall Free in thine own Arbitrement° it lies. decision, choice Perfet within, no outward aid require;° need And all temptation to transgress repel.

So saying, he arose; whom Adam thus Follow’d with benediction. Since° to part, since we have Go heavenly Guest, Ethereal° Messenger, celestial Sent from whose sovran goodness I adore. Gentle to me and affable hath been Thy condescension,° and shall be honour’d ever courtesy With grateful Memorie: thou to mankind Be good and friendly still, and oft return.

So parted they, the Angel up to Heav’n From the thick shade, and Adam to his Bowre.

The End of the Eighth Book.

214 Paradise Lost

631 Earths green Cape. Cape Verde near Dakar and the islands off that coast are the westernmost (“Hesperian”) points of Africa.

634–5. Cf. 1 John 5:3: “this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments.”

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Figure 7 Illustration to Book 9, 1688 ( John Baptista Medina)

BOOK 9 THE ARGUMENT

Satan having compast the Earth, with meditated guile returns as a mist by Night into Paradise, enters into the Serpent sleeping. Adam and Eve in the Morning go forth to thir labours, which Eve proposes to divide in several places, each labouring apart: Adam consents not, alledging the danger, lest that Enemy, of whom they were fore- warn’d, should attempt her found alone: Eve loath to be thought not circumspect or firm enough, urges her going apart, the rather desirous to make tryal of her strength; Adam at last yields: The Serpent finds her alone; his subtle approach, first gazing, then speaking, with much flattery extolling Eve above all other Creatures. Eve wondring to hear the Serpent speak, asks how he attain’d to human speech and such understanding not till now; the Serpent answers, that by tasting of a certain Tree in the Garden he attain’d both to Speech and Reason, till then void of both: Eve requires him to bring her to that Tree, and finds it to be the Tree of Knowledge forbidden: The Serpent now grown bolder, with many wiles and arguments induces her at length to eat; she pleas’d with the taste deliberates a while whether to impart thereof to Adam or not, at last brings him of the Fruit, relates what perswaded her to eat thereof: Adam at first amaz’d, but perceiving her lost, resolves through vehe- mence of love to perish with her; and extenuating the trespass, eats also of the Fruit: The Effects thereof in them both; they seek to cover thir nakedness; then fall to vari- ance and accusation of one another.

No more of talk where God or Angel Guest With Man, as with his Friend, familiar us’d To sit indulgent,° and with him partake gracious Rural repast, permitting him the while Venial° discourse unblam’d: I now must change excusable Those Notes to Tragic; foul distrust, and breach Disloyal on the part of Man, revolt, And disobedience: On the part of Heav’n Now alienated, distance and distaste,° aversion Anger and just rebuke, and judgement giv’n, That brought into this World a world of woe, Sinne and her shadow Death, and Miserie

16 amaz’d. Stunned.

1–47. In this fourth Proem, Milton does not invoke the Muse but testifies (21–2) to her customary nightly visits, “unimplor’d.”

1–6. The Miltonic Bard declares a shift in mode from the pastoral of “rural repast” and eclogue (which here includes georgic labor, physical and intellectual) to “Tragic.”

Book 9 217

Deaths Harbinger: Sad task, yet argument° subject Not less but more Heroic then the wrauth Of stern Achilles on his Foe pursu’d Thrice Fugitive about Troy Wall; or rage Of Turnus for Lavinia disespous’d, Or Neptun’s ire or Juno’s, that so long Perplex’d° the Greek and Cytherea’s Son; tormented If answerable° style I can obtaine suited to the subject Of my Celestial Patroness, who deignes Her nightly visitation unimplor’d, And dictates to me slumbring, or inspires Easie my unpremeditated Verse: Since first this Subject for Heroic Song Pleas’d me long choosing, and beginning late; Not sedulous° by Nature to indite° eager / write about Warrs, hitherto the onely Argument Heroic deem’d, chief maistrie° to dissect art, skill With long and tedious havoc° fabl’d Knights fighting, destruction In Battels feign’d; the better fortitude Of Patience and Heroic Martyrdom Unsung; or to describe Races and Games, Or tilting Furniture, emblazon’d Shields, Impreses quaint, Caparisons and Steeds; Bases and tinsel Trappings, gorgious Knights At Joust and Torneament; then marshal’d Feast

13–19. The Bard proposes that the tragedy of the Fall surpasses the tragic element in several classical epics: “Achilles” pursuing the fleeing (“Fugitive”) Hector (“his Foe”) three times around “Troy Wall” before killing him; “Turnus” fighting and then killed by Aeneas, who had received as wife Turnus’ betrothed (“Lavinia disespous’d”); Odysseus (“the Greek”) tormented by “Neptun’s ire” for blinding his son Polyphemus; and Aeneas (“Cytherea’s [Venus’s] Son” plagued by “Juno’s” anger because Venus had been judged by Paris to be more beautiful than Juno or Minerva.

21 Celestial Patroness. Urania, named in 7.1. 22–4 dictates to me slumbering. Milton’s verses seem to pour forth directly (“unpremeditated”) from the

Muse’s inspiration; they are the product of a lifetime of study, thought, and experience. Milton’s nephew, Edward Phillips, reports that Milton often awoke in the morning with lines of poetry fully formed and ready to be dictated to an amanuensis.

25–6. See Introduction, pp. xviii–xix, for an account of Milton’s “long” consideration of possible epic sub- jects and plans.

30–1 Battels feign’d. Milton disparages the customary subjects of epic and romance, with allusion to the Arthurian matter he once considered as subject for a national epic, but then rejected as merely fables.

34–7. Milton now rejects several familar elements of contemporary romantic epics (Ariosto, Tasso, Spenser). tilting Furniture. Equipment for jousting. Impreses quaint. Ingenious heraldic devices on shields. Caparisons. Ornamental coverings or armor for horses. Bases. Cloth coverings for horses. tinsel Trappings. Coverings over the harness or saddle of horses, ornamented with gold or silver threads.

37 marshal’d Feast. Well ordered, with guests arranged according to rank.

Serv’d up in Hall with Sewers,° and Seneshals;° waiters / stewards The skill of Artifice or Office mean, Not that which justly gives Heroic name To Person or to Poem. Mee of these Nor skilld nor studious, higher Argument Remaines, sufficient of it self to raise That name, unless an age too late, or cold Climat, or Years damp my intended wing Deprest, and much they may, if all be mine, Not Hers who brings it nightly to my Ear.

The Sun was sunk, and after him the Starr Of Hesperus, whose Office is to bring Twilight upon the Earth, short Arbiter° mediator Twixt Day and Night, and now from end to end Nights Hemisphere had veild the Horizon round: When Satan who late° fled before the threats recently Of Gabriel out of Eden, now improv’d° augmented In meditated fraud and malice, bent On mans destruction, maugre° what might hap despite Of heavier° on himself, fearless return’d. heavier punishment By Night he fled, and at Midnight return’d From compassing the Earth, cautious of day, Since Uriel Regent of the Sun descri’d° observed His entrance, and forewarnd the Cherubim That kept thir watch; thence full of anguish driv’n, The space of seven continu’d Nights he rode With darkness, thrice the Equinoctial Line He circl’d, four times cross’d the Carr of Night From Pole to Pole, traversing each Colure; On the eighth return’d, and on the Coast averse° the side opposite From entrance or Cherubic Watch, by stealth Found unsuspected way. There was a place,

44–6 That name. The designation, heroic poem. age too late. The Restoration era might well be unreceptive to this poem. cold / Climat. Milton long believed that England’s climate was less amenable to epic poetry than the warmth of the Mediterranean region. Years. His own advanced age (he was in his fifties when writing the poem). damp. Benumb. intended wing / Deprest. Purposed poetic flights held down, kept from soaring.

49–50 Hesperus. The evening star, actually the planet Venus. 62–6. By circling the globe from east to west at the equator (“Equinoctial Line”) for three nights and then

longitudinally for four nights over the north and south poles (“From Pole to Pole”) Satan can remain in darkness (“rode / With darkness”), keeping himself always in the earth’s shadow, ahead of the advancing edge of the sun’s light. Carr of Night. The earth’s shadow, imagined as a chariot driven by the goddess, Night. Colure. The colures were two great circles intersecting at right angles at the poles.

218 Paradise Lost

Book 9 219

Now not, though Sin, not Time, first wraught the change, Where Tigris at the foot of Paradise Into a Gulf shot under ground, till part Rose up a Fountain by the Tree of Life; In with the River sunk, and with it rose Satan involv’d in rising Mist, then sought Where to lie hid; Sea he had searcht and Land From Eden over Pontus, and the Poole Mæotis, up beyond the River Ob; Downward as farr Antartic; and in length West from Orontes to the Ocean barr’d At Darien, thence to the Land where flowes Ganges and Indus: thus the Orb he roam’d With narrow search; and with inspection deep Consider’d every Creature, which of all Most opportune might serve his Wiles, and found The Serpent suttlest Beast of all the Field. Him after long debate, irresolute Of° thoughts revolv’d, his final sentence° chose among / decision Fit Vessel, fittest Imp° of fraud, in whom offspring, offshoot To enter, and his dark suggestions hide From sharpest sight: for in the wilie Snake, Whatever sleights° none would suspicious mark, artifices As from his wit and native suttletie Proceeding, which in other Beasts observ’d Doubt° might beget of Diabolic pow’r suspicion Active within beyond the sense of brute. Thus he resolv’d, but first from inward griefe His bursting passion into plaints thus pour’d:

O Earth, how like to Heav’n, if not preferr’d More justly, Seat worthier of Gods, as built With second thoughts, reforming what was old! For what God after better worse would build?

70 Now not. No longer existing. 71 Tigris. Cf. Gen. 2:10, one of the four rivers that flowed out of the garden (“Paradise”). 77–82. A reprise of Satan’s journey in geographical terms. In his north–south circles he passed the Black Sea

(“Pontus”), thence to the Sea of Azov in Russia (“Mœotis”), then beond the River Obi (“Ob”) in Siberia, which flows into the Arctic Ocean, then south to Antarctica (“Antartic”). His westward circles bring him from the Syrian river “Orontes” flowing into the Meditteranean Sea, then across the Atlantic which is “barr’d” at the Isthmus of Panama (“Darien”), then across the Pacific and Asia to India, where the “Ganges” and “Indus” rivers flow.

86. The serpent is so described in Gen. 3:1.

100

Terrestrial Heav’n, danc’t round by other Heav’ns That shine, yet bear thir bright officious° Lamps, dutiful Light above Light, for thee alone, as seems, In thee concentring all thir precious beams Of sacred influence: As God in Heav’n Is Center, yet extends to all, so thou Centring° receav’st from all those Orbs; in thee, remaining in the center Not in themselves, all thir known vertue appeers Productive in Herb, Plant, and nobler birth Of Creatures animate with gradual° life in graded steps Of Growth, Sense, Reason, all summ’d up in Man. With what delight could I have walkt thee round, If I could joy in aught, sweet interchange Of Hill, and Vallie, Rivers, Woods and Plaines, Now Land, now Sea, and Shores with Forrest crownd, Rocks, Dens, and Caves; but I in none of these Find place or refuge; and the more I see Pleasures about me, so much more I feel Torment within me, as from the hateful siege Of contraries; all good to me becomes Bane,° and in Heav’n much worse would be my state. poison But neither here seek I, no nor in Heav’n To dwell, unless by maistring Heav’ns Supreame; Nor hope to be my self less miserable By what I seek, but others to make such As I, though thereby worse to me redound:° recoil upon me For onely in destroying I find ease To my relentless thoughts; and him destroyd, Or won to what may work his utter loss, For whom all this was made, all this will soon Follow, as to him linkt in weal° or woe, happiness In wo then: that destruction wide may range: To mee shall be the glorie sole among The infernal Powers, in one day to have marr’d What he Almightie styl’d, six Nights and Days Continu’d making, and who knows how long Before had bin contriving, though perhaps Not longer then since I in one Night freed

220 Paradise Lost

105–7. Cf. the different views of the cosmos held by Eve (4.657–8), Adam (8.15–38), and Raphael (8.98–9, 114–78).

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From servitude inglorious welnigh half Th’ Angelic Name, and thinner left the throng Of his adorers: hee to be aveng’d, And to repaire his numbers thus impair’d, Whether such vertue° spent of old now faild power More Angels to Create, if they at least Are his Created, or to spite us more, Determin’d to advance into our room A Creature form’d of Earth, and him endow, Exalted from so base original,° origin With Heav’nly spoils, our spoils: What he decreed He effected; Man he made, and for him built Magnificent this World, and Earth his seat, Him Lord pronounc’d, and, O indignitie! Subjected to his service Angel wings, And flaming Ministers to watch and tend Thir earthy Charge: Of these the vigilance I dread, and to elude, thus wrapt in mist Of midnight vapor glide obscure, and prie In every Bush and Brake, where hap° may finde luck The Serpent sleeping, in whose mazie foulds To hide me, and the dark intent I bring. O foul descent! that I who erst contended With Gods to sit the highest, am now constraind Into a Beast, and mixt with bestial slime, This essence to incarnate and imbrute, That to the hight of Deitie aspir’d; But what will not Ambition and Revenge Descend to? who aspires must down as low As high he soard, obnoxious° first or last exposed To basest things. Revenge, at first though sweet, Bitter ere long back on it self recoiles; Let it; I reck° not, so it light well aim’d, care Since higher I fall short, on him who next Provokes my envie, this new Favorite Of Heav’n, this Man of Clay, Son of despite,

141–2. Cf. the conflicting estimates of the rebel numbers at 1.632–3, 2.692, and 6.156. Cf. Rev. 12:3–4, the casting down of “the third part of the stars of heaven.”

146–7 his Created. Cf. 5.853–63 and 4.43. 151 spoils. Goods seized from a defeated enemy. 156 flaming Ministers. Cf. Heb. 1:7: “Who maketh his angels spirits and his ministers a flame of fire.” 166 imbrute. Satan embodying his “essence” in a snake parodies the Son becoming “incarnate” as man.

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Whom us the more to spite his Maker rais’d From dust: spite then with spite is best repaid.

So saying, through each Thicket Danck or Drie, Like a black mist low creeping, he held on His midnight search, where soonest he might finde The Serpent: him fast sleeping soon he found In Labyrinth of many a round self-rowld,° coiled His head the midst, well stor’d with suttle wiles: Not yet in horrid Shade° or dismal Den, bristling shrubs Nor nocent° yet, but on the grassie Herbe harmful, guilty Fearless unfeard he slept: in at his Mouth The Devil enterd, and his brutal° sense, animal In heart or head, possessing soon inspir’d With act intelligential; but his sleep Disturbd not, waiting close° th’ approach of Morn. concealed Now when as sacred Light began to dawne In Eden on the humid Flours, that breathd Thir morning incense, when all things that breath, From th’ Earths great Altar send up silent praise To the Creator, and his Nostrils fill With grateful° Smell, forth came the human pair pleasing, thankful And joind thir vocal Worship to the Quire Of Creatures wanting° voice, that done, partake lacking The season, prime° for sweetest Sents and Aires:° best / breezes, songs Then commune how that day they best may ply Thir growing work: for much thir work outgrew The hands dispatch of two Gardning so wide. And Eve first to her Husband thus began.

Adam, well may we labour still° to dress continually This Garden, still to tend Plant, Herb and Flour, Our pleasant task enjoyn’d,° but till more hands commanded Aid us, the work under our labour grows, Luxurious° by restraint; what we by day luxuriant Lop overgrown, or prune, or prop, or bind, One night or two with wanton° growth derides profuse, unruly Tending to wilde. Thou therefore now advise Or hear what to my minde first thoughts present, Let us divide our labours, thou where choice Leads thee, or where most needs, whether to wind The Woodbine° round this Arbour, or direct honeysuckle

222 Paradise Lost

183 Labyrinth. Home of the monstrous Minotaur. 190 act intelligential. Power of intelligent action.

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The clasping Ivie where to climb, while I In yonder Spring° of Roses intermixt growth, thicket With Myrtle, find what to redress° till Noon: set upright For while so near each other thus all day Our taske we choose, what wonder if so near Looks intervene and smiles, or object new Casual discourse draw on, which intermits° interrupts Our dayes work brought to little, though begun Early, and th’ hour of Supper comes unearn’d.

To whom mild answer Adam thus return’d. Sole° Eve, Associate sole,° to me beyond unrivalled / only Compare above all living Creatures deare, Well hast thou motion’d,° well thy thoughts imployd proposed How we might best fulfill the work which here God hath assign’d us, nor of me shalt pass Unprais’d: for nothing lovelier can be found In Woman, then to studie houshold good, And good workes in her Husband to promote. Yet not so strictly hath our Lord impos’d Labour, as to debarr us when we need Refreshment, whether food, or talk between,° at intervals of work Food of the mind, or this sweet intercourse Of looks and smiles, for smiles from Reason flow, To brute deni’d, and are of Love the food, Love not the lowest end of human life. For not to irksom toile, but to delight He made us, and delight to Reason joyn’d. These paths & Bowers doubt not but our joynt hands Will keep from Wilderness with ease, as wide As we need walk, till younger hands ere long Assist us: But if much converse perhaps Thee satiate, to short absence I could yield. For solitude somtimes is best societie, And short retirement urges sweet returne. But other doubt possesses me, least harm Befall thee sever’d from me; for thou knowst What hath bin warn’d us, what malicious Foe Envying our happiness, and of his own

231–4. Adam’s praises invite comparison with the qualities of a virtuous wife set forth in Prov. 31, especially verses 27–8: “She looketh well to the ways of her household, and eateth not the bread of idleness. Her children arise up and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praiseth her.”

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Despairing, seeks to work us woe and shame By sly assault; and somwhere nigh at hand Watches, no doubt, with greedy hope to find His wish and best advantage, us asunder, Hopeless to circumvent us joynd, where each To other speedie aide might lend at need; Whether his first design be to withdraw Our fealtie° from God, or to disturb loyalty, feudal duty Conjugal Love, then which perhaps no bliss Enjoy’d by us excites his envie more; Or° this, or worse, leave not the faithful side whether That gave thee being, still shades thee and protects. The Wife, where danger or dishonour lurks, Safest and seemliest by her Husband staies, Who guards her, or with her the worst endures.

To whom the Virgin Majestie of Eve, As one who loves, and some unkindness meets, With sweet austeer composure thus reply’d.

Ofspring of Heav’n and Earth, and all Earths Lord, That such an Enemie we have, who seeks Our ruin, both by thee informd I learne, And from the parting Angel over-heard As in a shadie nook I stood behind, Just then returnd at shut of Evening Flours. But that thou shouldst my firmness therfore doubt To God or thee, because we have a foe May tempt it, I expected not to hear. His violence thou fear’st not, being such, As wee, not capable of death or paine, Can either not receave, or can repell. His fraud is then thy fear, which plain inferrs° clearly suggests Thy equal fear that my firm Faith and Love Can by his fraud be shak’n or seduc’t; Thoughts, which how found they harbour in thy brest Adam, misthought° of her to thee so dear? misjudged

To whom with healing words Adam replyd.

224 Paradise Lost

270 Virgin. Unspotted, peerless. Virginity in Puritan usage can include chaste marriage. See Calvin, Institutes 4.12:28: “the second sort of virginity is the chaste love of matrimony.” Cf. PL 4.737–73.

275–8 over-heard. Eve had been “attentive” to all of Raphael’s story about Satan (7:51), but evidently hears his reiterated warnings from a “shadie nook” when she returns from tending her flowers just as he departs (8:41–51, 633–643).

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Daughter of God and Man, immortal Eve, For such thou art, from sin and blame entire:° unblemished Not diffident° of thee do I dissuade distrustful Thy absence from my sight, but to avoid Th’ attempt it self, intended by our Foe. For hee who tempts, though in vain, at least asperses° bespatters The tempted with dishonour foul, suppos’d Not incorruptible of Faith, not prooff Against temptation: thou thy self with scorne And anger wouldst resent the offer’d wrong, Though ineffectual found: misdeem° not then, do not misinterpret If such affront I labour to avert From thee alone, which on us both at once The Enemie, though bold, will hardly dare, Or daring, first on mee th’ assault shall light. Nor thou his malice and false guile contemn;° disdain Suttle he needs must be, who could seduce Angels nor think superfluous others aid. I from the influence of thy looks receave Access° in every Vertue, in thy sight increase More wise, more watchful, stronger, if need were Of outward strength; while shame, thou looking on, Shame to be overcome or over-reacht° outwitted Would utmost vigor raise, and rais’d unite. Why shouldst not thou like sense within thee feel When I am present, and thy trial choose With me, best witness of thy Vertue tri’d.

So spake domestick Adam in his care And Matrimonial Love; but Eve, who thought Less° attributed to her Faith sincere, too little Thus her reply with accent sweet renewd.

If this be our condition, thus to dwell In narrow circuit strait’nd° by a Foe, confined Suttle or violent, we not endu’d Single with like° defence, wherever met, equal How are we happie, still° in fear of harm? always

309–12. In Renaissance Neoplatonism, love (and especially the sight of the beloved) inspired the lover to virtue.

322–41. Compare and contrast Areopagitica: “I cannot praise a fugitive and cloister’d vertue, unexercis’d & unbreath’d, that never sallies out and sees her adversary, but slinks out of the race, where that immortall garland is to be run for, not without dust and heat. Assuredly we bring not innocence into the world, we bring impurity much rather: that which purifies us is triall, and triall is by what is contrary.”

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But harm precedes not sin: onely our Foe Tempting affronts° us with his foul esteem insults Of our integritie: his foul esteeme Sticks no dishonor on our Front,° but turns forehead, face Foul on himself; then wherefore shund or feard By us? who rather double honour gaine From his surmise prov’d false, find peace within, Favour from Heav’n, our witness from th’ event.° outcome And what is Faith, Love, Vertue unassaid Alone, without exterior help sustaind? Let us not then suspect our happie State Left so imperfet by the Maker wise, As not secure to single° or combin’d. one alone Fraile is our happiness, if this be so, And Eden were no Eden thus expos’d.

To whom thus Adam fervently° repli’d. passionately O Woman, best are all things as the will Of God ordain’d them, his creating hand Nothing imperfet or deficient left Of all that he Created, much less Man, Or aught that might his happie State secure, Secure from outward force; within himself The danger lies, yet lies within his power: Against his will he can receave no harme. But God left free the Will, for what obeyes Reason, is free, and Reason he made right, But bid her well beware, and still erect,° always alert Least by some faire appeering good surpris’d She dictate false, and misinforme the Will To do what God expresly hath forbid, Not then mistrust, but tender love enjoynes,° dictates That I should mind° thee oft, and mind thou me. remind, pay heed to Firm we subsist,° yet possible to swerve, stand, exist Since Reason not impossibly may meet Some specious° object by the Foe subornd,° deceptively attractive / corrupted And fall into deception unaware, Not keeping strictest watch, as she was warnd. Seek not temptation then, which to avoide

226 Paradise Lost

349–56 Reason he made right. Right Reason, a classical concept accommodated to Christian (Scholastic) philosophy, is the God-given power to apprehend truth and the moral law. See Christian Doctrine 1.4: “Reason has been implanted in all, by which they may of themselves resist bad desires.” Also, cf. PL 5.520–9.

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Were better, and most likelie if from mee Thou sever not: Trial will come unsought. Wouldst thou approve° thy constancie, approve° give proof of First thy obedience; th’ other who can know, Not seeing thee attempted, who attest? But if thou think, trial unsought may finde Us both securer° then thus warnd thou seemst, more careless Go; for thy stay, not free, absents thee more; Go in thy native innocence, relie On what thou hast of vertue, summon all, For God towards thee hath done his part, do thine.

So spake the Patriarch of Mankinde, but Eve Persisted, yet submiss,° though last, repli’d. still submissive

With thy permission then, and thus forewarnd Chiefly by what thy own last reasoning words Touchd onely, that our trial, when least sought, May finde us both perhaps farr less prepar’d, The willinger I goe, nor much expect A Foe so proud will first the weaker seek; So bent,° the more shall shame him his repulse. if he does so Thus saying, from her Husbands hand her hand Soft she withdrew, and like a Wood-Nymph light Oread or Dryad, or of Delia’s Traine, Betook her to the Groves, but Delia’s self In gate° surpass’d and Goddess-like deport,° movement / bearing Though not as shee with Bow and Quiver armd, But with such Gardning Tools as Art yet rude, Guiltless of fire had formd, or Angels brought. To Pales, or Pomona thus adornd, Likest she seemd, Pomona when she fled Vertumnus, or to Ceres in her Prime, Yet Virgin of Proserpina from Jove. Her long with ardent look his Eye pursu’d

386–90 light. Light-footed, quick, but with overtones of fickle or frivolous. Oread. A mountain-nymph. Dryad. A wood-nymph. Delia. Diana, born on the isle of Delos, hunted with a “Traine” of nymphs, and with “Bow and Quiver.”

392 Guiltless of fire. Without experience of fire, unneeded in Paradise. So Eve’s gardening tools are neces- sarily “rude.” A possible allusion also to the guilt of Prometheus, who stole fire from heaven.

393–6 Pales. Goddess of flocks and pastures. Pomona. Goddess of fruit-trees; she was chased by the wood-god “Vertumnus” in many guises, before surrendering to him. Ceres. Goddess of harvests, in the springtime (“Prime”) of life before she was impregnated by “Jove” with “Proserpina,” whose abduction by Pluto to Hades brought winter to the world.

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Delighted, but desiring more her stay. Oft he to her his charge of quick returne Repeated, shee to him as oft engag’d To be returnd by Noon amid the Bowre, And all things in best order to invite Noontide repast, or Afternoons repose. O much deceav’d, much failing,° hapless° Eve, erring / unlucky Of thy presum’d return! event perverse! Thou never from that houre in Paradise Foundst either sweet repast, or sound repose; Such ambush hid among sweet Flours and Shades Waited with hellish rancour imminent° looming To intercept thy way, or send thee back Despoild of Innocence, of Faith, of Bliss. For now, and since first break of dawne the Fiend, Meer Serpent in appearance, forth was come, And on his Quest, where likeliest he might finde The onely two of Mankinde, but in them The whole included Race, his purposd prey. In Bowre and Field he sought, where any tuft Of Grove or Garden-Plot more pleasant lay, Thir tendance° or Plantation for delight, object of care By Fountain or by shadie Rivulet He sought them both, but wish’d his hap° might find luck Eve separate, he wish’d, but not with hope Of what so seldom chanc’d, when to his wish, Beyond his hope, Eve separate he spies, Veild in a Cloud of Fragrance, where she stood, Half spi’d, so thick the Roses bushing round About her glowd, oft stooping to support Each Flour of slender stalk, whose head though gay Carnation, Purple, Azure, or spect with Gold, Hung drooping unsustaind, them she upstaies Gently with Mirtle band, mindless° the while, heedless Her self, though fairest unsupported Flour, From her best prop so farr, and storm so nigh. Neerer he drew, and many a walk travers’d Of stateliest Covert,° Cedar, Pine, or Palme, shelter

228 Paradise Lost

404–11. The author’s direct address to a character is a Homeric formula. 431–3. Echoing 4:268–72, the conceit of Eve as Proserpine, the flower-gatherer who was herself gathered by

“gloomie Dis.”

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Then voluble° and bold, now hid, now seen gliding, undulating Among thick-wov’n Arborets° and Flours small trees Imborderd on each Bank, the hand° of Eve: handiwork Spot more delicious then those Gardens feign’d Or° of reviv’d Adonis, or renownd either Alcinous, host of old Laertes Son, Or that, not Mystic, where the Sapient King Held dalliance with his fair Egyptian Spouse. Much hee the Place admir’d, the Person more. As one who long in populous City pent, Where Houses thick and Sewers annoy° the Aire, make noisome, pollute Forth issuing on a Summers Morn to breathe Among the pleasant Villages and Farmes Adjoynd, from each thing met conceaves delight, The smell of Grain, or tedded° Grass, or Kine,° spread out to dry / cattle Or Dairie, each rural sight, each rural sound; If chance with Nymphlike step fair Virgin pass, What pleasing seemd, for° her now pleases more, because of She most, and in her look summs all Delight. Such Pleasure took the Serpent to behold This Flourie Plat,° the sweet recess° of Eve plot / retreat Thus earlie, thus alone; her Heav’nly forme Angelic, but more soft, and Feminine, Her graceful Innocence, her every Aire° manner Of gesture or lest action overawd His Malice, and with rapine sweet bereav’d His fierceness of the fierce intent it brought: That space the Evil one abstracted° stood withdrawn From his own evil, and for the time remaind Stupidly good,° of enmitie disarm’d, good because in a stupor Of guile, of hate, of envie, of revenge; But the hot Hell that alwayes in him burnes, Though in mid Heav’n, soon ended his delight, And tortures him now more, the more he sees

440–1 reviv’d Adonis. The Garden of Adonis was a beautiful pleasure garden named for the lovely youth loved by Venus, killed by a boar, and, in some versions of the myth, revived and enjoyed by Venus in that garden (cf. Faerie Queene 3.6.29–46). Alcinous. The Phæacian king who entertained “Laertes Son” Odysseus in magnificent gardens (Odyssey 7.112–35).

442–3 Sapient King. Solomon, noted for his wisdom (sapience) entertained his “fair Egyptian Spouse,” the queen of Sheba, in a lovely garden (S. of S. 6:2) that was real, not mythic (“Mystic”) as the others were.

461 rapine sweet. From Latin rapere, to seize, the root of both “rape” and “rapture,” underscoring the para- dox of the ravisher (temporarily) ravished. bereav’d. Took from.

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Of pleasure not for him ordain’d: then soon Fierce hate he recollects, and all his thoughts Of mischief, gratulating,° thus excites. welcoming

Thoughts, whither have ye led me, with what sweet Compulsion thus transported° to forget entranced What hither brought us, hate, not love, nor hope Of Paradise for Hell, hope here to taste Of pleasure, but all pleasure to destroy, Save what is in destroying, other joy To me is lost. Then let me not let pass Occasion which now smiles, behold alone The Woman, opportune° to all attempts, open, exposed Her Husband, for I view far round, not nigh, Whose higher intellectual more I shun, And strength, of courage hautie,° and of limb exalted Heroic built, though of terrestrial mould,° earthly substance Foe not informidable, exempt from wound, I not; so much hath Hell debas’d, and paine Infeebl’d me, to° what I was in Heav’n. in comparison with Shee fair, divinely fair, fit Love for Gods, Not terrible,° though terrour° be in Love terrifying / awe And beautie, not° approacht by stronger hate, unless Hate stronger, under shew of Love well feign’d, The way which to her ruin now I tend.

So spake the Enemie of Mankind, enclos’d In Serpent, Inmate bad, and toward Eve Address’d his way, not with indented° wave, undulating, zigzagging Prone on the ground, as since, but on his reare, Circular base of rising foulds, that tour’d° towered Fould above fould a surging Maze, his Head Crested aloft, and Carbuncle° his Eyes; deep red With burnisht Neck of verdant Gold, erect Amidst his circling Spires,° that on the grass coils Floted redundant:° pleasing was his shape, in swelling waves And lovely, never since of Serpent kind Lovelier, not those that in Illyria chang’d Hermione and Cadmus, or the God

230 Paradise Lost

505–7 Cadmus. The legendary founder of Thebes, and his wife Harmonia (“Hermione”) were changed to serpents when they went to “Illyria” (Albania) in old age. the God. Aesculapius, god of healing, sometimes came forth as a serpent from his temple in “Epidaurus” – erect, crested, and with gilded folds like Satan’s serpent (Ovid, Metamorphoses 15.622–744).

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In Epidaurus; nor to which transformd Ammonian Jove, or Capitoline was seen, Hee with Olympias, this with her who bore Scipio the highth of Rome. With tract° oblique course At first, as one who sought access, but feard To interrupt, side-long he works his way. As when a Ship by skilful Stearsman wrought° worked (sailed) Nigh Rivers mouth or Foreland, where the Wind Veres oft, as oft so steers, and shifts her Saile; So varied hee, and of his tortuous Traine° twisting tail Curld many a wanton° wreath in sight of Eve, luxuriant, sportive To lure her Eye; shee busied heard the sound Of rusling Leaves, but minded not, as us’d To such disport before her through the Field, From every Beast, more duteous at her call, Then at Circean call the Herd disguis’d. Hee boulder now, uncall’d before her stood; But as in gaze admiring: Oft he bowd His turret Crest, and sleek enamel’d° Neck, multicolored, jewel-like Fawning, and lick’d the ground whereon she trod. His gentle dumb expression turnd at length The Eye of Eve to mark his play; he glad Of her attention gaind, with Serpent Tongue Organic, or impulse of vocal Air, His fraudulent temptation thus began.

Wonder not, sovran Mistress, if perhaps Thou canst, who art sole Wonder, much less arm Thy looks, the Heav’n of mildness, with disdain, Displeas’d that I approach thee thus, and gaze Insatiate, I thus single, nor have feard Thy awful° brow, more awful thus retir’d. inspiring awe Fairest resemblance of thy Maker faire,

507–10 Ammonian Jove. Jupiter Ammon made love to “Olympias” in the form of a serpent, and sired Alexander the Great. Capitoline. Jupiter Capitolinus in serpent form sired “Scipio” Africanus, the “highth of Rome” (greatest Roman), who defeated Hannibal.

521–2 Circean call. The witch Circe transformed men into a “Herd disguis’d” of fawning animals (Odyssey 10:212–19; Metamorphoses 14.45f ).

529–30 Organic. Satan either used the actual tongue (organ) of the serpent or else produced vibrations (“impulse”) in the air to produce speech.

532–48. Satan’s entire speech is couched in the extravagant phrases and conceits of the Petrarchan love tradi- tion; cf. Eve’s dream at 5.38–93.

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Thee all things living gaze on, all things thine By gift, and thy Celestial Beautie adore With ravishment beheld, there best beheld Where universally admir’d; but here In this enclosure wild, these Beasts among, Beholders rude, and shallow° to discerne superficial Half what in thee is fair, one man except, Who sees thee? (and what is one?) who shouldst be seen A Goddess among Gods, ador’d and serv’d By Angels numberless, thy daily Train.° retinue

So gloz’d° the Tempter, and his Proem° tun’d; flattered / preface Into the Heart of Eve his words made way, Though at the voice much marveling; at length Not unamaz’d she thus in answer spake. What may this mean? Language of Man pronounc’t By Tongue of Brute, and human sense exprest? The first at lest of these I thought deni’d To Beasts, whom God on thir Creation-Day Created mute to all articulat sound; The latter I demurre,° for in thir looks hesitate to affirm Much reason, and in thir actions oft appeers. Thee, Serpent, suttlest beast of all the field I knew, but not with human voice endu’d;° endowed Redouble then this miracle, and say, How cam’st thou speakable° of mute, and how capable of speech To me so friendly grown above the rest Of brutal kind,° that daily are in sight? the animals Say, for such wonder claims attention due.

To whom the guileful Tempter thus reply’d. Empress of this fair World, resplendent Eve, Easie to mee it is to tell thee all What thou commandst and right thou shouldst be obeyd: I was at first as other Beasts that graze The trodden Herb, of abject thoughts and low, As was my food, nor aught but food discern’d Or Sex, and apprehended nothing high: Till on a day roaving the field, I chanc’d A goodly Tree farr distant to behold Loaden with fruit of fairest colours mixt, Ruddie and Gold: I nearer drew to gaze; When from the boughes a savorie° odour blow’n, appetizing Grateful° to appetite, more pleas’d my sense pleasing

232 Paradise Lost

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Then smell of sweetest Fenel, or the Teats Of Ewe or Goat dropping with Milk at Eevn, Unsuckt of Lamb or Kid, that tend thir play. To satisfie the sharp desire I had Of tasting those fair Apples, I resolv’d Not to deferr; hunger and thirst at once, Powerful perswaders, quick’nd at the scent Of that alluring fruit, urg’d me so keene. About the mossie Trunk I wound me soon, For high from ground the branches would require Thy utmost reach or Adams: Round the Tree All other Beasts that saw, with like desire Longing and envying stood, but could not reach. Amid the Tree now got, where plenty hung Tempting so nigh, to pluck and eat my fill I spar’d° not, for such pleasure till that hour refrained At Feed or Fountain never had I found. Sated at length, ere long I might perceave Strange alteration in me, to degree Of Reason in my inward Powers, and Speech Wanted° not long, though to this shape retain’d. lacked Thenceforth to Speculations high or deep I turnd my thoughts, and with capacious mind Considerd all things visible in Heav’n, Or Earth, or Middle,° all things fair and good; regions between But all that fair and good in thy Divine Semblance, and in thy Beauties heav’nly Ray United I beheld; no Fair° to thine beauty Equivalent or second, which compel’d Mee thus, though importune° perhaps, to come unfit, untimely And gaze, and worship thee of right declar’d Sovran of Creatures, universal Dame.° mistress of the universe

So talk’d the spirited sly Snake; and Eve

581–2 sweetest Fenel. According to Pliny serpents ate fennel to aid in shedding their skins and to sharpen their eyesight; folklore had it that they drank the milk of sheep and goats.

585 fair Apples. Genesis does not identify the forbidden fruit as apples, but that identification became con- ventional, probably because in Latin malum means both apple and evil (malus).

599–604 to degree. To bring on by degrees “Of Reason.” There is no precedent in Genesis or the interpre- tative tradition for Satan’s argument by analogy based on the snake’s supposed experience of attaining to reason and speech by eating the forbidden fruit.

606–12. Satan continues his Petrarchan language of courtship. 613 spirited. Both inspired by and possessed by an evil spirit, Satan.

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Yet more amaz’d unwarie thus reply’d. Serpent, thy overpraising leaves in doubt

The vertue° of that Fruit, in thee first prov’d:° power / tested But say, where grows the Tree, from hence how far? For many are the Trees of God that grow In Paradise, and various, yet° unknown still To us, in such aboundance lies our choice, As leaves a greater store of Fruit untoucht, Still hanging incorruptible, till men Grow up to thir provision,° and more hands what is provided Help to disburden Nature of her Bearth.° birth, what she bears

To whom the wilie Adder, blithe and glad. Empress, the way is readie,° and not long, nearby Beyond a row of Myrtles, on a Flat, Fast by a Fountain, one small Thicket past Of blowing Myrrh and Balme; if thou accept My conduct, I can bring thee thither soon.

Lead then, said Eve. Hee leading swiftly rowld In tangles, and made intricate seem strait, To mischief swift. Hope elevates, and joy Bright’ns his Crest, as when a wandring Fire Compact of unctuous vapor, which the Night Condenses, and the cold invirons round,° envelops Kindl’d through agitation to a Flame, Which oft, they say, some evil Spirit attends Hovering and blazing with delusive Light, Misleads th’ amaz’d Night-wanderer from his way To Boggs and Mires, and oft through Pond or Poole, There swallow’d up and lost, from succour farr. So glister’d° the dire Snake, and into fraud° glittered / deception Led Eve our credulous Mother, to the Tree Of prohibition, root of all our woe; Which when she saw, thus to her guide she spake.

Serpent, we might have spar’d our coming hither, Fruitless to mee, though Fruit be here to excess, The credit of whose vertue° rest with thee, power Wondrous indeed, if cause of such effects.

234 Paradise Lost

629 blowing. Blossoming trees that exude the aromatic gums, “Myrrh” and “Balme” (balsam). 634–42 wandring Fire. Will-o’-the-wisp, phosphorescent marsh gas, composed (“compact”) of an oily

(“unctuous”) exhalation kindled through friction (“agitation”) to a “Flame.” Often mistaken for “evil Spirits,” such fires frightened and misled the bewildered (“amaz’d”) “Night-wanderer” into “Boggs and Mires.”

615

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But of this Tree we may not taste nor touch; God so commanded, and left that Command Sole Daughter of his voice; the rest, we live Law to our selves, our Reason is our Law.

To whom the Tempter guilefully repli’d. Indeed? hath God then said that of the Fruit Of all these Garden Trees ye shall not eate, Yet Lords declar’d of all in Earth or Aire?

To whom thus Eve yet° sinless. Of the Fruit still Of each Tree in the Garden we may eate, But of the Fruit of this fair Tree amidst The Garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eate Thereof, nor shall ye touch it, least ye die.

She scarse had said, though brief, when now more bold The Tempter, but with shew of Zeale and Love To Man, and indignation at his wrong, New part° puts on, and as to passion mov’d, role Fluctuats° disturbd, yet comely and in act moves like a wave Rais’d, as of som great matter to begin. As when of old som Orator renound In Athens or free Rome, where Eloquence Flourishd, since mute, to som great cause addrest, Stood in himself collected, while each part, Motion,° each act won audience ere the tongue,° gesture / before speaking Somtimes in highth° began, as no delay the high style Of Preface brooking through his Zeal of Right. So standing, moving, or to highth upgrown The Tempter all impassiond thus began.

653–4 Daughter of his voice. A Hebraism, Bath Kol, daughter of a voice. This is God’s “Sole” direct com- mandment; otherwise their unfallen “Reason” leads them to understand and follow the moral “Law” of nature.

659–63. Cf. Gen. 3:1–3: “Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made. And he said unto the woman, Yea, hath God said, Ye shall not eat of every tree of the garden? And the woman said unto the serpent, We may eat of the fruit of the trees of the garden: But of the fruit of the tree which is in the midst of the garden, God hath said, Ye shall not eat of it, neither shall ye touch it, lest ye die.” Eve’s formulation indicates her “sufficient” understanding of the prohibition.

668–9 act / Rais’d. Drawn up to full dignity. 670–2 som Orator renound. Like the Athenian Demosthenes or the Roman Cicero, defending liberty “som

great cause.” free Rome. Rome when it was a republic. since mute. Such oratory no longer exists, presumably because such love of liberty (in monarchical Europe, and now including England) no longer exists.

675–8 brooking. Allowing; Satan omits the usual rhetorical practice of beginning with a “Preface” and rising by stages to “highth” of style, but rather begins his speech at once in an “impassion’d” high style (“to highth upgrown”).

655

660

665

670

675

O Sacred, Wise, and Wisdom-giving Plant, Mother of Science,° Now I feel thy Power knowledge Within me cleere, not onely to discerne Things in thir Causes, but to trace the wayes Of highest Agents, deemd however wise. Queen of this Universe, doe not believe Those rigid threats of Death; ye shall not Die: How should ye? by the Fruit? it gives you Life To° Knowledge. By the Threatner? look on mee, leading to Mee who have touch’d and tasted, yet both live, And life more perfet have attaind then Fate Meant mee, by ventring higher then my Lot. Shall that be shut to Man, which to the Beast Is open? or will God incense° his ire kindle For such a petty Trespass, and not praise Rather your dauntless vertue,° whom the pain° courage / punishment Of Death denounc’t,° whatever thing Death be, threatened Deterrd not from atchieving what might leade To happier life, knowledge of Good and Evil; Of good, how just? of evil, if what is evil Be real, why not known, since easier shunnd? God therefore cannot hurt ye, and be just; Not just, not God; not feard then, nor obeyd: Your feare it self of Death removes the feare. Why then was this forbid? Why but to awe, Why but to keep ye low and ignorant, His worshippers; he knows that in the day Ye Eate thereof, your Eyes that seem so cleere, Yet are but dim, shall perfetly be then Op’nd and cleerd, and ye shall be as Gods, Knowing both Good and Evil as they know. That ye should be as Gods, since I as Man, Internal Man, is but proportion meet,

236 Paradise Lost

685 ye shall not Die. Cf. Gen. 3:4, “And the serpent said unto the woman, Ye shall not surely die.” 689 Fate. As often before, Satan ascribes ultimate agency to Fate rather than God. 695 whatever thing Death be. Satan has of course met Death (2.781–814; cf. 4.425–7). 698–9 if what is evil / Be real. Theologians normally defined evil as a privation of or turning away from

good; on that assumption Satan argues that evil has no real existence. 708 Gods. Satan often equivocates with the term suggesting the angels’ equality with God; throughout this

passage he explicitly describes them as a pantheon of gods (cf. 718–19). 711 proportion meet. Satan invites Adam and Eve to aspire to divinity based on analogy with the supposed

experience of the snake.

680

685

690

695

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Book 9 237

I of brute human, yee of human Gods. So ye shall die perhaps, by putting off Human, to put on Gods, death to be wisht, Though threat’nd, which no worse then this can bring. And what are Gods that Man may not become As they, participating° God-like food? sharing, partaking of The Gods are first, and that advantage use On our belief, that all from them proceeds; I question it, for this fair Earth I see, Warm’d by the Sun, producing every kind, Them nothing: If they all° things, who enclos’d produce all Knowledge of Good and Evil in this Tree, That whoso eats thereof, forthwith attains Wisdom without their leave? and wherein lies Th’ offence, that Man should thus attain to know? What can your knowledge hurt him, or this Tree Impart against his will if all be his? Or is it envie, and can envie dwell In Heav’nly brests? these, these and many more Causes import° your need of this fair Fruit. prove Goddess humane,° reach then, and freely taste. human, gracious

He ended, and his words replete with guile Into her heart too easie entrance won: Fixt on the Fruit she gaz’d, which to behold Might tempt alone, and in her ears the sound Yet rung of his perswasive words, impregn’d° impregnated, filled With Reason, to her seeming, and with Truth; Mean while the hour of Noon drew on, and wak’d An eager appetite, rais’d by the smell So savorie° of that Fruit, which with desire, appetizing Inclinable° now grown to touch or taste, disposed Sollicited her longing eye; yet first Pausing a while, thus to her self she mus’d.

713–15. Satan perverts the Pauline concept of death to sin (Col. 3:3, 9–10): “For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God . . . ye have put off the old man with his deeds; And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him.”

716–17. Compare and contrast Raphael’s prediction of human evolution (5.491–500). 729–30. An echo of Virgil’s comment on Juno’s anger (Aeneid 1.11), “Can so much anger dwell in heavenly

hearts.” 735–40 eager appetite. Cf. Gen. 3:6: “the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was pleas-

ant to the eyes, and a tree to be desired to make one wise.” 744 Pausing a while. The pause makes Eve’s action a matter of willed choice, not merely impulsive.

715

720

725

730

735

740

Great are thy Vertues,° doubtless, best of Fruits, powers Though kept from Man, and worthy to be admir’d, Whose taste, too long forborn, at first assay° trial, test Gave elocution° to the mute, and taught utterance, eloquence The Tongue not made for Speech to speak thy praise: Thy praise hee also who forbids thy use, Conceales not from us, naming thee the Tree Of Knowledge, knowledge both of good and evil; Forbids us then to taste, but his forbidding Commends thee more, while it inferrs° the good implies By thee communicated, and our want:° lack For good unknown, sure is not had, or had And yet unknown, is as not had at all. In plain° then, what forbids he but to know, in plain words Forbids us good, forbids us to be wise? Such prohibitions binde not. But if Death Bind us with after-bands,° what profits then later bonds Our inward freedom? In the day we eate Of this fair Fruit, our doom is, we shall die. How dies the Serpent? hee hath eat’n and lives, And knows, and speaks, and reasons, and discerns, Irrational till then. For us alone Was death invented? or to us deni’d This intellectual food, for beasts reserv’d? For Beasts it seems: yet that one Beast which first Hath tasted, envies° not, but brings with joy begrudges The good befall’n him, Author unsuspect,° beyond suspicion Friendly to man, farr from deceit or guile. What fear I then, rather what know to feare Under this ignorance of good and Evil, Of God or Death, of Law or Penaltie? Here grows the Cure of all, this Fruit Divine, Fair to the Eye, inviting to the Taste, Of vertue° to make wise: what hinders then power To reach, and feed at once both Bodie and Mind?

So saying, her rash hand in evil hour Forth reaching to the Fruit, she pluck’d, she eat:

238 Paradise Lost

745–81. See Christian Doctrine, ch. 11, on the two parts of sin, evil desire and evil action. 781 eat. Ate, an accepted past tense, pronounced “et.”

745

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755

760

765

770

775

780

Book 9 239

Earth felt the wound, and Nature from her seat Sighing through all her Works gave signs of woe, That all was lost. Back to the Thicket slunk The guiltie Serpent, and well might, for Eve Intent now wholly on her taste, naught else Regarded, such delight till then, as seemd, In Fruit she never tasted, whether true Or fansied so, through expectation high Of knowledg, nor was God-head from her thought. Greedily she ingorg’d without restraint, And knew not eating Death: Satiate at length, And hight’nd as with Wine, jocond° and boon,° merry / jolly Thus to her self she pleasingly began.

O Sovran, vertuous,° precious of all Trees powerful In Paradise, of operation blest To Sapience,° hitherto obscur’d, infam’d,° wisdom / slandered And thy fair Fruit let hang, as to no end Created; but henceforth my early care, Not without Song, each Morning, and due praise Shall tend thee, and the fertil burden ease Of thy full branches offer’d free to all; Till dieted by thee I grow mature In knowledge, as the Gods who all things know; Though others envie what they cannot give; For had the gift bin theirs, it had not here Thus grown. Experience, next to thee I owe, Best guide; not following thee, I had remaind In ignorance, thou op’nst Wisdoms way, And giv’st access, though secret° she retire. hidden And I perhaps am secret; Heav’n is high, High and remote to see from thence distinct Each thing on Earth; and other care perhaps May have diverted from continual watch Our great Forbidder, safe with all his Spies About him. But to Adam in what sort° guise Shall I appeer? shall I to him make known As yet my change, and give him to partake

782–4. Earth felt the wound. Cf. Rom. 8:22: “we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together.” See also 9.1000–4 and 10.651–714.

795–807. Cf. Adam and Eve’s morning hymn (5:144–208). 804 Gods. Like Satan, Eve now refers to a pantheon of gods.

785

790

795

800

805

810

815

Full happiness with mee, or rather not, But keep the odds° of Knowledge in my power advantage Without Copartner? so to add what wants° lacks In Femal Sex, the more to draw his Love, And render me more equal, and perhaps, A thing not undesireable, somtime Superior: for inferior who is free? This may be well: but what if God have seen, And Death ensue? then I shall be no more, And Adam wedded to another Eve, Shall live with her enjoying, I extinct; A death to think. Confirm’d then I resolve, Adam shall share with me in bliss or woe: So dear I love him, that with him all deaths I could endure, without him live no life.

So saying, from the Tree her step she turnd, But first low Reverence don, as to the power That dwelt within, whose presence had infus’d Into the plant sciential° sap, deriv’d knowledge-inducing From Nectar, drink of Gods. Adam the while Waiting desirous her return, had wove Of choicest Flours a Garland to adorne Her Tresses, and her rural labours crown, As Reapers oft are wont thir Harvest Queen. Great joy he promis’d to his thoughts, and new Solace in her return, so long delay’d; Yet oft his heart, divine of° somthing ill, anticipating Misgave him; hee the faultring measure° felt; heartbeat And forth to meet her went, the way she took That Morn when first they parted; by the Tree Of Knowledge he must pass, there he her met, Scarse from the Tree returning; in her hand A bough of fairest fruit that downie smil’d, New gatherd, and ambrosial° smell diffus’d. fragrant To him she hasted, in her face excuse Came Prologue, and Apologie to prompt, Which with bland° words at will she thus addrest. smooth, coaxing

Hast thou not wonderd, Adam, at my stay?

240 Paradise Lost

835–7 low Reverence. Eve’s idolatry of the “power” within the tree recalls the idolatrous reverence the rebel angels offered to Satan (2.477–9).

853–4 excuse. Eve’s expression as she approached Adam first registered “excuse,” like the “Prologue” in a play, and “Apologie” ( justification, self-defense) served as prompter to her speech.

820

825

830

835

840

845

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Book 9 241

Thee I have misst, and thought it long, depriv’d Thy presence, agonie of love till now Not felt, nor shall be twice, for never more Mean I to trie, what rash untri’d I sought, The pain of absence from thy sight. But strange Hath bin the cause, and wonderful to heare: This Tree is not as we are told, a Tree Of danger tasted, nor to evil unknown Op’ning the way, but of Divine effect To open Eyes, and make them Gods who taste; And hath bin tasted such: the Serpent wise, Or not restraind as wee, or not obeying, Hath eat’n of the fruit, and is become, Not dead, as we are threatn’d, but thenceforth Endu’d with human voice and human sense, Reasoning to admiration,° and with mee produce wonder Perswasively hath so prevaild, that I Have also tasted, and have also found Th’ effects to correspond, opener mine Eyes Dimm erst,° dilated Spirits, ampler Heart, before And growing up to Godhead; which for thee Chiefly I sought, without thee can despise. For bliss, as thou hast part, to me is bliss, Tedious, unshar’d with thee, and odious soon. Thou therefore also taste, that equal Lot° fortune, fate May joyne us, equal Joy, as equal Love; Least thou not tasting, different degree° rank Disjoyne us, and I then too late renounce Deitie for thee, when Fate will not permit.

Thus Eve with Countnance blithe° her storie told; sprightly, merry But in her Cheek distemper flushing glowd. On th’ other side, Adam, soon as he heard The fatal Trespass don by Eve, amaz’d, Astonied° stood and Blank,° while horror chill turned to stone / dazed Ran through his veins, and all his joynts relax’d; From his slack hand the Garland wreath’d for Eve Down drop’d, and all the faded Roses shed: Speechless he stood and pale, till thus at length

867 tasted. Proved by tasting, also, experienced, tested. 887 distemper. Disturbance of the balance of humors in the body, here causing agitation and wild excite-

ment, marked by a hectic “flushing.”

860

865

870

875

880

885

890

First to himself he inward silence broke. O fairest of Creation, last and best

Of all Gods works, Creature in whom excell’d Whatever can to sight or thought be formd, Holy, divine, good, amiable,° or sweet! lovable, lovely How art thou lost, how on a sudden lost, Defac’t, deflourd, and now to Death devote?° doomed Rather how hast thou yeelded to transgress The strict forbiddance, how to violate The sacred Fruit forbidd’n! som cursed fraud Of Enemie hath beguil’d thee, yet unknown, And mee with thee hath ruind, for with thee Certain my resolution is to Die; How can I live without thee, how forgoe Thy sweet Converse° and Love so dearly joyn’d, conversation To live again in these wilde Woods forlorn? Should God create another Eve, and I Another Rib afford, yet loss of thee Would never from my heart; no no, I feel The Link of Nature draw me: Flesh of Flesh, Bone of my Bone thou art, and from thy State Mine never shall be parted, bliss or woe.

So having said, as one from sad dismay Recomforted, and after thoughts disturbd Submitting to what seemd remediless, Thus in calm mood his Words to Eve he turnd.

Bold deed thou hast presum’d, adventrous Eve And peril great provok’t, who thus hath dar’d Had it been onely coveting to Eye That sacred Fruit, sacred° to abstinence, set apart, consecrated Much more to taste it under banne to touch. But past who can recall, or don undoe? Not God Omnipotent, nor Fate, yet° so even Perhaps thou shalt not Die, perhaps the Fact° crime, deed Is not so hainous now, foretasted Fruit, Profan’d first by the Serpent, by him first Made common and unhallowd ere our taste;

242 Paradise Lost

895–916. Compare Eve in soliloquy (816–33). 914–15. Adam echoes Gen. 2:23–4: “This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: . . . Therefore

shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh.” Cf. 8.495 above.

895

900

905

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915

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Book 9 243

Nor yet on him found deadly, he yet lives, Lives, as thou saidst, and gaines to live as Man Higher degree of Life, inducement strong To us, as likely tasting to attaine Proportional ascent, which cannot be But to be Gods, or Angels Demi-gods. Nor can I think that God, Creator wise, Though threatning, will in earnest so destroy Us his prime Creatures, dignifi’d so high, Set over all his Works, which in our Fall, For us created, needs with us must faile, Dependent made; so God shall uncreate, Be frustrate, do, undo, and labour loose, Not well conceav’d of God, who though his Power Creation could repeate, yet would be loath Us to abolish, least the Adversary° Satan Triumph and say; Fickle their State whom God Most Favors, who can please him long; Mee first He ruind, now Mankind; whom will he next? Matter of scorne, not to be given the Foe, However I with thee have fixt my Lot, Certain° to undergoe like doom, if Death resolved Consort° with thee, Death is to mee as Life; accompany So forcible within my heart I feel The Bond of Nature draw me to my owne, My own in thee, for what thou art is mine; Our State cannot be severd, we are one, One Flesh; to loose thee were to loose my self.

So Adam, and thus Eve to him repli’d. O glorious trial of exceeding° Love, exceedingly great, excessive Illustrious evidence, example high! Ingaging me to emulate, but short Of thy perfection, how shall I attaine, Adam, from whose deare side I boast me sprung, And gladly of our Union heare thee speak, One Heart, one Soul in both; whereof good prooff This day affords, declaring thee resolvd, Rather then Death or aught° then Death more dread anything other Shall separate us, linkt in Love so deare, To undergoe with mee one Guilt, one Crime,

946–50. Cf. the Son’s plea at 3.156–64.

935

940

945

950

955

960

965

970

If any be, of tasting this fair Fruit, Whose vertue,° for of good still good proceeds, power Direct, or by occasion hath presented This happie trial of thy Love, which else So eminently never had bin known. Were it° I thought Death menac’t would ensue° if / result from This my attempt, I would sustain alone The worst, and not perswade thee, rather die Deserted, then oblige° thee with a fact° bind / deed Pernicious to thy Peace, chiefly assur’d Remarkably so late of thy so true, So faithful Love unequald; but I feel Farr otherwise th’ event,° not Death, but Life result Augmented, op’nd Eyes, new Hopes, new Joyes, Taste so Divine, that what of sweet before Hath toucht my sense, flat seems to° this, and harsh. compared to On my experience, Adam, freely taste, And fear of Death deliver to the Windes.

So saying, she embrac’d him, and for joy Tenderly wept, much won that he his Love Had so enobl’d, as of choice to incurr Divine displeasure for her sake, or Death. In recompence (for such compliance bad° unworthy submission Such recompence best merits) from the bough She gave him of that fair enticing Fruit With liberal hand: he scrupl’d not to eat Against his better knowledge, not deceav’d, But fondly° overcome with Femal charm. foolishly, affectionately Earth trembl’d from her entrails, as again In pangs, and Nature gave a second groan, Skie lowr’d° and muttering Thunder, som sad drops threatened Wept at compleating of the mortal Sin Original; while Adam took no thought, Eating his fill, nor Eve to iterate° repeat Her former trespass fear’d, the more to soothe

244 Paradise Lost

974–5 Direct, or by occasion. The direct or indirect “good” of tasting the fruit has been the “happie trial” of Adam’s love.

977–81. Cf. Eve’s earlier comment (826–33). 997–9. Cf. 1 Tim. 2:14: “And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived was in the transgres-

sion.” 1003–4 Sin / Original. The theological doctrine that all Adam’s descendants are stained by Adam’s sin and

thereby subject to physical death and (unless saved by grace) to damnation. Cf. Christian Doctrine 1.11.

975

980

985

990

995

1000

1005

Book 9 245

Him with her lov’d societie, that now As with new Wine intoxicated both They swim in mirth, and fansie that they feel Divinitie within them breeding wings Wherewith to scorne the Earth: but that false Fruit Farr other operation° first displaid, effect Carnal desire enflaming, hee on Eve Began to cast lascivious Eyes, she him As wantonly repaid; in Lust they burne: Till Adam thus ’gan Eve to dalliance° move. erotic play

Eve, now I see thou art exact of taste, And elegant,° of Sapience° no small part, refined / wisdom, taste Since to each meaning savour we apply, And Palate call judicious; I the praise Yeild thee, so well this day thou hast purvey’d.° provided food Much pleasure we have lost, while we abstain’d From this delightful Fruit, nor known till now True relish, tasting; if such pleasure be In things to us forbidden, it might be wish’d, For this one Tree had bin forbidden ten. But come, so well refresh’t, now let us play,° have sex As meet° is, after such delicious Fare; appropriate For never did thy Beautie since the day I saw thee first and wedded thee, adorn’d With all perfections, so enflame my sense With ardor to enjoy thee, fairer now Then ever, bountie of this vertuous Tree.

So said he, and forbore not glance or toy° caress Of amorous intent, well understood Of Eve, whose Eye darted contagious Fire. Her hand he seis’d, and to a shadie bank, Thick overhead with verdant roof imbowr’d He led her nothing loath; Flours were the Couch, Pansies, and Violets, and Asphodel, And Hyacinth, Earths freshest softest lap. There they thir fill of Love and Loves disport Took largely, of thir mutual guilt the Seale,

1026 ten. Looks forward to the Mosaic covenant, with its ten commandments. 1029–32. Echoes Zeus’ amorous invitation to Hera (Iliad 14.314–28), and also Paris to Helen (Iliad 3.441–6). 1037. Cf. other places where Adam and Eve join and disjoin hands: 4.321, 488–9, 9.385–6, 12.648. 1039–45. Cf. Adam and Eve’s lovemaking in innocence: 4:705–10, 738–43, 771–3.

1010

1015

1020

1025

1030

1035

1040

The solace of thir sin, till dewie sleep Oppress’d them, wearied with thir amorous play. Soon as the force of that fallacious° Fruit, deceptive That with exhilerating vapour bland° pleasing About thir spirits had plaid, and inmost powers Made erre, was now exhal’d, and grosser sleep Bred of unkindly° fumes, with conscious° dreams unnatural / guilty Encumberd, now had left them, up they rose As from unrest, and each the other viewing, Soon found thir Eyes how op’nd, and thir minds How dark’nd; innocence, that as a veile Had shadow’d them from knowing ill, was gon, Just confidence, and native righteousness And honour from about them, naked left To guiltie shame: hee cover’d, but his Robe Uncover’d more. So rose the Danite strong Herculean Samson from the Harlot-lap Of Philistean Dalilah, and wak’d Shorn of his strength, They destitute° and bare bereft Of all thir vertue: silent, and in face Confounded long they sate, as struck’n mute, Till Adam, though not less then Eve abasht, At length gave utterance to these words constraind.° forced

O Eve, in evil hour thou didst give eare To that false Worm, of whomsoever taught To counterfet Mans voice, true in our Fall, False in our promis’d Rising; since our Eyes Op’nd we find indeed, and find we know Both Good and Evil, Good lost, and Evil got, Bad Fruit of Knowledge, if this be to know, Which leaves us naked thus, of Honour void, Of Innocence, of Faith, of Puritie, Our wonted° Ornaments now soild and staind, former

246 Paradise Lost

1058–9 hee. “shame” now “cover’d” them, but revealed (“Uncover’d”) their guilt. 1059–62 Danite. Samson, of the tribe of Dan, told the Philistine “Harlot” “Dalilah” that the secret of his great

strength lay in his hair; she sheared it off while he slept, and when he awoke he was easily captured by his enemies and blinded.

1067 Eve, in evil hour. Adam’s bitter pun suggests a false etymology for Eve’s name and repudiates the actual etymology, “life,” which Adam will later reaffirm (11.159–61).

1071–3. Adam, like most commentators, derives the tree’s name, the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil, from its effect. Cf. Christian Doctrine 1.10: “since Adam tasted it, we not only know evil, but we know good only by means of evil.”

1045

1050

1055

1060

1065

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And in our Faces evident the signes Of foul concupiscence; whence evil store; Even shame, the last of evils; of the first Be sure then. How shall I behold the face Henceforth of God or Angel, earst° with joy formerly And rapture so oft beheld? those heav’nly shapes Will dazle now this earthly, with thir blaze Insufferably bright. O might I here In solitude live savage, in some glade Obscur’d, where highest Woods impenetrable To Starr or Sun-light, spread thir umbrage° broad, shadow And brown as Evening: Cover me ye Pines, Ye Cedars, with innumerable boughs Hide me, where I may never see them more. But let us now, as in bad plight, devise What best may for the present serve to hide The Parts of each from other, that seem most To shame obnoxious,° and unseemliest seen, exposed Some Tree whose broad smooth Leaves together sowd, And girded on our loyns, may cover round Those middle parts, that this new commer, Shame, There sit not, and reproach us as unclean.

So counsel’d hee, and both together went Into the thickest Wood, there soon they chose The Figtree, not that kind for Fruit renown’d, But such as at this day to Indians known In Malabar or Decan spreds her Armes Braunching so broad and long, that in the ground The bended Twigs take root, and Daughters grow About the Mother Tree, a Pillard° shade as pillars High overarch’t, and echoing Walks between; There oft the Indian Herdsman shunning heate Shelters in coole, and tends his pasturing Herds At Loopholes cut through thickest shade: Those Leaves They gatherd, broad as Amazonian Targe,

1078–80 concupiscence. The theological term for the unruly human passions and desires seen as one effect of the Fall, and causing an abundance (“store”) of evils. “Shame” is the “last” evil, the “first” is the “foul concupiscence” that produces it.

1095–1110 broad smooth leaves. The banyan, or Indian fig tree, has small leaves, but the account Milton draws on from Gerard’s Herbal (1597) contains the several details related in these lines. “Malabar” and “Decan” (Deccan) are in southern India.

1111 Amazonian Targe. Shield of the Amazons, female warriors of Greek myth.

1080

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And with what skill they had, together sowd, To gird thir waste, vain Covering if to hide Thir guilt and dreaded shame; O how unlike To that first naked Glorie. Such of late Columbus found th’ American so girt With featherd Cincture,° naked else and wilde belt Among the Trees on Iles and woodie Shores. Thus fenc’t, and as they thought, thir shame in part Coverd, but not at rest or ease of Mind, They sate them down to weep, nor onely Teares Raind at thir Eyes, but high Winds worse within Began to rise, high Passions, Anger, Hate, Mistrust, Suspicion, Discord, and shook sore Thir inward State of Mind, calm Region once And full of Peace, now tost and turbulent: For Understanding rul’d not, and the Will Heard not her lore, both in subjection now To sensual Appetite, who from beneathe Usurping over sovran Reason claimd Superior sway: From thus distemperd brest, Adam, estrang’d° in look and alterd stile,° unlike himself / manner of speech Speech intermitted° thus to Eve renewd. interrupted

Would thou hadst heark’nd to my words, and stai’d With me, as I besought thee, when that strange Desire of wandring this unhappie Morn, I know not whence possessd thee; we had then Remaind still happie, not as now, despoild Of all our good, sham’d, naked, miserable. Let none henceforth seek needless cause to approve° give proof of The Faith they owe; when earnestly they seek Such proof, conclude, they then begin to faile.

To whom soon mov’d with touch of blame thus Eve. What words have past thy Lips, Adam severe, Imput’st thou that to my default, or will Of wandring, as thou call’st it, which who knows

248 Paradise Lost

1120–31. The immediate psychological effects of the Fall are seen in the subjection of reason and will to the lower faculties of sensual appetite.

1136, 1144 wandring, severe. Both words now take on their fallen meanings. In unfallen Eden wandering is blameless (4.234, 8.312); at 4.293–4 “severe” means “austerely simple”; here it means “harsh.”

1144 What words . . . Lips. A Homeric formula.

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But might as ill have happ’nd thou being by, Or to thy self perhaps: hadst thou been there, Or here th’ attempt, thou couldst not have discernd Fraud in the Serpent, speaking as he spake; No ground of enmitie between us known, Why hee should mean me ill, or seek to harme. Was I to have never parted from thy side? As good have grown there still a liveless Rib. Being as I am, why didst not thou the Head Command me absolutely not to go, Going into such danger as thou saidst? Too facil° then thou didst not much gainsay, easy, mild Nay, didst permit, approve, and fair dismiss. Hadst thou bin firm and fixt in thy dissent, Neither had I transgress’d, nor thou with mee.

To whom then first incenst Adam repli’d, Is this the Love, is this the recompence Of mine to thee, ingrateful Eve, exprest Immutable° when thou wert lost, not I, unchangable Who might have liv’d and joyd° immortal bliss, enjoyed Yet willingly chose rather Death with thee: And am I now upbraided, as the cause Of thy transgressing? not enough severe, It seems, in thy restraint: what could I more? I warn’d thee, I admonish’d thee, foretold The danger, and the lurking Enemie That lay in wait; beyond this had bin force, And force upon free will hath here no place. But confidence then bore thee on, secure° overconfident Either to meet no danger, or to finde Matter of glorious trial; and perhaps I also err’d in overmuch admiring What seemd in thee so perfet, that I thought No evil durst attempt thee, but I rue That errour now, which is become my crime, And thou th’ accuser. Thus it shall befall Him who to worth in Women overtrusting Lets her will rule; restraint she will not brook,° accept And left to her self, if evil thence ensue,

1155 Head. see 1 Cor. 11:3, cited at 8.574n above.

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Shee first his weak indulgence will accuse. Thus they in mutual accusation spent

The fruitless hours, but neither self-condemning, And of thir vain contest appeer’d no end.

The End of the Ninth Book.

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BOOK 10 THE ARGUMENT

Mans transgression known, the Guardian Angels forsake Paradise, and return up to Heaven to approve thir vigilance, and are approv’d, God declaring that The entrance of Satan could not be by them prevented. He sends his Son to judge the Transgressors, who descends and gives Sentence accordingly; then in pity cloaths them both, and reascends. Sin and Death sitting till then at the Gates of Hell, by won- drous sympathie feeling the success of Satan in this new World, and the sin by Man there committed, resolve to sit no longer confin’d in Hell, but to follow Satan thir Sire up to the place of Man: To make the way easier from Hell to this World to and fro, they pave a broad Highway or Bridge over Chaos, according to the Track that Satan first made; then preparing for Earth, they meet him proud of his success return- ing to Hell; thir mutual gratulation. Satan arrives at Pandemonium, in full assembly relates with boasting his success against Man; instead of applause is entertained with a general hiss by all his audience, transform’d with himself also suddenly into Serpents, according to his doom giv’n in Paradise; then deluded with a shew of the forbidden Tree springing up before them, they greedily reaching to take of the Fruit, chew dust and bitter ashes. The proceedings of Sin and Death; God foretels the final Victory of his Son over them, and the renewing of all things; but for the present commands his Angels to make several alterations in the Heavens and Elements. Adam more and more perceiving his fall’n condition heavily bewailes, rejects the condole- ment of Eve; she persists and at length appeases him: then to evade the Curse likely to fall on thir Ofspring, proposes to Adam violent wayes which he approves not, but conceiving better hope, puts her in mind of the late Promise made them, that her Seed should be reveng’d on the Serpent, and exhorts her with him to seek Peace of the offended Deity, by repentance and supplication.

Meanwhile the hainous and despightfull act Of Satan done in Paradise, and how Hee in the Serpent, had perverted Eve, Her Husband shee, to taste the fatall fruit, Was known in Heav’n; for what can scape the Eye Of God All-seeing, or deceave his Heart Omniscient, who in all things wise and just, Hinder’d not Satan to attempt the minde Of Man, with strength entire,° and free will arm’d, unimpaired Complete° to have discover’d and repulst fully equipped

2 approve. Make proof of. approved. Pronounced good. 6 sympathie. Influence at a distance.

Whatever wiles of Foe or seeming Friend. For still° they knew, and ought to have still° remember’d always The high Injunction not to taste that Fruit, Whoever tempted; which they not obeying, Incurr’d, what could they less, the penaltie, And manifold in sin, deserv’d to fall. Up into Heav’n from Paradise in haste Th’ Angelic Guards ascended, mute and sad For Man, for of his state by this° they knew, this time Much wondring how the suttle Fiend had stoln Entrance unseen. Soon as th’ unwelcome news From Earth arriv’d at Heaven Gate, displeas’d All were who heard, dim sadness did not spare That time Celestial visages, yet mixt With pitie, violated not thir bliss. About the new-arriv’d, in multitudes Th’ ethereal People ran, to hear and know How all befell: they towards the Throne Supream Accountable made haste to make appear With righteous plea, thir utmost vigilance, And easily approv’d; when the most High Eternal Father from his secret Cloud, Amidst in Thunder utter’d thus his voice.

Assembl’d Angels, and ye Powers return’d From unsuccessful charge, be not dismaid, Nor troubl’d at these tidings from the Earth, Which your sincerest care could not prevent, Foretold so lately what would come to pass, When first this Tempter cross’d the Gulf from Hell. I told ye then he should prevail and speed° succeed On his bad Errand, Man should be seduc’t And flatter’d out of all, believing lies Against his Maker; no Decree of mine Concurring° to necessitate his Fall, agreeing Or touch with lightest moment of impulse His free Will, to her own inclining left

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16 manifold in sin. Having multiple sins. In Christian Doctrine 1.11 Milton suggests that no sin “can be named, which was not included in this one act.”

29 Accountable. Liable to be called to answer for how they fulfilled their duties (guarding Paradise). 31 easily approv’d. Their plea of “utmost vigilance” was readily accepted. 38–9 Foretold so lately. Cf. 3.80–96. 43–7 no Decree of mine. Cf. 3.96–128.

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In eevn scale. But fall’n he is, and now What rests° but that the mortal Sentence pass remains On his transgression, Death denounc’t that day, Which he presumes already vain and void, Because not yet inflicted, as he fear’d, By some immediate stroak; but soon shall find Forbearance no acquittance ere day end. Justice shall not return as bountie scorn’d. But whom send I to judge them? whom but thee Vicegerent° Son, to thee I have transferr’d deputy ruler All Judgement, whether in Heav’n, or Earth, or Hell. Easie it might be seen that I intend Mercie collegue with Justice, sending thee Mans Friend, his Mediator, his design’d Both Ransom and Redeemer voluntarie, And destin’d Man himself to judge Man fall’n.

So spake the Father, and unfoulding bright Toward the right hand his Glorie, on the Son Blaz’d forth unclouded Deitie; he full Resplendent all his Father manifest Express’d, and thus divinely answer’d milde.

Father Eternal, thine is to decree, Mine both in Heav’n and Earth to do thy will Supream, that thou in mee thy Son belov’d Mayst ever rest well pleas’d. I go to judge On Earth these thy transgressors, but thou knowst, Whoever judg’d, the worst on mee must light, When time shall be, for so I undertook Before thee; and not repenting, this obtaine Of right, that I may mitigate thir doom On me deriv’d,° yet I shall temper so diverted Justice with Mercie, as may illustrate most° best show

49–50 Death denounc’t. Formally proclaimed; cf. Gen. 2:17: “But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die.” Cf. PL 8:323–33.

53 Forbearance no acquittance. God’s restraint (“Forbearance”) in exacting punishment does not “acquit” Adam of the punishment due. “Omittance is not quittance” was a proverb.

54. i.e., my justice must not be “scorn’d” as my generosity (“bountie”) has been. 56–7 All Judgement. Cf. John 5:22: “For the Father judgeth no man, but hath committed all judgment unto

the Son.” 60–1 Mediator. Cf. Christian Doctrine 1.15, “The mediatorial office of Christ is that whereby . . . he volun-

tarily performed, and continues to perform, on behalf of man, whatever is requisite for obtaining recon- ciliation with God, and eternal salvation.”

70 Son belov’d. Cf. Matt. 3:17: “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”

Them fully satisfied, and thee appease. Attendance none shall need, nor Train,° where none retinue Are to behold the Judgement, but the judg’d, Those two; the third best absent is condemn’d, Convict° by flight, and Rebel to all Law proved guilty Conviction° to the Serpent none belongs. judgment of guilt

Thus saying, from his radiant Seat he rose Of high collateral° glorie: him Thrones and Powers, side by side Princedoms, and Dominations ministrant° ministering Accompanied to Heaven Gate, from whence Eden and all the Coast° in prospect lay. region Down he descended strait; the speed of Gods Time counts not, though with swiftest minutes wing’d. Now was the Sun in Western cadence° low falling mode From Noon, and gentle Aires due at thir hour To fan the Earth now wak’d, and usher in The Eevning coole when he from wrauth more coole Came the mild Judge and Intercessor both To sentence Man: the voice of God they heard Now walking in the Garden, by soft windes Brought to thir Ears, while day declin’d, they heard, And from his presence hid themselves among The thickest Trees, both Man and Wife, till God Approaching, thus to Adam call’d aloud.

Where art thou Adam, wont° with joy to meet used before My coming seen far off ? I miss thee here, Not pleas’d, thus entertaind with solitude, Where obvious° dutie erewhile appear’d unsaught: plain, coming forward Or come I less conspicuous, or what change Absents thee, or what chance detains? Come forth. He came, and with him Eve, more loth, though first To offend, discount’nanc’t both, and discompos’d; Love was not in thir looks, either to God Or to each other, but apparent° guilt, manifest And shame, and perturbation, and despaire, Anger, and obstinacie, and hate, and guile. Whence Adam faultring long, thus answer’d brief.

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90–1 strait. Immediate; cf. Raphael’s journey from heaven to earth (8.110–14). 92–102. Cf. Gen. 3:8: “And they heard the voice of the Lord God walking in the garden in the cool of the

day: and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord God amongst the trees of the garden.”

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I heard thee in the Garden, and of thy voice Affraid, being naked, hid my self. To whom The gracious Judge without revile° repli’d. reproach, abuse

My voice thou oft hast heard, and hast not fear’d, But still° rejoyc’t, how is it now become always So dreadful to thee? that thou art naked, who Hath told thee? hast thou eaten of the Tree Whereof I gave thee charge thou shouldst not eat?

To whom thus Adam sore beset repli’d. O Heav’n! in evil strait this day I stand Before my Judge, either to undergoe My self the total Crime, or to accuse My other self, the partner of my life; Whose failing, while her Faith to me remaines, I should conceal, and not expose to blame By my complaint; but strict necessitie Subdues me, and calamitous constraint Least on my head both sin and punishment, However insupportable, be all Devolv’d;° though should I hold my peace, yet thou descended Wouldst easily detect what I conceale. This Woman whom thou mad’st to be my help, And gav’st me as thy perfet gift, so good, So fit, so acceptable, so Divine, That from her hand I could suspect no ill, And what she did, whatever in it self, Her doing seem’d to justifie the deed; Shee gave me of the Tree, and I did eate.

To whom the sovran Presence thus repli’d. Was shee thy God, that her thou didst obey Before his voice, or was shee made thy guide, Superior, or but° equal, that to her merely Thou did’st resigne thy Manhood, and the Place Wherein God set thee above her made of thee, And for thee, whose perfection farr excell’d

121–3. Cf. Gen. 3:11, “And he said, Who told thee that thou wast naked? Hast thou eaten of the tree, whereof I commanded thee that thou shouldest not eat?”

137–43. Compare Adam’s speech in Gen. 3:12, “The woman whom thou gavest to be with me, she gave me of the tree, and I did eat.”

148–50 of thee, / And for thee. Cf. 1 Cor. 11:8–9, “For the man is not of the woman; but the woman of the man. Neither was the man created for the woman; but the woman for the man.”

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Hers in all real dignitie: Adornd She was indeed, and lovely to attract Thy Love, not thy Subjection, and her Gifts Were such as under Government well seem’d, Unseemly to beare rule, which was thy part° role And person,° hadst thou known thy self aright. character (persona)

So having said, he thus to Eve in few:° few words Say Woman, what is this which thou hast done?

To whom sad Eve with shame nigh overwhelm’d, Confessing soon, yet not before her Judge Bold or loquacious, thus abasht repli’d.

The Serpent me beguil’d and I did eate. Which when the Lord God heard, without delay

To Judgement he proceeded on th’ accus’d Serpent though brute, unable to transferre The Guilt on him who made him instrument Of mischief, and polluted from the end° purpose Of his Creation; justly then accurst, As vitiated° in Nature: more to know corrupted Concern’d not Man (since he no further knew) Nor alter’d his offence; yet God at last To Satan first in sin his doom apply’d Though in mysterious° terms, judg’d as then best: symbolic And on the Serpent thus his curse let fall.

Because thou hast done this, thou art accurst Above all Cattle, each Beast of the Field; Upon thy Belly groveling thou shalt goe, And dust shalt eat all the dayes of thy Life. Between Thee and the Woman I will put Enmitie, and between thine and her Seed; Her Seed shall bruise thy head, thou bruise his heel.

So spake this Oracle, then verifi’d

256 Paradise Lost

157–62. Cf. Gen. 3:13, “And the Lord God said unto the woman, What is this that thou hast done? And the woman said, The serpent beguiled me, and I did eat.”

165–7. i.e., the serpent was “unable” to “transferre” his own “Guilt” in being “polluted” to Satan, who made him his “instrument.”

169–70 more to know. Adam and Eve cannot now understand the terms of the judgment on the serpent. 175–8. Cf. Gen. 3:14, which these lines closely paraphrase. 179–81. Cf. Gen. 3:15: “And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her

seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel.” This is the “protoevangelium,” or judgment of Satan in the serpent, that contains the promise of the redeemer, the woman’s “Seed.” Adam and Eve do not fully understand it until 12.429–33, 598–605.

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When Jesus son of Mary second Eve, Saw Satan fall like Lightning down from Heav’n, Prince of the Aire; then rising from his Grave Spoild° Principalities and Powers, triumpht defeated In open shew, and with ascention bright Captivity led captive through the Aire, The Realm it self of Satan long usurpt, Whom he shall tread at last under our feet; Eevn hee who now foretold his fatal bruise, And to the Woman thus his Sentence turn’d.

Thy sorrow I will greatly multiplie By thy Conception; Children thou shalt bring In sorrow forth, and to thy Husbands will Thine shall submit, hee over thee shall rule.

On Adam last thus judgement he pronounc’d. Because thou hast heark’nd to the voice of thy Wife, And eaten of the Tree concerning which I charg’d thee, saying: Thou shalt not eate thereof, Curs’d is the ground for thy sake, thou in sorrow Shalt eate thereof all the days of thy Life; Thorns also and Thistles it shall bring thee forth Unbid, and thou shalt eate th’ Herb of th’ Field, In the sweat of thy Face shalt thou eat Bread, Till thou return unto the ground, for thou Out of the ground wast taken, know thy Birth, For dust thou art, and shalt to dust returne.

So judg’d he Man, both Judge and Saviour sent, And th’ instant stroke of Death denounc’t° that day announced

183–4. Cf. Jesus’ comment to his disciples (Luke 10:18), “I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven.” 185–8 Prince of the Aire. Cf. Eph. 2:2, where Satan is called “prince of the power of the air”; Col. 2:15, which

states that Christ, “having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them”; and Eph. 4:8, declaring that when Christ “ascended up on high, he led captivity captive.”

193–6. Cf. Gen. 3:16: “Unto the woman he said, I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children, and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee.” In Christian Doctrine 1.10 Milton claimed that after the Fall the husband’s power over his wife was increased.

197–208. Cf. Gen. 3:17–19: “And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life; Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field; In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.”

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Remov’d farr off; then pittying how they stood Before him naked to the aire, that now Must suffer change, disdain’d not to begin Thenceforth the form of servant to assume, As when he wash’d his servants feet so now As Father of his Familie he clad Thir nakedness with Skins of Beasts, or° slain, either Or as the Snake with youthful Coate repaid; And thought not much° to cloath his Enemies: too much Nor hee thir outward onely with the Skins Of Beasts, but inward nakedness, much more Opprobrious, with his Robe of righteousness, Araying cover’d from his Fathers sight. To him with swift ascent he up returnd, Into his blissful bosom reassum’d In glory as of old, to him appeas’d All, though all-knowing, what had past with Man Recounted, mixing intercession sweet. Meanwhile ere thus was sin’d and judg’d on Earth, Within the Gates of Hell sate Sin and Death, In counterview° within the Gates, that now facing each other Stood open wide, belching outrageous° flame enormous, unrestrained Farr into Chaos, since the Fiend pass’d through, Sin opening, who thus now to Death began.

O Son, why sit we here each other viewing Idlely, while Satan our great Author° thrives father, originator In other Worlds, and happier Seat provides For us his ofspring deare? It cannot be But that success attends him; if mishap, Ere this he had return’d, with fury driv’n By his Avengers, since no place like° this as well as Can fit his punishment, or their revenge. Methinks I feel new strength within me rise, Wings growing, and Dominion giv’n me large Beyond this Deep; whatever drawes me on, Or sympathie,° or som connatural° force attraction / innate Powerful at greatest distance to unite

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214–17 form of servant. Cf. Phil. 2:7; John 13:5 tells of Jesus washing his disciples’ feet; Gen. 3:21 records that the “Lord God made coats of skins, and clothed” Adam and Eve.

222–3. Cf. Isa. 61:10: “he hath covered me with the robe of righteousness.”

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With secret amity things of like kinde By secretest conveyance.° Thou my Shade communication Inseparable must° with mee along: must go For Death from Sin no power can separate. But least the difficultie of passing back Stay his return perhaps over this Gulfe Impassable, Impervious,° let us try impenetrable Adventrous work, yet to thy power and mine Not unagreeable, to found° a path build Over this Maine° from Hell to that new World expanse (Chaos) Where Satan now prevailes, a Monument Of merit high to all th’ infernal Host, Easing thir passage hence, for intercourse,° passing back and forth Or transmigration,° as thir lot shall lead. emigration Nor can I miss the way, so strongly drawn By this new felt attraction and instinct.

Whom thus the meager° Shadow answerd soon. emaciated Goe whither Fate and inclination strong Leads thee, I shall not lag behinde, nor erre° wander from The way, thou leading, such a sent I draw° inhale Of carnage, prey innumerable, and taste The savour of Death from all things there that live: Nor shall I to the work thou enterprisest Be wanting, but afford thee equal aid.

So saying, with delight he snuff ’d° the smell sniffed Of mortal change on Earth. As when a flock Of ravenous Fowl, though many a League remote, Against° the day of Battel, to a Field, anticipating Where Armies lie encampt, come flying, lur’d With sent of living Carcasses design’d° marked out For death, the following day, in bloodie fight. So sented the grim Feature,° and upturn’d form, shape His Nostril wide into the murkie Air, Sagacious° of his Quarry from so farr. keenly smelling, wise Then Both from out Hell Gates into the waste Wide Anarchie of Chaos damp and dark Flew divers,° and with Power (thir Power was great) in different directions Hovering upon the Waters; what they met Solid or slimie, as in raging Sea Tost up and down, together crowded drove From each side shoaling° towards the mouth of Hell. assembling As when two Polar Winds blowing adverse° from opposite directions

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Upon the Cronian Sea, together drive Mountains of Ice, that stop th’ imagin’d way Beyond Petsora Eastward, to the rich Cathaian Coast. The aggregated Soyle Death with his Mace petrific,° cold and dry, turning things to stone As with a Trident smote, and fix’t as firm As Delos floating once; the rest his look Bound with Gorgonian rigor not to move, And with Asphaltic slime,° broad as the Gate, pitch Deep to the Roots of Hell the gather’d beach° ridge of stones They fasten’d, and the Mole° immense wraught on causeway, sea wall Over the foaming deep high Archt, a Bridge Of length prodigious joyning to the Wall° outer shell Immovable of this now fenceless° world defenseless Forfeit to Death; from hence a passage broad, Smooth, easie, inoffensive° down to Hell. unobstructed So, if great things to small may be compar’d, Xerxes, the Libertie of Greece to yoke, From Susa his Memnonian Palace high Came to the Sea, and over Hellespont Bridging his way, Europe with Asia joyn’d, And scourg’d with many a stroak th’ indignant waves. Now had they brought the work by wondrous Art Pontifical, a ridge of pendent Rock Over the vext° Abyss, following the track tossed by storms Of Satan, to the self same place where hee First lighted from his Wing, and landed safe From out of Chaos to the out side bare Of this round World: with Pinns of Adamant And Chains they made all fast,° too fast they made secure And durable; and now in little space The confines° met of Empyrean Heav’n boundaries

260 Paradise Lost

290–3 Cronian Sea. The Arctic Ocean. th’imagin’d way. The northeast passage from Pechora (“Petsora”), a river in Siberia, to north China (Cathay) which Henry Hudson looked for in 1608 but could only imagine because it was blocked by ice.

294–6 Mace petrific. Death’s materials are the “cold and dry” elements. His mace is associated with Neptune’s “Trident,” which was said to have “fix’t” the “floating” Greek island “Delos.”

297 Gorgonian rigor. The Gorgon Medusa turned to stone anything she looked upon. 306 great things to small. A familiar Virgilian formula. 307–11. The Persian king “Xerxes” ordered the sea whipped when it destroyed the bridge of ships he built

over the Hellespont ( joining “Europe with Asia”), so as to invade Greece. Susa. The biblical Shusan, Xerxes’ winter residence, was founded by the mythical Prince Memnon (“Memnonian Palace”).

313 Pontifical. Bridge-building, with a pun on “papal.” The pope had the title Pontifex Maximus.

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And of this World, and on the left hand Hell With long reach interpos’d; three sev’ral wayes In sight, to each of these three places led. And now thir way to Earth they had descri’d, To Paradise first tending, when behold Satan in likeness of an Angel bright Betwixt the Centaure and the Scorpion stearing His Zenith, while the Sun in Aries rose: Disguis’d he came, but those his Children dear Thir Parent soon discern’d, though in disguise. Hee after Eve seduc’t, unminded° slunk unnoticed Into the Wood fast by, and changing shape To observe the sequel, saw his guileful act By Eve, though all unweeting,° seconded unaware Upon her Husband, saw thir shame that sought Vain covertures;° but when he saw descend garments The Son of God to judge them terrifi’d Hee fled, not hoping to escape, but shun The present, fearing guiltie what his wrauth Might suddenly inflict; that past, return’d By Night, and listening where the hapless Paire Sate in thir sad discourse, and various plaint, Thence gatherd his own doom, which understood Not instant, but of future time. With joy And tidings fraught,° to Hell he now return’d, laden And at the brink of Chaos, neer the foot° end Of this new wondrous Pontifice,° unhop’t bridge Met who to meet him came, his Ofspring dear. Great joy was at thir meeting, and at sight Of that stupendious Bridge his joy encreas’d. Long hee admiring stood, till Sin, his faire Inchanting Daughter, thus the silence broke.

O Parent, these are thy magnific deeds, Thy Trophies, which thou view’st as not thine own,

323–4 three sev’ral wayes. The golden staircase or chain linking the universe to Heaven (3.510–18); the new bridge linking it to Hell; and the passage through the spheres down to earth (3:526–9).

328–9. Satan steered between Sagittarius (“the Centaure”) and Scorpio, thereby passing through Anguis, the constellation of the Serpent.

342–5 listening. Satan evidently heard the “discourse” and “plaints” of Adam and Eve at 10.720–1096), which thus precede his return to Hell; he also concluded that his own “doom” was “of future time.”

355 Trophies. Objects or persons captured in battle displayed in the triumphs accorded Roman generals and emperors who won great military victories; here, the bridge itself is a trophy of victory.

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Thou art thir Author and prime Architect: For I no sooner in my Heart divin’d, My Heart, which by a secret harmonie Still° moves with thine, join’d in connexion sweet, always That thou on Earth hadst prosper’d, which thy looks Now also evidence, but straight I felt Though distant from thee Worlds between, yet felt That I must after thee with this thy Son; Such fatal consequence° unites us three: relation of cause and effect Hell could no longer hold us in her bounds, Nor this unvoyageable Gulf obscure Detain from following thy illustrious track. Thou hast atchiev’d our libertie, confin’d Within Hell Gates till now, thou us impow’rd To fortifie thus farr, and overlay With this portentous° Bridge the dark Abyss. marvelous, ominous Thine now is all this World, thy vertue° hath won power, courage What thy hands builded not, thy Wisdom gain’d With odds° what Warr hath lost, and fully aveng’d advantage Our foile° in Heav’n; here thou shalt Monarch reign, defeat There didst not; there let him still Victor sway, As Battel hath adjudg’d, from this new World Retiring, by his own doom° alienated, judgment And henceforth Monarchie with thee divide Of all things parted by th’ Empyreal bounds, His Quadrature, from thy Orbicular World, Or trie° thee now more dang’rous to his Throne. find by experience

Whom thus the Prince of Darkness answerd glad. Fair Daughter, and thou Son and Grandchild both, High proof ye now have giv’n to be the Race Of Satan (for I glorie in the name, Antagonist of Heav’ns Almightie King) Amply have merited of me, of all Th’ infernal Empire, that so neer Heav’ns dore Triumphal with triumphal act have met,

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381 Quadrature. The New Jerusalem is described as “foursquare” in Rev. 21:16. Satan’s new conquest, earth, is an orb (“Orbicular”), so Sin implies its superiority since a sphere was thought to be more perfect than a cube. Cf. PL 2.1048, where Heaven is said to be “undetermind square or round.”

386–7 Antagonist. The name “Satan” means Adversary or Antagonist. 390. The repeated word emphasizes that Satan is enacting a triumph, passing over a triumphal bridge rather

than through triumphal arches; the scene would likely evoke the Roman-style triumphal processions and arches celebrating the Restoration of Charles II.

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Mine with this glorious Work, and made one Realm Hell and this World, one Realm, one Continent° continuous land mass Of easie thorough-fare. Therefore while I Descend through Darkness, on your Rode with ease To my associate Powers, them to acquaint With these successes, and with them rejoyce, You two this way, among these numerous Orbs All yours, right down to Paradise descend; There dwell and Reign in bliss, thence on the Earth Dominion exercise and in the Aire, Chiefly on Man, sole Lord of all declar’d, Him first make sure your thrall,° and lastly kill. slave My Substitutes I send ye, and Create Plenipotent° on Earth, of matchless might with full power and authority Issuing from mee: on your joynt vigor now My hold of this new Kingdom all depends, Through Sin to Death expos’d by my exploit. If your joynt power prevailes, th’ affaires of Hell No detriment° need feare, goe and be strong. injury

So saying he dismiss’d them, they with speed Thir course through thickest Constellations held Spreading thir bane;° the blasted° Starrs lookt wan, poison / ruined And Planets, Planet-strook, real Eclips Then sufferd. Th’ other way Satan went down The Causey° to Hell Gate; on either side causeway Disparted° Chaos over built° exclaimd, divided / built over And with rebounding surge the barrs assaild, That scorn’d his indignation: through the Gate, Wide open and unguarded, Satan pass’d, And all about found desolate; for those Appointed to sit there, had left thir charge, Flown to the upper World; the rest were all Farr to the inland retir’d, about the walls Of Pandæmonium, Citie and proud seate Of Lucifer, so by allusion calld, Of that bright Starr to Satan paragond.° compared There kept thir Watch the Legions, while the Grand

413–14 Planet-strook. The planets, stricken as by the malign influence of an adverse planet, suffered not merely a temporary but a “real Eclips,” a permanent loss of light.

424–6 Pandæmonium. Literally “place of all demons”; it is termed the “seate” of “Lucifer” (Satan’s name before his fall), in allusion to and comparison with the morning star named Lucifer (the light-bringer).

427 the Grand. “the grand infernal Peers” (cf. 2.507).

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In Council sate, sollicitous° what chance anxious about Might intercept thir Emperour sent, so hee Departing gave command, and they observ’d.° obeyed As when the Tartar from his Russian Foe By Astracan over the Snowie Plaines Retires, or Bactrian Sophi from the hornes Of Turkish Crescent, leaves all waste beyond The Realm of Aladule, in his retreate To Tauris or Casbeen. So these the late Heav’n-banisht Host, left desert utmost Hell Many a dark League, reduc’t° in careful Watch led back Round thir Metropolis, and now expecting Each hour thir great adventurer from the search Of Forrein Worlds: he through the midst unmarkt,° unnoticed In shew Plebeian Angel militant Of lowest order, past; and from the dore Of that Plutonian Hall, invisible Ascended his high Throne, which under state° canopy Of richest texture spred, at th’ upper end Was plac’t in regal lustre. Down a while He sate, and round about him saw unseen: At last as from a Cloud his fulgent° head shining, resplendent And shape Starr bright appeer’d, or brighter, clad With what permissive° glory since his fall permitted Was left him, or false glitter: All amaz’d At that so sudden blaze the Stygian throng Bent thir aspect,° and whom they wish’d beheld, turned their gaze Thir mighty Chief returnd: loud was th’ acclaime: Forth rush’d in haste the great consulting Peers, Rais’d from thir dark Divan,° and with like joy Turkish Council of State Congratulant approach’d him, who with hand

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429–39 the Tartar. The simile compares the fallen angels’ withdrawal from other regions of Hell to guard their metropolis to Tartars retiring before attacking Russians and to Persians retreating before attacking Turks. Astracan. A Tartar region near the mouth of the Volga, annexed by Ivan the Terrible in 1556. Bactrian Sophi. Persian Shah (Bactria, modern Afghanistan, was a province of Persia). Turkish Crescent. Refers both to the Turkish battle formations and to their emblem. Realm of Aladule. Armenia, whose last Persian ruler before the Turkish conquest, named Aladule, was forced to retreat before the Turks to Tabriz (“Tauris”) in northwest Persia (Iran) or to Kazvin (“Casbeen”), north of Tehran.

441–55. Satan’s invisble entry and sudden blazing forth recall the sudden appearance of the Sultan, Solimano, in Tasso, Gerusalemme Liberata 10:32–50.

444 Plutonian. Infernal, from Pluto, the classical god who rules the underworld. 453 Stygian. Of the river Styx in Hades, the river of hate.

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Silence, and with these words attention won. Thrones, Dominations, Princedoms, Vertues, Powers,

For in possession such, not onely of right, I call ye and declare ye now, returnd Successful beyond hope, to lead ye forth Triumphant out of this infernal Pit Abominable, accurst, the house of woe, And Dungeon of our Tyrant: Now possess, As Lords, a spacious World, to our native Heaven Little inferiour, by my adventure hard With peril great atchiev’d. Long were to tell What I have don, what sufferd, with what paine Voyag’d th’ unreal,° vast, unbounded deep formless Of horrible confusion, over which By Sin and Death a broad way now is pav’d To expedite your glorious march; but I Toild out my uncouth° passage, forc’t to ride unfamiliar, strange Th’ untractable Abysse, plung’d in the womb Of unoriginal° Night and Chaos wilde, without origin That jealous of thir secrets fiercely oppos’d My journey strange, with clamorous uproare Protesting Fate supreame; thence how I found The new created World, which fame° in Heav’n rumor Long had foretold, a Fabrick° wonderful structure Of absolute perfection, therein Man Plac’t in a Paradise, by our exile Made happie: Him by fraud I have seduc’d From his Creator, and the more to increase Your wonder, with an Apple; he thereat Offended, worth your laughter, hath giv’n up Both his beloved Man and all his World, To Sin and Death a prey, and so to us, Without our hazard, labour, or allarme,° call to battle To range in, and to dwell, and over Man To rule, as over all he should have rul’d. True is, mee also he hath judg’d, or rather Mee not, but the brute Serpent in whose shape

460–1. Satan declares that his followers now hold their titles “in possession” (de facto), by reason of his con- quest of earth, not only “of right” (de jure) – a common legal distinction.

480. Protesting both to and against Fate.

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Man I deceav’d: that which to mee belongs, Is enmity, which he will put between Mee and Mankinde; I am to bruise his heel; His Seed, when is not set, shall bruise my head: A World who would not purchase with a bruise, Or much more grievous pain? Ye have th’ account Of my performance: What remains, ye Gods, But up and enter now into full bliss.

So having said, a while he stood, expecting Thir universal shout and high applause To fill his eare, when contrary he hears On all sides, from innumerable tongues A dismal° universal hiss, the sound dreadful Of public scorn; he wonderd, but not long Had leasure, wondring at himself now more; His Visage drawn he felt to sharp° and spare,° pointed / thin His Armes clung to his Ribs, his Leggs entwining Each other, till supplanted° down he fell overthrown A monstrous Serpent on his Belly prone, Reluctant,° but in vaine, a greater power struggling Now rul’d him, punisht in the shape he sin’d, According to his doom:° he would have spoke, judgment But hiss for hiss returnd with forked tongue To forked tongue, for now were all transform’d Alike, to Serpents all as accessories To his bold Riot:° dreadful was the din rebellion Of hissing through the Hall, thick swarming now With complicated° monsters head and taile, tangled Scorpion and Asp, and Amphisbæna dire, Cerastes hornd, Hydrus, and Ellops drear, And Dipsas (not so thick swarm’d once the Soil Bedropt with blood of Gorgon, or the Isle

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503 bliss. Ironically, the final word of Satan’s triumphal speech rhymes with and prepares for the “hiss” that will soon greet him (508).

511–47. The scene recalls Dante’s vivid description of the thieves metamorphosed into snakes (Inferno 24–5). 524–6 Scorpion. This has a venomous sting at the tip of the tail. Asp. A small Egyptian viper.

Amphisbœna. A mythical snake with a head at either end. Cerastes. An asp with horny projections over each eye. Hydrus, and Ellops. Mythical water snakes. Dipsas. A mythical snake whose bite caused raging thirst.

527–8 Gorgon. Medusa. Ovid explains that the blood dropping from her severed head as Persius flew with it over Libya accounts for the abundance of snakes in that country (Metamorphoses 4.617–20). Milton’s cat- alogue of snakes recalls Lucan’s enumeration of the serpents that sprang from Medusa’s blood (Pharsalia 9.697–733). Ophiusa. Greek, “full of serpents,” the name given to several islands, including Rhodes.

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Ophiusa) but still greatest hee the midst, Now Dragon grown, larger then whom the Sun Ingenderd in the Pythian Vale on slime, Huge Python, and his Power no less he seem’d Above the rest still to retain; they all Him follow’d issuing forth to th’ open Field, Where all yet left of that revolted Rout Heav’n-fall’n, in station° stood or just array,° at their posts / on parade Sublime° with expectation when to see elated, uplifted In Triumph issuing forth thir glorious Chief; They saw, but other sight instead, a crowd Of ugly Serpents; horror on them fell, And horrid sympathie;° for what they saw, corresponding affect They felt themselvs now changing;° down thir arms, changing into Down fell both Spear and Shield, down they as fast, And the dire hiss renew’d, and the dire form Catcht by Contagion, like in punishment, As in thir crime. Thus was th’ applause they meant, Turn’d to exploding° hiss, triumph to shame loudly scornful Cast on themselves from thir own mouths. There stood A Grove hard by, sprung up with this thir change, His will who reigns above, to aggravate Thir penance,° laden with fair Fruit, like that punishment Which grew in Paradise, the bait of Eve Us’d by the Tempter: on that prospect strange Thir earnest eyes they fix’d, imagining For one forbidden Tree a multitude Now ris’n, to work them furder woe or shame; Yet parcht with scalding thurst and hunger fierce, Though to delude them sent, could not abstain, But on they rould in heaps, and up the Trees Climbing, sat thicker then the snakie locks That curld Megæra: greedily they pluck’d The Frutage fair to sight, like that which grew

528–32 Dragon. Associated with Satan, cf. Rev. 12:9. Python. A gigantic serpent engendered from the slime left by Deucalion’s flood; Apollo slew him and appropriated the “Pythian Vale” and shrine at Delphi (Metamorphoses 1.438–47), a narrative sometimes read as type of Christ’s victory over the “Dragon” Satan.

559–60 Megœra. One of the three Furies with snaky hair, goddesses of vengeance. 561–70 bituminous Lake. The Dead Sea, where “Sodom,” the evil city destroyed by fire and brimstone (“flamed”)

once stood (Gen. 19:24). Apples reputedly grew nearby, which looked good but dissolved into ashes when touched. Milton’s scene also evokes the myth of Tantalus, from whom water and fruit receded every time he reached for them to assuage his raging hunger and thirst (Odyssey 11.582–92). Cf. the curse on the ser- pent, “dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life” (Gen. 3:14).

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Neer that bituminous Lake where Sodom flam’d; This more delusive, not the touch, but taste Deceav’d; they fondly° thinking to allay foolishly Thir appetite with gust,° instead of Fruit relish Chewd bitter Ashes, which th’ offended taste With spattering noise rejected: oft they assayd,° attempted Hunger and thirst constraining, drugd° as oft, nauseated With hatefullest disrelish writh’d thir jaws With soot and cinders fill’d; so oft they fell Into the same illusion, not as Man Whom they triumph’d° once lapst. Thus were they plagu’d triumphed over And worn with Famin, long and ceasless hiss, Till thir lost shape, permitted, they resum’d, Yearly enjoynd, some say, to undergo This annual humbling certain number’d days, To dash thir pride, and joy for Man seduc’t. However some tradition they dispers’d Among the Heathen of thir purchase° got, acquisition And Fabl’d how the Serpent, whom they calld Ophion with Eurynome, the wide- Encroaching Eve perhaps, had first the rule Of high Olympus, thence by Saturn driv’n And Ops, ere yet Dictæan Jove was born. Mean while in Paradise the hellish pair Too soon arriv’d, Sin there in power before, Once actual, now in body, and to dwell Habitual habitant; behind her Death Close following pace for pace, not mounted yet On his pale Horse: to whom Sin thus began.

Second of Satan sprung, all conquering Death, What thinkst thou of our Empire now, though earnd

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574–6 lost shape. God permitted them to resume their shape as fallen angels, but turned them to serpents in an “annual humbling.”

578–84 some tradition. The Titan “Ophion” (whose name means “Serpent”) and his wife “Eurynome” (the wide-ruling or “wide- / Encroaching”) ruled Olympus until driven away by “Saturn” and his wife “Ops”; they in turn were overthrown by “Dictæan Jove,” who lived in Crete on Mount Dicte. Milton suggests that these myths represent versions of the fallen angels’ story transmitted by them to “the Heathen.”

586–8. Sin was “in power” in Eden in the actual sins of Adam and Eve; now Sin will dwell “in body,” as a “Habitual” physical presence in all creatures, due to original sin.

589–90 pale Horse. Cf. Rev. 6:8, “Behold a pale horse: and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him.” Death is “not mounted yet” because that action is predicted for the Last Days.

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With travail° difficult, not better farr labor, travel Then stil at Hels dark threshold to have sate watch, Unnam’d, undreaded, and thy self half starv’d?

Whom thus the Sin-born Monster answerd soon. To mee, who with eternal Famin pine, Alike is Hell, or Paradise, or Heaven, There best, where most with ravin° I may meet; prey Which here, though plenteous, all too little seems To stuff this Maw, this vast unhide-bound Corps.

To whom th’ incestuous Mother thus repli’d. Thou therefore on these Herbs, and Fruits, and Flours Feed first, on each Beast next, and Fish, and Fowle, No homely° morsels, and whatever thing humble, rude The Sithe of Time mowes down, devour unspar’d, Till I in Man residing through the Race, His thoughts, his looks, words, actions all infect, And season him thy last and sweetest prey.

This said, they both betook them several wayes, Both to destroy, or unimmortal make All kinds, and for destruction to mature Sooner or later; which th’ Almightie seeing, From his transcendent Seat the Saints among, To those bright Orders utterd thus his voice.

See with what heat these Dogs of Hell advance To waste and havoc° yonder World, which I ravage, devastate So fair and good created, and had still Kept in that State, had not the folly of Man Let in these wastful Furies, who impute Folly to mee, so doth the Prince of Hell And his Adherents, that with so much ease I suffer them to enter and possess A place so heav’nly, and conniving° seem tacitly agreeing To gratifie my scornful Enemies, That laugh, as if transported with some fit Of Passion, I to them had quitted° all, handed over At random yielded up to their misrule; And know not that I call’d and drew them thither

601 unhide-bound Corps. Death’s hunger is such that he can never fill out his skin, so his “hide” does not cling close to his bones.

606 Sithe of Time. A familiar emblem shows Time (and Death) as a mower with a scythe. 620 wastful Furies. Avenging classical deities (the Eumenides), here, Sin and Death,

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My Hell-hounds, to lick up the draff° and filth dregs Which mans polluting Sin with taint hath shed On what was pure, till cramm’d and gorg’d, nigh burst With suckt and glutted offal, at one sling Of thy victorious Arm, well-pleasing Son, Both Sin, and Death, and yawning Grave at last Through Chaos hurld, obstruct the mouth of Hell For ever, and seal up his ravenous Jawes. Then Heav’n and Earth renewd shall be made pure To sanctitie that shall receive no staine: Till then the Curse pronounc’t on both precedes.° takes precedence

He ended, and the Heav’nly Audience loud Sung Halleluia, as the sound of Seas, Through multitude that sung: Just are thy ways, Righteous are thy Decrees on all thy Works; Who can extenuate° thee? Next, to the Son, disparage Destin’d restorer of Mankind, by whom New Heav’n and Earth shall to the Ages rise, Or down from Heav’n descend. Such was thir song, While the Creator calling forth by name His mightie Angels gave them several charge,° different duties As sorted° best with present things. The Sun suited Had first his precept° so to move, so shine, order As might affect the Earth with cold and heat Scarce tollerable, and from the North to call Decrepit Winter, from the South to bring Solstitial summers heat. To the blanc° Moone white, pale Her office they prescrib’d, to th’ other five Thir planetarie motions and aspects° astrological positions In Sextile, Square, and Trine, and Opposite, Of noxious efficacie, and when to joyne In Synod° unbenigne, and taught the fixt° conjunction / fixed stars Thir influence malignant when to showre, Which of them rising with the Sun, or falling,

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638–9. Cf. Rev. 21:1, “And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away.”

641–5. Cf. Rev. 19:6, “And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings, saying, Alleluia” and Rev. 16:7, “Even so, Lord God Almighty, true and righteous are thy judgments.”

657 other five. Planets, see note to 5.176–8. 659. The positions of 60, 90, 120, and 180 degrees, respectively.

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Should prove tempestuous:° To the Winds they set productive of storms Thir corners, when with bluster to confound Sea, Aire, and Shoar, the Thunder when to rowle With terror through the dark Aereal Hall. Some say he bid his Angels turne ascanse The Poles of Earth twice ten degrees and more From the Suns Axle; they with labour push’d Oblique the Centric Globe:° Som say the Sun the earth Was bid turn Reines from th’ Equinoctial Rode Like distant breadth to Taurus with the Seav’n Atlantick Sisters, and the Spartan Twins Up to the Tropic Crab; thence down amaine By Leo and the Virgin and the Scales, As deep as Capricorne, to bring in change Of Seasons to each Clime;° else had the Spring region Perpetual smil’d on Earth with vernant° Flours, flourishing in Spring Equal in Days and Nights, except to those Beyond the Polar Circles; to them Day Had unbenighted° shon, while the low Sun without any night To recompence his distance, in thir sight Had rounded still° th’ Horizon, and not known always Or° East or West, which had forbid the Snow either From cold Estotiland, and South as farr Beneath Magellan. At that tasted Fruit The Sun, as from Thyestean Banquet, turn’d His course intended; else how had the World Inhabited, though sinless, more then now, Avoided pinching cold and scorching heate? These changes in the Heav’ns, though slow, produc’d Like change on Sea and Land, sideral blast,° malign stellar influence

664–5 Winds. Often shown on early maps as blowing from the four “corners” of the earth. 668–80. The poem offers both a Copernican and a Ptolemaic explanation of the shifts made in the cosmos

so as to change the prelapsarian eternal spring, when the sun’s orbit was parallel to the equator, “Equinoctial Rode.” The Copernican explanation (offered first) proposes that the axis of the earth, “the Centric Globe,” is now tilted and the “Poles” turned “ascanse” (668–71). The Ptolemaic explanation is that the plane of the sun’s orbit is tilted (671–8) so that the sun journeys from Aries through the zodiac. In spring and summer it passes a like declination (“Like distant breadth”) through “Taurus” and the Pleiades (“the Seav’n / Atlantick Sisters”), Gemini (“the Spartan Twins”), and Cancer (“the Tropic Crab”). Then at full speed (“down amaine”) it moves in late summer and autumn through “Leo,” Virgo (“the Virgin”), and Libra (“the Scales”), to “Capricorne” in winter.

686–7 Estotiland. Northern Labrador. Magellan. The Straits of Magellan, at the tip of South America. 688 Thyestean. Thyestes seduced the wife of his brother Atreus, who, in revenge, served one of Thyestes’

sons to him in a “Banquet.” The sun changed its course in horror.

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Vapour, and Mist, and Exhalation° hot, meteors produced by vapor Corrupt and Pestilent:° Now from the North carrying plague Of Norumbega, and the Samoed shoar Bursting thir brazen Dungeon, armd with ice And snow and haile and stormie gust and flaw,° sudden squall Boreas and Cæcias and Argestes loud And Thrascias rend the Woods and Seas upturn; With adverse blast up-turns them from the South Notus and Afer black with thundrous Clouds From Serraliona; thwart of these as fierce Forth rush the Levant and the Ponent Windes Eurus and Zephir with thir lateral noise, Sirocco, and Libecchio. Thus began Outrage from liveless things; but Discord first Daughter of Sin, among th’ irrational, Death introduc’d through fierce antipathie: Beast now with Beast gan war, and Fowle with Fowle, And Fish with Fish; to graze the Herb all leaving, Devourd each other; nor stood much in awe Of Man, but fled him, or with count’nance grim Glar’d on him passing: these were from without The growing miseries, which Adam saw Alreadie in part, though hid in gloomiest shade, To sorrow abandond, but worse felt within, And in a troubl’d Sea of passion tost, Thus to disburd’n sought with sad complaint.

O miserable of happie! is this the end Of this new glorious World, and mee so late The Glory of that Glory, who now becom Accurst of blessed, hide me from the face Of God, whom to behold was then my highth Of happiness: yet well, if here would end

696 Norumbega. Northern New England and maritime Canada. Samoed. Northeastern Siberia. 698–706 Boreas . . . Cœcias . . . Argestes . . . Thrascias. All winds that blow from the north, northeast, and

northwest, bursting from the cave (“brazen Dungeon”) in which Aeolus had imprisoned the winds. “Notus and Afer” come from Sierra Leone (“Serraliona”) on the west coast of Africa. Blowing across them (“thwart”) are the “Levant” from the east and specifically the Levant region, and the “Ponent” (western) winds “Eurus” (east-southeast), “Zephir” (the west wind), “Sirocco” (southeast) and “Libecchio” (southwest).

707 Discord. The classical Discordia was the sister of Death, hence “Daughter of Sin.” 711 graze the Herb all leaving. Vegetation and fruit were the prelapsarian foods of all creatures; meat-

eating began with the Fall. 720 O miserable of happie. Adam’s “sad complaint” begins with the classical formula for a tragic fall, the

change from happiness to misery. Cf. Satan’s soliloquy on Mount Niphates (4.32–113).

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The miserie, I deserv’d it, and would beare My own deservings; but this will not serve; All that I eat or drink, or shall beget, Is propagated° curse. O voice once heard multiplied Delightfully, Encrease and multiply, Now death to hear! for what can I encrease Or multiplie, but curses on my head? Who of all Ages to succeed, but feeling The evil on him brought by me, will curse My Head, Ill fare our Ancestor impure, For this we may thank Adam; but his thanks Shall be the execration;° so besides curse Mine own that bide upon me, all from mee Shall with a fierce reflux on mee redound, On mee as on thir natural center light Heavie, though in thir place. O fleeting joyes Of Paradise, deare bought with lasting woes! Did I request thee, Maker, from my Clay To mould me Man, did I sollicite thee From darkness to promote me, or here place In this delicious Garden? as my Will Concurd not to my being, it were but right And equal° to reduce me to my dust, just Desirous to resigne, and render back All I receav’d, unable to performe Thy terms too hard, by which I was to hold The good I sought not. To the loss of that, Sufficient penaltie, why hast thou added The sense of endless woes? inexplicable Thy Justice seems; yet to say truth, too late, I thus contest; then should have been refusd Those terms whatever, when they were propos’d: Thou didst accept them; wilt thou enjoy the good, Then cavil° the conditions? and though God object to Made thee without thy leave, what if thy Son

738–41 Mine own. Adam’s “own” curse will remain “bide upon” him, and the curses of “all” his descen- dants will flow back (“redound”) on him as on their “natural center”; objects at that center (“in thir place”) were thought to be weightless (“light”), but these curses will be “Heavie.”

743–6. Cf. Isa. 45:9: “Woe unto him that striveth with his Maker! . . . Shall the clay say to him that fash- ioneth it, What makest thou?”

760–5. Cf. Isa. 45:10: “Woe unto him that saith unto his father, What begettest thou?”

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Prove disobedient, and reprov’d, retort, Wherefore didst thou beget me? I sought it not. Wouldst thou admit for his contempt of thee That proud excuse? yet him not thy election,° choice But Natural necessity begot. God made thee of choice his own, and of his own To serve him, thy reward was of his grace, Thy punishment then justly is at his Will. Be it so, for I submit, his doom° is fair, judgment That dust I am, and shall to dust returne: O welcom hour whenever! why delayes His hand to execute what his Decree Fixd on this day? why do I overlive, Why am I mockt with death, and length’nd out To deathless pain? how gladly would I meet Mortalitie my sentence, and be Earth Insensible, how glad would lay me down As in my Mothers lap! There I should rest And sleep secure; his dreadful voice no more Would Thunder in my ears, no fear of worse To mee and to my ofspring would torment me With cruel expectation. Yet one doubt Pursues me still, least all I° cannot die, all of me Least that pure breath of Life, the Spirit of Man Which God inspir’d, cannot together perish With this corporeal Clod; then in the Grave, Or in some other dismal place who knows But I shall die a living Death? O thought Horrid, if true! yet why? it was but breath Of Life that sinn’d; what dies but what had life And sin? the Bodie properly hath neither. All of me then shall die: let this appease The doubt, since humane reach° no further knows. understanding For though the Lord of all be infinite, Is his wrauth also? be it,° man is not so, even if it is But mortal doom’d. How can he exercise

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770 dust. Cf. Gen. 3:19: “dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.” 792. Adam concludes that the soul dies with the body; he has reasoned his way to part of Milton’s Mortalist

heresy (Christian Doctrine 1.13) but not the rest, that both body and soul rise again on the Last Day. 794–808 man is not so. Adam intuits an axiom of Scholastic philosophy, that the action of agents is limited

by the nature of the objects they act upon, so he reasons that “finite” matter cannot suffer “infinite” divine punishment.

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Wrath without end on Man whom Death must end? Can he make deathless Death? that were to make Strange contradiction, which to God himself Impossible is held, as Argument° proof Of weakness, not of Power. Will he draw out, For angers sake, finite to infinite In punisht man, to satisfie his rigour Satisfi’d never; that were to extend His Sentence beyond dust and Natures Law, By which all Causes else according still To the reception of thir matter act, Not to th’ extent of thir own Spheare. But say That Death be not one stroak, as I suppos’d, Bereaving° sense, but endless miserie taking away From this day onward, which I feel begun Both in me, and without° me, and so last outside of To perpetuitie; Ay me, that fear Comes thundring back with dreadful revolution° recurrence On my defensless head; both Death and I Am found Eternal, and incorporate° both, making one body Nor I on my part single, in mee all Posteritie stands curst: Fair Patrimonie That I must leave ye, Sons; O were I able To waste° it all my self, and leave ye none! use it up So disinherited how would ye bless Me now your curse! Ah, why should all mankind For one mans fault thus guiltless be condemn’d, If guiltless? But from mee what can proceed, But all corrupt, both Mind and Will deprav’d, Not to do onely, but to will the same With me? how can they then acquitted stand In sight of God? Him after all Disputes Forc’t° I absolve: all my evasions vain necessarily And reasonings, though through Mazes, lead me still But to my own conviction: first and last On mee, mee onely, as the sourse and spring Of all corruption, all the blame lights due;

799 Strange contradiction. Adam concludes, with the Scholastics and Milton himself, that God cannot do things that “imply a contradiction” (Christian Doctrine 1.2).

832–4 On mee, mee onely. Cf. the Son’s offer to accept all humankind’s guilt (3.236–7) and Eve’s similar offer (10.935–6).

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So might the wrauth. Fond° wish! couldst thou support foolish That burden heavier then the Earth to bear, Then all the World° much heavier, though divided universe With that bad Woman? Thus what thou desir’st, And what thou fearst, alike destroyes all hope Of refuge, and concludes thee miserable Beyond all past example and future, To Satan only like both crime and doom. O Conscience, into what Abyss of fears And horrors hast thou driv’n me; out of which I find no way, from deep to deeper plung’d!

Thus Adam to himself lamented loud Through the still Night, not now, as ere man fell, Wholsom and cool, and mild, but with black Air Accompanied, with damps° and dreadful gloom, noxious vapors Which to his evil Conscience represented All things with double terror: On the Ground Outstretcht he lay, on the cold ground, and oft Curs’d his Creation, Death as oft accus’d Of tardie execution, since denounc’t° pronounced The day of his offence. Why comes not Death, Said hee, with one thrice acceptable stroke To end me? Shall Truth fail to keep her word, Justice Divine not hast’n to be just? But Death comes not at call, Justice Divine Mends° not her slowest pace for prayers or cries. quickens O Woods, O Fountains, Hillocks, Dales and Bowrs, With other echo late I taught your Shades To answer, and resound farr other Song. Whom thus afflicted when sad Eve beheld, Desolate where she sate, approaching nigh, Soft words to his fierce passion she assay’d: But her with stern regard he thus repell’d.

Out of my sight, thou Serpent, that name best Befits thee with him leagu’d, thy self as false And hateful; nothing wants,° but that thy shape, is lacking Like his, and colour Serpentine may shew

276 Paradise Lost

860–2. Cf. Adam and Eve’s Morning Hymn (5:153–208, esp. 203–4). 867. Adam’s misogynistic outcry begins by reference to the patristic tradition that the name “Eve,” aspirated,

means “serpent.” Raphael (5:388–91) and Adam later (11.159–61) refer to the tradition that interprets her name to mean “life”; cf. 9.1067.

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Thy inward fraud, to warn all Creatures from thee Henceforth; least that too heav’nly form, pretended° made a disguise To hellish falshood, snare them. But for thee I had persisted happie, had not thy pride And wandring vanitie, when lest was safe, Rejected my forewarning, and disdain’d Not to be trusted, longing to be seen Though by the Devil himself, him overweening° overconfident To over-reach,° but with the Serpent meeting outwit Fool’d and beguil’d, by him thou, I by thee, To trust thee from my side, imagin’d wise, Constant, mature, proof against all assaults, And understood not all was but a shew Rather then solid vertu, all but a Rib Crooked by nature, bent, as now appears, More to the part sinister° from me drawn, the left side, evil Well if thrown out, as supernumerarie To my just number found. O why did God, Creator wise, that peopl’d highest Heav’n With Spirits Masculine, create at last This noveltie on Earth, this fair defect Of Nature, and not fill the World at once With Men as Angels without Feminine, Or find some other way to generate Mankind? this mischief had not then befall’n, And more that shall befall, innumerable Disturbances on Earth through Femal snares, And straight° conjunction with this Sex: for either close, intimate He never shall find out fit Mate, but such As some misfortune brings him, or mistake, Or whom he wishes most shall seldom gain Through her perversness, but shall see her gaind By a farr worse, or if she love, withheld By Parents, or his happiest choice too late Shall meet, alreadie linkt and Wedlock-bound To a fell° Adversarie, his hate or shame: bitter Which infinite calamitie shall cause

884–6 a Rib / Crooked. A commonplace of misogynistic discourses. 887–8 supernumerarie. Some commentators claimed that Adam had thirteen ribs on the left side, so he could

spare one for the creation of Eve and still retain his “just number.” 889–90 Spirits Masculine. Cf. 1.423–5. 891–2 defect / Of Nature. Aristotle (De Generatione) termed the female a defective male.

875

880

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905

To Humane life, and houshold peace confound. He added not, and from her turn’d, but Eve

Not so repulst, with Tears that ceas’d not flowing, And tresses all disorderd, at his feet Fell humble, and imbracing them, besaught His peace, and thus proceeded in her plaint.

Forsake me not thus, Adam, witness Heav’n What love sincere, and reverence in my heart I beare thee, and unweeting° have offended, unknowing Unhappilie deceav’d; thy suppliant I beg, and clasp thy knees; bereave° me not, deprive Whereon I live, thy gentle looks, thy aid, Thy counsel in this uttermost distress, My onely strength and stay: forlorn of thee, Whither shall I betake me, where subsist? While yet we live, scarse one short hour perhaps, Between us two let there be peace, both joyning, As joyn’d in injuries, one enmitie Against a Foe by doom° express assign’d us, judgment That cruel Serpent: On me exercise not Thy hatred for this miserie befall’n, On me alreadie lost, mee then thy self More miserable; both have sin’d, but thou Against God onely, I against God and thee, And to the place of judgment will return, There with my cries importune Heaven, that all The sentence from thy head remov’d may light On me, sole cause to thee of all this woe, Mee mee onely just object of his ire.

She ended weeping, and her lowlie plight,° posture Immovable till peace obtain’d from fault Acknowledg’d and deplor’d, in Adam wraught Commiseration; soon his heart relented Towards her, his life so late and sole delight, Now at his feet submissive in distress, Creature so faire his reconcilement seeking, His counsel whom she had displeas’d, his aide; As one disarm’d, his anger all he lost, And thus with peaceful words uprais’d her soon.

278 Paradise Lost

917–18. Eve assumes the posture of a classical suppliant, clasping Adam’s knees as she begs for reconciliation. 936–7 Mee mee only. Cf. Adam’s cry at 832–4 above and the Son’s offer (3.236–7).

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Unwarie, and too desirous, as before, So now of what thou knowst not, who desir’st The punishment all on thy self; alas, Beare thine own first, ill able to sustaine His full wrauth whose thou feelst as yet lest part, And my displeasure bearst so ill. If Prayers Could alter high Decrees, I to that place Would speed before thee, and be louder heard, That on my head all might be visited, Thy frailtie and infirmer Sex forgiv’n, To me committed and by me expos’d. But rise, let us no more contend, nor blame Each other, blam’d enough elsewhere, but strive In offices° of Love, how we may light’n duties Each others burden in our share of woe; Since this days Death denounc’t, if ought I see, Will prove no sudden, but a slow-pac’t evill, A long days dying to augment our paine, And to our Seed (O hapless Seed!) deriv’d.° passed down

To whom thus Eve, recovering heart, repli’d. Adam, by sad experiment° I know experience How little weight my words with thee can finde, Found so erroneous, thence by just event° outcome Found so unfortunate; nevertheless, Restor’d by thee, vile as I am, to place Of new acceptance, hopeful to regaine Thy Love, the sole contentment of my heart Living or dying, from thee I will not hide What thoughts in my unquiet brest are ris’n, Tending to some relief of our extremes,° extremities, hardships Or end, though sharp and sad, yet tolerable, As in° our evils, and of easier choice. considering If care of our descent° perplex° us most, descendants / torment Which must be born to certain woe, devourd By Death at last, and miserable it is To be to others cause of misery, Our own begotten, and of our Loines to bring Into this cursed World a woful Race, That after wretched Life must be at last Food for so foule a Monster, in thy power

953 that place. The place of judgment.

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965

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985

It lies, yet ere Conception to prevent° forestall The Race unblest, to being yet unbegot. Childless thou art, Childless remaine: So Death shall be deceav’d° his glut, and with us two cheated of Be forc’d to satisfie his Rav’nous Maw. But if thou judge it hard and difficult, Conversing, looking, loving, to abstain From Loves due Rites, Nuptial imbraces sweet, And with desire to languish without hope, Before the present object languishing With like desire, which would be miserie And torment less then none of what we dread, Then both our selves and Seed at once to free From what we fear for both, let us make short,° lose no time Let us seek Death, or he not found, supply With our own hands his Office on our selves; Why stand we longer shivering under feares, That shew no end but Death, and have the power, Of many ways to die the shortest choosing, Destruction with destruction to destroy.

She ended heer, or vehement° despaire passionate Broke off the rest; so much of Death her thoughts Had entertaind, as di’d her Cheeks with pale. But Adam with such counsel nothing° sway’d, not at all To better hopes his more attentive minde Labouring had rais’d, and thus to Eve repli’d.

Eve, thy contempt of life and pleasure seems To argue in thee somthing more sublime And excellent then what thy minde contemnes; But self-destruction therefore saught, refutes That excellence thought in thee, and implies, Not thy contempt, but anguish and regret For loss of life and pleasure overlov’d. Or if thou covet death, as utmost end Of miserie, so thinking to evade The penaltie pronounc’t, doubt not but God Hath wiselier arm’d his vengeful ire then so To be forestall’d; much more I fear least Death So snatcht will not exempt us from the paine

280 Paradise Lost

996 present object. Eve herself, who then imagines her own frustrated desire. 1015 What thy minde contemnes. Life, which your mind seems to despise.

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We are by doom° to pay; rather such acts judgment Of contumacie° will provoke the highest willful disobedience To make death in us live: Then let us seek Some safer resolution, which methinks I have in view, calling to minde with heed Part of our Sentence, that thy Seed shall bruise The Serpents head; piteous amends,° unless small consolation Be meant, whom I conjecture, our grand Foe Satan, who in the Serpent hath contriv’d Against us this deceit: to crush his head Would be revenge indeed; which will be lost By death brought on our selves, or childless days Resolv’d, as thou proposest; so our Foe Shall scape his punishment ordain’d, and wee Instead shall double ours upon our heads. No more be mention’d then of violence Against our selves, and wilful barrenness, That cuts us off from hope, and savours onely Rancor and pride, impatience and despite, Reluctance° against God and his just yoke struggling, resistance Laid on our Necks. Remember with what mild And gracious temper he both heard and judg’d Without wrauth or reviling; wee expected Immediate dissolution, which we thought Was meant by Death that day, when lo, to thee Pains onely in Child-bearing were foretold, And bringing forth, soon recompenc’t with joy, Fruit of thy Womb: On mee the Curse aslope Glanc’d on the ground, with labour I must earne My bread; what harm? Idleness had bin worse; My labour will sustain me; and least Cold Or Heat should injure us, his timely care Hath unbesaught provided, and his hands Cloath’d us unworthie, pitying while he judg’d; How much more, if we pray him, will his ear Be open, and his heart to pitie incline, And teach us further by what means to shun Th’ inclement Seasons, Rain, Ice, Hail and Snow,

1052–4. Adam echoes Elizabeth’s address to Mary, mother of Jesus, “Blessed is the fruit of thy womb” (Luke 1:42), alluding unaware to the promise about the “Seed” of the woman. aslope. Like a spear that “Glanc’d” aside from its target and hit the ground.

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Which now the Skie with various Face begins To shew us in this Mountain, while the Winds Blow moist and keen, shattering° the graceful locks° scattering / leaves Of these fair spreading Trees; which bids us seek Som better shroud,° som better warmth to cherish° shelter / keep warm Our Limbs benumm’d, ere this diurnal Starr° the sun Leave cold the Night, how we his gather’d beams Reflected, may with matter sere° foment,° dry / excite Or by collision of two bodies grinde The Air attrite° to Fire, as late the Clouds sparked by friction Justling or pusht with Winds rude in thir shock Tine the slant Lightning, whose thwart flame driv’n down Kindles the gummie bark of Firr or Pine, And sends a comfortable heat from farr, Which might supplie° the Sun: such Fire to use, add to And what may else be remedie or cure To evils which our own misdeeds have wrought, Hee will instruct us praying, and of Grace Beseeching him, so as we need not fear To pass commodiously this life, sustain’d By him with many comforts, till we end In dust, our final rest and native home. What better can we do, then to the place Repairing where he judg’d us, prostrate fall Before him reverent, and there confess Humbly our faults, and pardon beg, with tears Watering the ground, and with our sighs the Air Frequenting,° sent from hearts contrite, in sign filling Of sorrow unfeign’d, and humiliation meek. Undoubtedly he will relent and turn From his displeasure; in whose look serene, When angry most he seem’d and most severe, What else but favor, grace, and mercie shon?

So spake our Father penitent, nor Eve Felt less remorse: they forthwith to the place Repairing where he judg’d them prostrate fell Before him reverent, and both confess’d

282 Paradise Lost

1075–8. Cf. Lucretius, De Rerum Natura 5.1091–5, for the theory that fire was discovered from lightning strik- ing the forests. Tine. Ignite. thwart. Slanting.

1098–1104. The final six and a half lines repeat almost word for word lines 1086–92, only with changed verb tenses, as Adam’s proposed gesture of repentance is seen to be carried out in every detail.

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Humbly thir faults, and pardon beg’d, with tears Watering the ground, and with thir sighs the Air Frequenting, sent from hearts contrite, in sign Of sorrow unfeign’d, and humiliation meek.

The End of the Tenth Book.

Figure 8 Illustration to Book 11, 1688 ( John Baptista Medina)

BOOK 11 THE ARGUMENT

The Son of God presents to his Father the Prayers of our first Parents now repent- ing, and intercedes for them: God accepts them, but declares that they must no longer abide in Paradise; sends Michael with a Band of Cherubim to dispossess them; but first to reveal to Adam future things: Michaels coming down. Adam shews to Eve cer- tain ominous signs; he discerns Michaels approach, goes out to meet him: the Angel denounces thir departure. Eve’s Lamentation. Adam pleads, but submits: The Angel leads him up to a high Hill, sets before him in vision what shall happ’n till the Flood.

Thus they in lowliest plight repentant stood Praying, for from the Mercie-seat above Prevenient Grace descending had remov’d The stonie from thir hearts, & made new flesh Regenerate grow instead, that sighs now breath’d Unutterable, which the Spirit of prayer Inspir’d, and wing’d for Heav’n with speedier flight Then loudest Oratorie:° yet thir port° prayers / bearing Not of mean suiters, nor important less Seem’d thir Petition, then when th’ ancient Pair In Fables old, less ancient yet then these, Deucalion and chaste Pyrrha to restore The Race of Mankind drownd, before the Shrine Of Themis stood devout. To Heav’n thir prayers Flew up, nor missd the way, by envious windes Blow’n vagabond° or frustrate:° in they passd scattered / thwarted Dimentionless° through Heav’nly dores; then clad without physical extension

6 denounces. Proclaims.

1 stood. May mean “remained,” or that, after prostrating themselves (10.1099) they prayed standing upright; their “port” was “Not of mean suiters” (8–9). Cf. 4.720–2.

3–5 Prevenient Grace. Grace preceding human choice, enabling the will (in bondage as a result of sin) to repent. Cf. Ezek. 11:19, “I will take the stony heart out of their flesh, and will given them an heart of flesh” – a proof-text for regeneration.

5–7 Unutterable. Cf. Rom. 8:26: “we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered.”

10–14 ancient Pair. In a Greek myth analogous to the Noah story, “Deucalion” and his wife “Pyrrha” alone survive a universal flood by building an ark. They then pray to “Themis,” goddess of justice, who tells them to restore humankind by throwing stones behind them, which turn into men and women (Metamorphoses 1.318–415).

18 incense. Cf. Rev. 8:3, “another angel came . . . having a golden censer; and there was given unto him much incense, that he should offer it with the prayers of all saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne.”

25 Priest. In Christian Doctrine 1.15, Milton defines Christ’s priestly function as that whereby he “once offered himself to God the Father as a sacrifice for sinners, and has always made, and still continues to make inter- cession for us.”

33–4 Advocate / And propitiation. Cf. 1 John 2:1–2: “We have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous: And he is the propitiation for our sins.”

34–6 ingraft. The theological term for the Son taking to himself all the “works” of humans, perfecting their good deeds by his “Merit” and by his “Death” paying the debt due God’s justice for their evil deeds.

42–4 Made one. Cf. John 17:22–3: “that they may be one, even as we are one: I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one.”

With incense, where the Golden Altar fum’d, By thir great Intercessor, came in sight Before the Fathers Throne: Them the glad° Son pleased Presenting, thus to intercede began.

See Father, what first fruits on Earth are sprung From thy implanted Grace in Man, these Sighs And Prayers, which in this Golden Censer,° mixt incense-burner With Incense, I thy Priest before thee bring, Fruits of more pleasing savour from thy seed Sow’n with contrition in his heart, then those Which his own hand manuring° all the Trees cultivating Of Paradise could have produc’t, ere fall’n From innocence. Now therefore bend thine eare To supplication, heare his sighs though mute; Unskilful with what words to pray, let mee Interpret for him, mee his Advocate And propitiation, all his works on mee Good or not good ingraft, my Merit those Shall perfet, and for these my Death shall pay. Accept me, and in mee from these receave The smell of peace toward Mankinde, let him live Before thee reconcil’d, at least his days Numberd, though sad, till Death, his doom (which I To mitigate thus plead, not to reverse) To better life shall yeeld him, where with mee All my redeemd may dwell in joy and bliss, Made one with me as I with thee am one.

To whom the Father, without Cloud, serene. All thy request for Man, accepted Son, Obtain, all thy request was my Decree: But longer in that Paradise to dwell,

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50–5 pure immortal Elements. These themselves “purge” man as a “distemper” (“unharmoneous” dis- order), and “Eject” him from Eden to a place where the air and food are more “gross,” like himself, disposing him for death, the “dissolution wrought by Sin.”

64 Faith and faithful works. Cf. Christian Doctrine 1.22: “we are justified by faith without the works of the law, but not without the works of faith” – a qualification of the reformed doctrine of Sola Fides.

65 renovation. The resurrection and renewal of body and soul at the Last Day. 74–6. A trumpet sounded on Mount “Oreb” when God delivered the Ten Commandments to Moses (Exod.

19:19); it will sound again at the Last Judgment (“general Doom”).

The Law I gave to Nature him forbids: Those pure immortal Elements that know No gross, no unharmoneous mixture foule, Eject him tainted now, and purge him off As a distemper, gross to aire as gross, And mortal food, as may dispose him best For dissolution wrought by Sin, that first Distemperd° all things, and of incorrupt destroyed harmony in Corrupted. I at first with two fair gifts Created him endowd, with Happiness And Immortalitie: that fondly° lost, foolishly This other serv’d but to eternize woe; Till I provided Death; so Death becomes His final remedie, and after Life Tri’d in sharp tribulation, and refin’d By Faith and faithful works, to second Life, Wak’t in the renovation of the just, Resignes him up with Heav’n and Earth renewd. But let us call to Synod° all the Blest assembly Through Heav’ns wide bounds; from them I will not hide My judgments, how with Mankind I proceed, As how with peccant° Angels late they saw; sinning And in thir state, though firm, stood more confirmd.

He ended, and the Son gave signal high To the bright Minister that watchd, hee blew His Trumpet, heard in Oreb since perhaps When God descended, and perhaps once more To sound at general Doom. Th’ Angelic blast Filld all the Regions: from thir blissful Bowrs Of Amarantin Shade,° Fountain or Spring, unfading trees By the waters of Life, where ere they sate In fellowships of joy: the Sons of Light Hasted, resorting° to the Summons high, gathering And took thir Seats; till from his Throne supream

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83–98. Several phrases in God’s speech are closely quoted from Gen. 3:22–3: “And the Lord God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever: Therefore the Lord God sent him forth from the garden of Eden, to till the ground from whence he was taken.” Milton adds the phrase, “dream at least to live / For ever” (95–6) to signal that some of God’s statements (84–5, 94–5) are ironic.

115 As I shall thee enlighten. God, it seems, reveals the “future” events to Michael at the same time as Michael presents them to Adam (see 12:128).

Th’ Almighty thus pronouncd his sovran Will. O Sons, like one of us Man is become

To know both Good and Evil, since his taste Of that defended° Fruit; but let him boast forbidden His knowledge of Good lost, and Evil got, Happier, had suffic’d him to have known Good by it self, and Evil not at all. He sorrows now, repents, and prayes contrite, My motions° in him, longer then they move, impulses His heart I know, how variable and vain Self-left. Least therefore his now bolder hand Reach also of the Tree of Life, and eat, And live for ever, dream at least to live For ever, to remove him I decree, And send him from the Garden forth to Till The Ground whence he was taken, fitter soile.

Michael, this my behest have thou in charge, Take to thee from among the Cherubim Thy choice of flaming Warriours, least the Fiend Or° in behalf of Man, or to invade either Vacant possession° som new trouble raise: abandoned property Hast thee, and from the Paradise of God Without remorse drive out the sinful Pair, From hallowd ground th’ unholie, and denounce° announce To them and to thir Progenie from thence Perpetual banishment. Yet least they faint° become depressed, swoon At the sad Sentence rigorously urg’d, For I behold them softn’d and with tears Bewailing thir excess,° all terror hide. violation of law If patiently thy bidding they obey, Dismiss them not disconsolate; reveale To Adam what shall come in future dayes, As I shall thee enlighten, intermix My Cov’nant in the womans seed renewd; So send them forth, though sorrowing, yet in peace:

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100

105

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115

118–22. Cf. Gen. 3:24: “So he drove out the man; and he placed at the east of the garden of Eden Cherubims, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life.”

128–9 Cherubim; four faces each. Cf. Ezek. 1:10 and PL 6.753–6. Janus. The Roman god of door- ways had two faces – in one version, four, corresponding to the four seasons and the four quarters of the earth.

129–33 Argus. Argus, with one hundred eyes, was set by Juno to watch Jove’s mistress Io, but “Hermes” (Mercury) put all of his eyes to sleep with his music (“Arcadian Pipe”) and his sleep-inducing caduceus (“opiate Rod”).

135 Leucothea. Roman goddess of the dawn.

And on the East side of the Garden place, Where entrance up from Eden easiest climbes, Cherubic watch,° and of a Sword the flame sentinels Wide waving, all approach farr off to fright, And guard all passage to the Tree of Life: Least Paradise a receptacle prove To Spirits foule, and all my Trees thir prey, With whose stol’n Fruit Man once more to delude.

He ceas’d; and th’ Archangelic Power prepar’d For swift descent, with him the Cohort bright Of watchful Cherubim; four faces each Had, like a double Janus, all thir shape Spangl’d with eyes more numerous then those Of Argus, and more wakeful then to drouze, Charm’d with Arcadian Pipe, the Pastoral Reed Of Hermes, or his opiate Rod. Mean while To resalute the World with sacred Light Leucothea wak’d, and with fresh dews imbalmd The Earth, when Adam and first Matron Eve Had ended now thir Orisons, and found, Strength added from above, new hope to spring Out of despaire, joy, but with fear yet linkt; Which thus to Eve his welcome words renewd.° resumed

Eve, easily may Faith admit, that all The good which we enjoy, from Heav’n descends; But that from us ought° should ascend to Heav’n anything So prevalent° as to concerne the mind influential, potent Of God high-blest, or to incline his will, Hard to belief may seem; yet this will Prayer, Or one short sigh of humane breath, up-borne Ev’n to the Seat of God. For since I saught By Prayer th’ offended Deitie to appease, Kneel’d and before him humbl’d all my heart, Methought I saw him placable° and mild, forgiving

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155 promise. Cf. 10.179–81 158–60. Cf. Raphael’s salutation at 5.385–91. The name “Eve” is cognate with the Hebrew word meaning life. 172 sweat impos’d. Part of the punishment for the Fall, “In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread” (Gen.

3:19). Cf. PL 10.205. 185–6 Bird of Jove. The eagle swooped (“stoopt”) from his towering flight (“aerie tour”).

Bending his eare; perswasion in me grew That I was heard with favour; peace returnd Home to my Brest, and to my memorie His promise, that thy Seed shall bruise our Foe; Which then not minded° in dismay, yet now attended to Assures me that the bitterness of death Is past, and we shall live. Whence Haile to thee, Eve rightly call’d, Mother of all Mankind, Mother of all things living, since by thee Man is to live, and all things live for Man.

To whom thus Eve with sad° demeanour meek. serious, grave Ill worthie I such title should belong To me transgressour, who for thee ordaind A help, became thy snare; to mee reproach Rather belongs, distrust and all dispraise: But infinite in pardon was my Judge, That I who first brought Death on all, am grac’t The sourse of life; next favourable thou, Who highly thus to entitle me voutsaf ’st, Farr other name deserving. But the Field To labour calls us now with sweat impos’d, Though after sleepless Night; for see the Morn, All unconcern’d with our unrest, begins Her rosie progress smiling; let us forth, I never from thy side henceforth to stray, Wherere our days work lies, though now enjoind Laborious, till day droop; while here we dwell, What can be toilsom in these pleasant Walkes? Here let us live, though in fall’n state, content.

So spake, so wish’d much-humbl’d Eve, but Fate Subscrib’d not; Nature first gave Signs, imprest On Bird, Beast, Aire, Aire suddenly eclips’d° darkened After short blush of Morn; nigh in her sight The Bird of Jove, stoopt from his aerie tour, Two Birds of gayest plume before him drove: Down from a Hill the Beast that reigns in Woods,° the lion First hunter then, pursu’d a gentle brace,° pair

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170

175

180

185

194–5 mute signs. Both scenes portray a regal creature (eagle, lion) driving forth a superlatively lovely pair. Without making a specific interpretation Adam infers that they may be “Forerunners” of God’s purpose.

214–15 Mahanaim. “Jacob” gave this name, meaning “armies” or “camps” (“field Pavilion’d”) to a place where he saw an army of angels (Gen. 32:1–2).

216–20 flaming Mount. The “Syrian King” had “levied Warr” against “Dothan” in an effort to capture Elisha the prophet (“One man”), but God surrounded him on a mountain with horses and chariots of fire (2 Kgs 6:17).

Goodliest of all the Forrest, Hart and Hinde; Direct to th’ Eastern Gate was bent thir flight. Adam observ’d, and with his Eye the chase Pursuing, not unmov’d to Eve thus spake.

O Eve, some furder change awaits us nigh, Which Heav’n by these mute signs in Nature shews Forerunners of his purpose, or to warn Us haply° too secure° of our discharge perhaps / overconfident From penaltie, because from death releast Some days; how long, and what till then our life, Who knows, or more then this, that we are dust, And thither must return and be no more. Why else this double object in our sight Of flight pursu’d in th’ Air and ore the ground One way the self-same hour? why in the East Darkness ere Dayes mid-course, and Morning light More orient° in yon Western Cloud that draws bright O’re the blew Firmament a radiant white, And slow descends, with somthing heav’nly fraught.° stored

He err’d not, for by this° the heav’nly Bands by this time Down from a Skie of Jasper lighted° now alighted, shone In Paradise, and on a Hill made alt,° came to a halt A glorious Apparition, had not doubt And carnal° fear that day dimm’d Adams eye. bodily Not that more glorious, when the Angels met Jacob in Mahanaim, where he saw The field Pavilion’d with his Guardians bright; Nor that which on the flaming Mount appeerd In Dothan, cover’d with a Camp of Fire, Against the Syrian King, who to surprize One man, Assassin-like had levied Warr, Warr unproclam’d. The Princely Hierarch In thir bright stand,° there left his Powers° to seise formation / army Possession of the Garden; hee alone, To find where Adam shelterd, took his way,

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200

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210

215

220

240. Cf. Raphael’s appearance at 5.277–85. 242–4 Melibœan. Both Meliboea in Thessaly and “Sarra” (Tyre) were famous for purple dye (“grain”). “Iris”

as goddess of the rainbow (also the sign of God’s “Truce”) dyed the “wooff ” (threads woven across a warp).

Not unperceav’d of Adam, who to Eve, While the great Visitant approachd, thus spake.

Eve, now expect great tidings, which perhaps Of us will soon determin,° or impose make an end New Laws to be observ’d; for I descrie From yonder blazing Cloud that veils the Hill One of the heav’nly Host, and by his Gate None of the meanest, some great Potentate Or of the Thrones above, such Majestie Invests him coming; yet not terrible, That I should fear, nor sociably mild, As Raphael, that I should much confide, But solemn and sublime, whom not to offend, With reverence I must meet, and thou retire. He ended; and th’ Arch-Angel soon drew nigh, Not in his shape Celestial, but as Man Clad to meet Man; over his lucid° Armes bright A militarie Vest of purple flowd Livelier then Melibœan, or the graine Of Sarra, worn by Kings and Hero’s old In time of Truce; Iris had dipt the wooff; His starrie Helme unbuckl’d shew’d him prime In Manhood where Youth ended; by his side As in a glistering Zodiac° hung the Sword, belt of constellations Satans dire dread, and in his hand the Spear. Adam bowd low, hee Kingly from his State° regal bearing Inclin’d not, but his coming thus declar’d.

Adam, Heav’ns high behest no Preface needs: Sufficient that thy Prayers are heard, and Death, Then due by sentence when thou didst transgress, Defeated° of his seisure° many dayes cheated / possession Giv’n thee of Grace, wherein thou may’st repent, And one bad act with many deeds well done Mayst cover: well may then thy Lord appeas’d Redeem thee quite from Deaths rapacious claime; But longer in this Paradise to dwell Permits not; to remove thee I am come,

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230

235

240

245

250

255

260

269–70 Native Soile. Unlike Adam, Eve was created in the “Paradise” of Eden. 277. Milton departs from Gen. 2:19–20, in which Adam alone gives names. The action of naming the flowers

(like Adam’s naming of the beasts, 8.352–5) signifies intuitive knowledge of their nature. 279 ambrosial Fount. See 4.237–40, describing the fount in Eden that “Ran Nectar.”

And send thee from the Garden forth to till The ground whence thou wast tak’n, fitter Soile.

He added not, for Adam at the newes Heart-strook with chilling gripe° of sorrow stood, spasm That all his senses bound;° Eve, who unseen seized up Yet all had heard, with audible lament Discover’d° soon the place of her retire.° revealed / retreat

O unexpected stroke, worse then of Death! Must I thus leave thee Paradise? thus leave Thee Native Soile, these happie Walks and Shades, Fit haunt of Gods? where I had hope to spend, Quiet though sad, the respit° of that day delay That must be mortal to us both. O flours, That never will in other Climate grow, My early visitation, and my last At Eev’n, which I bred up with tender hand From the first op’ning bud, and gave ye Names, Who now shall reare ye to the Sun, or ranke Your Tribes,° and water from th’ ambrosial Fount? species Thee lastly nuptial Bowre, by mee adornd With what to sight or smell was sweet; from thee How shall I part, and whither wander down Into a lower World, to° this obscure compared to And wilde, how shall we breath in other Aire Less pure, accustomd to immortal Fruits?

Whom thus the Angel interrupted milde. Lament not Eve, but patiently resigne What justly thou hast lost; nor set thy heart, Thus over-fond, on that which is not thine; Thy going is not lonely, with thee goes Thy Husband, him to follow thou art bound; Where he abides, think there thy native soile.

Adam by this° from the cold sudden damp° by this time / stupor Recovering, and his scatterd spirits returnd, To Michael thus his humble words addressd.

Celestial, whether among the Thrones, or nam’d Of them the Highest, for such of shape may seem

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285

290

295

316. Cf. Gen. 4:14, Cain’s response to his punishment: “from thy face shall I be hid.” 323–6. The patriarchs raised “Altars” wherever God appeared to them.

Prince above Princes, gently hast thou tould Thy message, which might else in telling wound, And in performing end us; what besides Of sorrow and dejection and despair Our frailtie can sustain, thy tidings bring, Departure from this happy place, our sweet Recess,° and onely consolation left refuge Familiar to our eyes, all places else Inhospitable appeer and desolate, Nor knowing us nor known: and if by prayer Incessant I could hope to change the will Of him who all things can,° I would not cease knows, can do To wearie him with my assiduous cries: But prayer against his absolute Decree No more availes then breath against the winde, Blown stifling back on him that breaths it forth: Therefore to his great bidding I submit. This most afflicts me, that departing hence, As from his face I shall be hid, deprivd His blessed count’nance; here I could frequent, With worship, place by place where he voutsaf ’d Presence Divine, and to my Sons relate; On this Mount he appeerd, under this Tree Stood visible, among these Pines his voice I heard, here with him at this Fountain talk’d: So many grateful° Altars I would reare showing gratitude Of grassie Terfe, and pile up every Stone Of lustre from the brook, in memorie, Or monument to Ages, and thereon Offer sweet smelling Gumms and Fruits and Flours: In yonder nether World where shall I seek His bright appearances, or footstep trace? For though I fled him angrie, yet recall’d To life prolongd and promisd Race,° I now descendants Gladly behold though but his utmost skirts° distant signs Of glory, and farr off his steps adore.

To whom thus Michael with regard benigne. Adam, thou know’st Heav’n his, and all the Earth, Not this Rock onely; his Omnipresence fills

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310

315

320

325

330

335

357–8 future dayes. Prophetic visions are a common feature of epic, e.g., Aeneas’ vision of his descendants culminating in the Roman empire (Aeneid 6.754–854).

367 drencht. Placed in her eyes a soporific liquid (drench).

Land, Sea, and Aire, and every kinde that lives, Fomented° by his virtual° power and warmd: nurtured / exerting influence All th’ Earth he gave thee to possess and rule, No despicable gift; surmise not then His presence to these narrow bounds confin’d Of Paradise or Eden: this had been Perhaps thy Capital Seate, from whence had spred All generations, and had hither come From all the ends of th’ Earth, to celebrate And reverence thee thir great Progenitor. But this præeminence thou hast lost, brought down To dwell on eeven ground now with thy Sons: Yet doubt not but in Vallie and in plaine God is as here, and will be found alike Present, and of his presence many a signe Still following thee, still compassing° thee round surrounding With goodness and paternal Love, his Face Express, and of his steps the track Divine. Which that thou mayst beleeve, and be confirmd Ere thou from hence depart, know I am sent To shew thee what shall come in future dayes To thee and to thy Ofspring; good with bad Expect to hear, supernal° Grace contending heavenly With sinfulness of Men; thereby to learn True patience, and to temper joy with fear And pious sorrow, equally enur’d° tempered By moderation either state to beare, Prosperous or adverse: so shalt thou lead Safest thy life, and best prepar’d endure Thy mortal passage when it comes. Ascend This Hill; let Eve (for I have drencht her eyes) Here sleep below while thou to foresight wak’st, As once thou slepst, while Shee to life was formd.

To whom thus Adam gratefully repli’d. Ascend, I follow thee, safe Guide, the path Thou lead’st me, and to the hand of Heav’n submit, However chast’ning, to the evil turne My obvious° breast, arming to overcom exposed, vulnerable

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350

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360

365

370

381–4. When Satan tempted Christ (the subject of Milton’s brief epic, Paradise Regained) he took him to “an exceeding high mountain” and showed him “all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them” (Matt. 4:8). Cf. Paradise Regained 3.251–4.169.

383–92. Christ, the “second Adam” (but not Adam, who is shown “nobler sights,” 411), will first view “des- tined” (yet to come) kingdoms in Asia: “Cambalu,” capital of Cathay (north China), ruled by such Khans as Ghenghis and Kublei, “Cathaian Can”; “Temir” (Tamburlaine), ruled “Samarchand” (Samarkand), near the “Oxus” river in modern Uzbekistan; “Paquin” (Peking, Beijing), of “Sinæan Kings” (Chinese); “Agra and Lahor” (Lahore), “Mogul” capitals in northern India and Pakistan; “golden Chersonese,” the Malay peninsula east of India, fabled for wealth.

393–6. Then Christ will see “Persian,” Russian, and Turkish kingdoms. In Persia (Iran), he will see “Ecbatan” (Hamadan), a summer residence of Persian kings, and “Hispahan” (Isfahan), which became the Persian capital in the sixteenth century. “Bizance” (Byzantium, Constantinople, Istanbul) was capital of the Ottoman empire and ruled by “Sultans” after falling to the Turks in 1453.

397–401. In Africa he will see Abyssinia (northern Ethiopia), empire of the “Negus” (ruler) reaching to “Ercoco” (Arkiko), a Red Sea port. Then “Mombaza” (Mombasa) and “Melind” (Malindi) in Kenya and “Quiloa” (Kilwa), an island port off the coast of Tanzania; “Sofala,” a port in Mozambique, sometimes identified with the biblical “Ophir,” from which Solomon took gold for his temple (1 Kgs 9:28); and “Congo” and “Angola” on the west coast.

By suffering, and earne rest from labour won, If so I may attain. So both ascend In the Visions of God: It was a Hill Of Paradise the highest, from whose top The Hemisphere of Earth in cleerest Ken Stretcht out to the amplest reach of prospect lay. Not higher that Hill nor wider looking round, Whereon for different cause the Tempter set Our second Adam in the Wilderness, To shew him all Earths Kingdomes and thir Glory. His Eye might there command wherever stood City of old or modern Fame, the Seat Of mightiest Empire, from the destind Walls Of Cambalu, seat of Cathaian Can And Samarchand by Oxus, Temirs Throne, To Paquin of Sinæan Kings, and thence To Agra and Lahor of great Mogul Down to the golden Chersonese, or where The Persian in Ecbatan sate, or since In Hispahan, or where the Russian Ksar In Mosco, or the Sultan in Bizance, Turchestan-born; nor could his eye not ken° see Th’ Empire of Negus to his utmost Port Ercoco and the less Maritim Kings Mombaza, and Quiloa, and Melind,

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380

385

390

395

402–4. In North Africa, looking from the “Niger” river in west Africa flowing eastward to the Atlantic to the “Atlas” mountains in Morocco (or possibly to Mout Atlas in Mauritania), he sees the kingdom of various Muslim rulers called Al Mansur (“Almansor”), probably referring to Abu’Amir al Ma-Ma’afiri, Caliph of Cordova. That empire takes in “Fez,” capital of Morocco, Tunis (“Sus”), “Algiers, “ and “Tremisen” (Tlemeen), part of Algeria.

406–11. Christ will see places in the New World only “in Spirit,” probably because they lie on the other side of the spherical earth: “Mexico” the seat of Montezuma (“Motezume”), the last Aztec emperor; “Cusco in Peru” seat of Atahualpa (“Atabalipa”), the last Inca emperor, murdered by Pizarro; “yet unspoil’d / Guiana” (a region including Surinam, Guyana, and parts of Venezuela and Brazil) – not yet discovered and plun- dered by the Spanish. Its chief city, Manoa, was identified with the mythical city of gold, “El Dorado,” by “Geryons Sons” (the Spanish); in Spenser’s Faerie Queene Geryon, a mythical three-headed monster killed by Hercules, is an allegory of the great power and oppression of Spain.

414 Euphrasie and Rue. Both herbs were thought to sharpen eyesight.

And Sofala thought Ophir, to the Realme Of Congo, and Angola fardest South; Or thence from Niger Flood to Atlas Mount The Kingdoms of Almansor, Fez and Sus, Marocco and Algiers, and Tremisen; On Europe thence, and where Rome was to sway The World: in Spirit perhaps he also saw Rich Mexico the seat of Motezume, And Cusco in Peru, the richer seat Of Atabalipa, and yet unspoil’d Guiana, whose great Citie Geryons Sons Call El Dorado: but to nobler sights Michael from Adams eyes the Filme remov’d Which that false Fruit that promis’d clearer sight Had bred; then purg’d with Euphrasie and Rue The visual Nerve, for he had much to see; And from the Well of Life three drops instill’d. So deep the power of these Ingredients pierc’d, Eevn to the inmost seat of mental sight, That Adam now enforc’t to close his eyes, Sunk down and all his Spirits became intranst:° in a trance But him the gentle Angel by the hand Soon rais’d, and his attention thus recall’d.

Adam, now ope thine eyes, and first behold Th’ effects which thy original crime hath wrought In some to spring from thee, who never touch’d Th’ excepted° Tree, nor with the Snake conspir’d, forbidden Nor sinn’d thy sin, yet from that sin derive Corruption to bring forth more violent deeds.

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425

His eyes he op’nd, and beheld a field, Part arable and tilth, whereon were Sheaves New reapt, the other part sheep-walks° and foulds; pasture Ith’ midst an Altar as the Land-mark° stood boundary-marker Rustic, of grassie sord;° thither anon turf A sweatie Reaper from his Tillage brought First Fruits, the green Eare, and the yellow Sheaf, Uncull’d,° as came to hand; a Shepherd next unselected More meek came with the Firstlings of his Flock Choicest and best; then sacrificing, laid The Inwards and thir Fat, with Incense strew’d, On the cleft Wood, and all due Rites perform’d. His Offring soon propitious° Fire from Heav’n favoring Consum’d with nimble glance,° and grateful° steame; quick flash / pleasing The others not, for his was not sincere; Whereat hee inlie rag’d, and as they talk’d, Smote him into the Midriff with a stone That beat out life; he fell, and deadly pale Groand out his Soul with gushing bloud effus’d. Much at that sight was Adam in his heart Dismai’d, and thus in haste to th’ Angel cri’d.

O Teacher, some great mischief° hath befall’n harm, injury To that meek man, who well had sacrific’d; Is Pietie thus and pure Devotion paid?

T’ whom Michael thus, hee also mov’d, repli’d. These two are Brethren, Adam, and to come Out of thy loyns; th’ unjust the just hath slain, For envie that his Brothers Offering found From Heav’n acceptance; but the bloodie Fact° crime Will be aveng’d, and th’ others Faith approv’d Loose no reward, though here thou see him die, Rowling in dust and gore. To which our Sire.

Alas, both for the deed and for the cause! But have I now seen Death? Is this the way

429–47. Milton’s version of the Cain and Abel story provides a clear reason for God’s acceptance of Abel’s sacrifice, as Gen. 4:1–16 does not. Michael does not name any of the biblical personages or places in Book 11; he sees the scenes but may not know the names these persons or places will bear.

430–1 arable. Land capable of being ploughed. tilth. Cultivated. 434–7 A sweatie Reaper. Cain. Cf. Gen. 4:2: “And Abel was a keeper of sheep, but Cain was a tiller of the

ground.” 441–2. Acceptable sacrifices were often consumed by “Fire from Heav’n”; Cf. Lev. 9:24 and Judg. 6:21. 455. Adam has to be told that these are his own sons, not simply descendants.

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435

440

445

450

455

460

477–95. This is the only non-biblical sight presented to Adam, a “Lazar-house” or hospital for leprosy and other infectious diseases, named for Lazarus (Luke 16:19–25).

484–8 Stone. Morbid concretion. Dæmoniac Phrenzie. Manic frenzy, often attributed to posses- sion by evil spirits. Moon-struck madness. Lunacy. pining Atrophie. Emaciation. Marasmus. A wasting away of the body. wide-wasting Pestilence. Plague (the Great Plague of 1665 had killed over 60,000 Londoners). Rheums. Rheumatic pains.

491. For Death’s “Dart” see 2.672, 786.

I must return to native dust? O sight Of terrour, foul and ugly to behold, Horrid to think, how horrible to feel!

To whom thus Michael. Death thou hast seen In his first shape on man; but many shapes Of Death, and many are the wayes that lead To his grim Cave, all dismal;° yet to sense dreadful More terrible at th’ entrance then within. Some, as thou saw’st, by violent stroke shall die, By Fire, Flood, Famin, by Intemperance more In Meats and Drinks, which on the Earth shall bring Diseases dire, of which a monstrous crew Before thee shall appear; that thou mayst know What miserie th’ inabstinence of Eve Shall bring on men. Immediately a place Before his eyes appeard, sad,° noysom,° dark, distressing / foul-smelling A Lazar-house it seemd, wherein were laid Numbers of all diseas’d, all maladies Of gastly Spasm, or racking torture, qualmes Of heart-sick Agonie, all feavorous kinds, Convulsions, Epilepsies, fierce Catarrhs, Intestin Stone and Ulcer, Colic pangs, Dæmoniac Phrenzie, moaping Melancholie And Moon-struck madness, pining Atrophie Marasmus and wide-wasting Pestilence, Dropsies, and Asthma’s, and Joint-racking Rheums. Dire was the tossing, deep the groans, despair Tended the sick busiest from Couch to Couch; And over them triumphant Death his Dart Shook, but delaid to strike, though oft invokt With vows, as thir chief good, and final hope. Sight so deform what heart of Rock could long Drie-ey’d behold? Adam could not, but wept,

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480

485

490

495

496 not of Woman born. A man’s tears and softer feelings were attributed to his feminine part; Adam was created of the dust of the earth, not born of woman. Cf. Macbeth 5.8.13–18.

511–13. Cf. Christian Doctrine 1.12: “some remnants of the divine image still exist in us, not wholly extin- guished by this spiritual death.”

518 His Image. Man does not now bear God’s image but that of “ungovern’d appetite.”

Though not of Woman born; compassion quell’d His best of Man,° and gave him up to tears manliness, courage A space, till firmer thoughts restraind excess, And scarce recovering words his plaint renew’d.

O miserable Mankind, to what fall Degraded, to what wretched state reserv’d! Better end heer unborn. Why is life giv’n To be thus wrested from us? rather why Obtruded° on us thus? who if we knew forced What we receive, would either not accept Life offer’d, or soon beg to lay it down, Glad to be so dismist in peace. Can thus Th’ Image of God in man created once So goodly and erect, though faultie since, To such unsightly sufferings be debas’t Under inhuman pains? Why should not Man, Retaining still Divine similitude In part, from such deformities be free, And for his Makers Image sake exempt?

Thir Makers Image, answerd Michael, then Forsook them, when themselves they villifi’d° debased To serve ungovern’d appetite, and took His Image whom they serv’d, a brutish vice, Inductive° mainly to the sin of Eve. leading on, traceable Therefore so abject is thir punishment, Disfiguring not Gods likeness, but thir own, Or if his likeness, by themselves defac’t While they pervert pure Natures healthful rules To loathsom sickness, worthily,° since they deservedly Gods Image did not reverence in themselves.

I yield it just, said Adam, and submit. But is there yet no other way, besides These painful passages, how we may come To Death, and mix with our connatural° dust? sharing nature

There is, said Michael, if thou well observe The rule of not too much, by temperance taught In what thou eatst and drinkst, seeking from thence

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505

510

515

520

525

530

542–4 Aire of youth. In assigning elements and humors to the several ages, “Aire” and the sanguine (“cheer- ful”) temperament arising from the blood were associated with youth; earth, and the melancholy tem- perament produced by phlegm and black bile (“cold and dry”) were associated with age. Cf. Robert Burton, Anatomy of Melancholy (1621), 1.2.2, 1.3.5. damp. Depression of spirits.

556–97 spacious Plaine. Adam’s third vision is based on Gen. 4:20–2, of the three sons of Lamech, descen- dants of Cain.

557–8 Tents . . . Cattel. These identify the persons in the first part of this vision with Jabel, “the father of such as dwell in tents, and of such as have cattle” (Gen. 4:20).

558–63 Instruments. Gen. 4:21 describes his brother Jubel as “father of all such as handle the harp and organ.” 563 fugue. Musical form in which one statement of the theme seems to chase another. 564–73 one who at the forge. Tubal-Cain, the third brother, was “an instructer of every artificer in brass

and iron” (Gen. 4:22).

Due nourishment, not gluttonous delight, Till many years over thy head return: So maist thou live, till like ripe Fruit thou drop Into thy Mothers lap, or be with ease Gatherd, not harshly pluckt, for death mature: This is old age; but then thou must outlive Thy youth, thy strength, thy beauty, which will change To witherd weak and gray; thy Senses then Obtuse,° all taste of pleasure must forgoe, dull To° what thou hast, and for the Aire of youth in comparison to Hopeful and cheerful, in thy blood will reigne A melancholly damp of cold and dry To weigh thy Spirits down, and last consume The Balme° of Life. To whom our Ancestor. preservative essence

Henceforth I flie not Death, nor would prolong Life much, bent rather how I may be quit Fairest and easiest of this combrous charge, Which I must keep till my appointed day Of rendring up, and patiently attend° await My dissolution. Michael repli’d,

Nor love thy Life, nor hate; but what thou livst Live well, how long or short permit° to Heav’n: leave And now prepare thee for another sight.

He lookd and saw a spacious Plaine, whereon Were Tents of various hue; by some were herds Of Cattel grazing: others, whence the sound Of Instruments that made melodious chime Was heard, of Harp and Organ; and who moovd Thir stops and chords was seen: his volant° touch moving rapidly, flying Instinct° through all proportions° low and high impelled / musical harmonies Fled and pursu’d transverse the resonant fugue. In other part stood one who at the Forge

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545

550

555

560

574–80 a different sort. The descendants of Seth, Adam’s third son (Gen. 4:25–6). hether side. The Western (or hither) side, away from the east where Cain’s sons lived.

578–9 works / Not hid. Seth’s descendants were traditionally credited with the discovery of astronomy, a lawful science not involving the “matters hid” that Raphael warned against. Or, perhaps, a contrast to Tubal-Cain’s delving for hidden metals (cf. 1.687–8).

588–9 Eevning Star. Venus, planet of love. 591 Hymen. God of marriage.

Labouring, two massie° clods of Iron and Brass massive Had melted (whether found where casual° fire accidental Had wasted woods on Mountain or in Vale, Down to the veins of Earth, thence gliding hot To som Caves mouth, or whether washt by stream From underground) the liquid Ore he dreind Into fit moulds prepar’d; from which he formd First his own Tooles; then, what might else be wrought Fusil° or grav’n° in mettle. After these, cast / sculpted But on the hether side a different sort From the high neighbouring Hills, which was thir Seat, Down to the Plain descended: by thir guise Just men they seemd, and all thir study bent To worship God aright, and know his works Not hid, nor those things last which might preserve Freedom and Peace to men: they on the Plain Long had not walkt, when from the Tents behold A Beavie of fair Women, richly gay° ornamented In Gems and wanton dress; to the Harp they sung Soft amorous Ditties, and in dance came on: The Men though grave, ey’d them, and let thir eyes Rove without rein, till in the amorous Net Fast caught, they lik’d, and each his liking chose; And now of love they treat° till th’ Eevning Star talk Loves Harbinger appeerd; then all in heat° animal desire They light the Nuptial Torch, and bid invoke Hymen, then first to marriage Rites invok’t; With Feast and Musick all the Tents resound. Such happy interview and fair event° outcome Of love and youth not lost, Songs, Garlands, Flours, And charming Symphonies° attach’d the heart harmonious music Of Adam, soon enclin’d to admit delight, The bent° of Nature; which he thus express’d. end, inclination

True opener of mine eyes, prime Angel blest, Much better seems this Vision, and more hope

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570

575

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585

590

595

613–14 a beauteous ofspring. The “Beavie of fair Women” (582). 621–5 Sons of God. Like most exegetes of Gen. 6:2, Milton identifies them as the descendants of Seth; the

women they wed (termed the daughters of men) are the descendants of Cain. Another tradition held that angels lay with these women (cf. 3.461–3).

625–6 swim. An anticipation of the Flood to come, which Adam does not yet understand. 632–3 woe / . . . Woman. Adam produces another false etymological pun (a misogynist cliché), like his

earlier pun on “Eve . . . evil” (9.1067).

Of peaceful dayes portends, then those two past; Those were of hate and death, or pain much worse, Here Nature seems fulfilld in all her ends.

To whom thus Michael. Judg not what is best By pleasure, though to Nature seeming meet, Created, as thou art, to nobler end Holie and pure, conformitie divine. Those Tents thou sawst so pleasant, were the Tents Of wickedness, wherein shall dwell his Race Who slew his Brother; studious they appere Of Arts that polish Life, Inventers rare, Unmindful of thir Maker, though his Spirit Taught them, but they his gifts acknowledg’d none. Yet they a beauteous ofspring shall beget; For that fair femal Troop thou sawst, that seemd Of Goddesses, so blithe, so smooth, so gay, Yet empty of all good wherein consists Womans domestic honour and chief praise; Bred onely and completed° to the taste fully equipped Of lustful appetence,° to sing, to dance, desire To dress, and troule° the Tongue, and roule the Eye. move, lick the lips To these that sober Race of Men, whose lives Religious titl’d them the Sons of God, Shall yield up all thir vertue, all thir fame Ignobly, to the traines° and to the smiles wiles, snares Of these fair Atheists, and now swim in joy, (Erelong to swim at large) and laugh; for which The world erelong a world of tears must weepe.

To whom thus Adam of short joy bereft. O pittie and shame, that they who to live well Enterd so faire, should turn aside to tread Paths indirect, or in the mid way faint! But still I see the tenor of Mans woe Holds on the same, from Woman to begin.

From Mans effeminate slackness it begins,

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605

610

615

620

625

630

638–73 Adam’s fourth vision is of the Giant offspring of the previous marriages (683–5). Cf. Gen. 6:4: “There were giants in the earth in those days, and also after that, when the sons of God came in unto the daugh- ters of men, and they bare children to them, the same became mighty men which were of old, men of renown.” Some details recall scenes from the shield of Achilles – siege, cattle raid, battle, assembly (Iliad 18.490–616).

656 Batterie. Battering rams. Scale. Ladders. Mine. Tunnels under the walls. 665–71 one rising. Enoch, who “walked with God, and he was not, for God took him” (Gen. 5:24). He was

translated to heaven at 365 years of age, “middle Age” compared to other patriarchs (Adam 930, Seth 912).

Said th’ Angel, who should better hold his place By wisdome, and superiour gifts receav’d. But now prepare thee for another Scene.

He lookd and saw wide Territorie spred Before him, Towns, and rural works between, Cities of Men with lofty Gates and Towrs, Concours° in Arms, fierce Faces threatning Warr, hostile encounters Giants of mightie Bone, and bould emprise;° enterprise, prowess Part wield thir Arms, part courb the foaming Steed, Single or in Array of Battel rang’d° drawn up in ranks Both Horse and Foot, nor idely mustring stood; One way a Band select° from forage drives of picked men A herd of Beeves, faire Oxen and faire Kine From a fat° Meddow ground; or fleecy Flock, fertile Ewes and thir bleating Lambs over the Plaine, Thir Bootie; scarce with Life the Shepherds flye, But call in aide, which makes a bloody Fray; With cruel Tournament the Squadrons joine; Where Cattle pastur’d late, now scatterd lies With Carcasses and Arms th’ensanguind° Field bloodstained Deserted: Others to a Citie strong Lay Seige, encampt; by Batterie, Scale, and Mine, Assaulting; others from the wall defend With Dart and Jav’lin, Stones and sulfurous Fire; On each hand slaughter and gigantic deeds. In other part the scepter’d Haralds call To Council in the Citie Gates: anon Grey-headed men and grave, with Warriours mixt, Assemble, and Harangues are heard, but soon In factious opposition, till at last Of middle Age one rising, eminent In wise deport, spake much of Right and Wrong, Of Justice, of Religion, Truth and Peace, And Judgment from above: him old and young

304 Paradise Lost

635

640

645

650

655

660

665

689–99 Might only. The traditional values of epic, which Milton critiques in the Proem to Book 9. what most merits fame. Cf. 9.31–3, “the better fortitude / Of Patience and Heroic Martyrdom / Unsung.”

700–9. Jude 14 identifies Enoch as “the seventh from Adam.” Some details are drawn from Jude 14–15, describ- ing Enoch’s prophecy of God’s pronouncing judgment with “ten thousand of his saints” on those “that are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have ungodly committed, and of all their hard speeches which ungodly sinners have spoken against him.” The “Cloud with winged Steeds” may be taken from Elijah’s translation to heaven (2 Kgs 2:11), often associated with Enoch’s.

Exploded° and had seiz’d with violent hands, mocked, drove out Had not a Cloud descending snatch’d him thence Unseen amid the throng: so violence Proceeded, and Oppression, and Sword-Law Through all the Plain, and refuge none was found. Adam was all in tears, and to his guide Lamenting turnd full sad; O what are these, Deaths Ministers, not Men, who thus deal Death Inhumanly to men, and multiply Ten thousandfould the sin of him who slew His Brother; for of whom such massacher Make they but of thir Brethren, men of men? But who was that Just Man, whom had not Heav’n Rescu’d, had in his Righteousness bin lost?

To whom thus Michael. These are the product Of those ill mated Marriages thou saw’st: Where good with bad were matcht, who of themselves Abhor to joyn; and by imprudence mixt, Produce prodigious° Births of bodie or mind. monstrous Such were these Giants, men of high renown; For in those dayes Might onely shall be admir’d, And Valour and Heroic Vertu call’d; To overcome in Battle, and subdue Nations, and bring home spoils with infinite Man-slaughter, shall be held the highest pitch Of human Glorie, and for Glorie done Of triumph, to be styl’d great Conquerours, Patrons of Mankind, Gods, and Sons of Gods, Destroyers rightlier call’d and Plagues of men. Thus Fame shall be atchiev’d, renown on Earth, And what most merits fame in silence hid. But hee the seventh from thee, whom thou beheldst The onely righteous in a World perverse, And therefore hated, therefore so beset

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670

675

680

685

690

695

700

703 daring single to be just. Cf. Abdiel at 6.30–2. 712–53. Adam’s fifth vision, of the general depravity of humans, the Flood, and Noah (“a Reverend Sire,”

719) is based on Gen. 6:5–9:17. The “Sea without shoar” (750) and some other details of lines 738–53 are taken from the story of Deucalion’s Flood in Metamorphoses 1.262–347.

730 Cubit. Ancient unit of measurement, from the elbow to the fingertip; the ark was 300 by 50 by 30 cubits (Gen. 6:15).

735 seavens, and pairs. Cf. Gen. 7:2, “Of every clean beast thou shalt take to thee by sevens, the male and his female; and of beasts that are not clean by two, the male and his female.”

With Foes for daring single to be just, And utter odious Truth, that God would come To judge them with his Saints: Him the most High Rapt in a balmie Cloud with winged Steeds Did, as thou sawst, receave, to walk with God High in Salvation and the Climes of bliss, Exempt from Death; to shew thee what reward Awaits the good, the rest what punishment; Which° now direct thine eyes and soon behold. to which

He look’d, and saw the face of things quite chang’d, The brazen Throat of Warr had ceast to roar, All now was turn’d to jollitie and game, To luxurie° and riot,° feast and dance, lust / debauchery Marrying or prostituting, as befell, Rape or Adulterie, where passing° faire surpassing, passing by Allurd them; thence from Cups to civil Broiles. At length a Reverend Sire among them came, And of thir doings great dislike declar’d, And testifi’d against thir wayes; hee oft Frequented thir Assemblies, whereso met, Triumphs° or Festivals, and to them preachd triumphal processions Conversion and Repentance, as to Souls In prison under Judgments imminent: But all in vain: which when he saw, he ceas’d Contending, and remov’d his Tents farr off; Then from the Mountain hewing Timber tall, Began to build a Vessel of huge bulk, Measur’d by Cubit, length, and breadth, and highth, Smeard round with Pitch, and in the side a dore Contriv’d, and of provisions laid in large For Man and Beast: when loe a wonder strange! Of every Beast, and Bird, and Insect small Came seavens, and pairs, and enterd in, as taught Thir order: last the Sire, and his three Sons

306 Paradise Lost

705

710

715

720

725

730

735

764–6. Cf. Matt. 6:34: “Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.” 768 foreknowledge. The term suggests that Adam is experiencing something akin to God’s foreknowledge,

which the poem insists is not predestination. Adam knows what is to happen but can neither cause it nor prevent it.

768–9 Birth / Abortive. Their birth seems to Adam both monstrous and too soon born.

With thir four Wives; and God made fast the dore. Meanwhile the Southwind rose, and with black wings Wide hovering, all the Clouds together drove From under Heav’n; the Hills to their supplie° assistance Vapour, and Exhalation dusk° and moist, dark mist Sent up amain;° and now the thick’nd Skie with main force Like a dark Ceeling stood; down rush’d the Rain Impetuous, and continu’d till the Earth No more was seen; the floating Vessel swum Uplifted; and secure with beaked prow Rode tilting o’re the Waves, all dwellings else Flood overwhelmd, and them with all thir pomp Deep under water rould; Sea cover’d Sea, Sea without shoar; and in thir Palaces Where luxurie late reign’d, Sea-monsters whelp’d And stabl’d; of Mankind, so numerous late, All left, in one small bottom° swum imbark’t. boat How didst thou grieve then, Adam, to behold The end of all thy Ofspring, end so sad, Depopulation; thee another Floud, Of tears and sorrow a Floud thee also drown’d, And sunk thee as thy Sons; till gently reard By th’ Angel, on thy feet thou stoodst at last, Though comfortless, as when a Father mourns His Children, all in view destroyd at once; And scarce° to th’ Angel utterdst thus thy plaint. barely able

O Visions ill foreseen! better had I Liv’d ignorant of future, so had borne My part of evil onely, each dayes lot Anough to beare; those now, that were dispenst° given The burd’n of many Ages, on me light° alight At once, by my foreknowledge gaining Birth Abortive, to torment me ere thir being, With thought that they must be. Let no man seek Henceforth to be foretold what shall befall Him or his Childern, evil he may be sure,

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740

745

750

755

760

765

770

Which neither his foreknowing can prevent, And hee the future evil shall no less In apprehension then in substance feel Grievous to bear: but that care now is past, Man is not whom° to warne: those few escapt No one is left Famin and anguish will at last consume Wandring that watrie Desert: I had hope When violence was ceas’t, and Warr on Earth, All would have then gon well, peace would have crownd With length of happy dayes the race of man; But I was farr deceav’d; for now I see Peace to corrupt no less then Warr to waste. How comes it thus? unfould, Celestial Guide, And whether here the Race of man will end.

To whom thus Michael. Those whom last thou sawst In Triumph and luxurious wealth, are they First seen in acts of prowess eminent And great exploits, but of true vertu void; Who having spilt much blood, and don much waste Subduing Nations, and achievd thereby Fame in the World, high titles, and rich prey, Shall change thir course to pleasure, ease, and sloth, Surfet, and lust, till wantonness and pride Raise out of friendship hostil deeds in Peace. The conquerd also, and enslav’d by Warr Shall with thir freedom lost all vertu loose And fear of God, from whom thir pietie feign’d In sharp contest of Battel found no aide Against invaders; therefore coold in zeale Thenceforth shall practice how to live secure, Worldlie or dissolute, on what thir Lords Shall leave them to enjoy; for th’ Earth shall bear More then anough, that temperance may be tri’d:° tested So all shall turn degenerate, all deprav’d, Justice and Temperance, Truth and Faith forgot; One Man except, the onely Son of light In a dark Age, against example good, Against allurement, custom, and a World

797–806. These lines may also allude to the backsliding Puritans who betrayed the Commonwealth in 1660 and have now taken on the vices of the restored royalists.

808 One Man except. Noah.

308 Paradise Lost

775

780

785

790

795

800

805

810

831 horned floud. Classical river gods were often depicted as horned. 833 the great River. The Euphrates (see Gen. 15:18). the op’ning Gulf. The Persian Gulf. 844–6. Cf. 5.423–6.

Offended;° fearless of reproach and scorn, hostile Or violence, hee of wicked wayes Shall them admonish, and before them set The paths of righteousness, how much more safe, And full of peace, denouncing° wrauth to come proclaiming On thir impenitence; and shall returne Of them derided, but of God observd The one just Man alive; by his command Shall build a wondrous Ark, as thou beheldst, To save himself and houshold from amidst A World devote° to universal rack.° doomed / destruction No sooner hee with them of Man and Beast Select° for life shall in the Ark be lodg’d, chosen And shelterd round, but all the Cataracts° floodgates Of Heav’n set open on the Earth shall powre Raine day and night, all fountains of the Deep Broke up, shall heave the Ocean to usurp Beyond all bounds, till inundation rise Above the highest Hills: then shall this Mount Of Paradise by might of Waves be moovd Out of his place, pushd by the horned floud, With all his verdure spoil’d, and Trees adrift Down the great River to the op’ning Gulf, And there take root an Iland salt and bare, The haunt of Seales and Orcs,° and Sea-mews° clang. whales / gulls To teach thee that God attributes to place No sanctitie, if none be thither brought By Men who there frequent, or therein dwell. And now what further shall ensue, behold.

He lookd, and saw the Ark hull° on the floud, drift Which now abated, for the Clouds were fled, Drivn by a keen North-winde, that blowing drie Wrinkl’d the face of Deluge, as decai’d; And the cleer Sun on his wide watrie Glass Gaz’d hot, and of the fresh Wave largely drew, As after thirst, which made thir flowing shrink From standing lake to tripping ebbe,° that stole running ebbtide With soft foot towards the deep, who now had stopt

Book 11 309

815

820

825

830

835

840

845

851 som high mountain. Mount Ararat (Gen. 8:4). 857–60 once and agen. Noah sent forth a “Dove” twice; the first time it failed to “spie” land, the second

time it returned with an “Olive leafe” (Gen. 8:8–12), a sign of peace (“pacific signe”). 866 three listed colours. Bands of the primary colors, red, blue, and yellow. gay. Bright. 867 Cov’nant new. See below, 892–5 and note. 876–8. The language invites recognition of Noah as a type (foreshadowing) of Christ, the one “perfet” and

“just” who will cause God to forget “his anger.”

His Sluces,° as the Heav’n his windows shut. gates The Ark no more now flotes, but seems on ground Fast on the top of som high mountain fixt. And now the tops of Hills as Rocks appeer; With clamor thence the rapid Currents drive Towards the retreating Sea thir furious tyde. Forthwith from out the Arke a Raven flies, And after him, the surer messenger, A Dove sent forth once and agen to spie Green Tree or ground whereon his foot may light; The second time returning, in his Bill An Olive leafe he brings, pacific signe: Anon drie ground appeers, and from his Arke The ancient Sire descends with all his Train; Then with uplifted hands, and eyes devout, Grateful° to Heav’n, over his head beholds expressing gratitude, pleasing, A dewie Cloud, and in the Cloud a Bow Conspicuous with three listed colours gay, Betok’ning peace from God, and Cov’nant new. Whereat the heart of Adam erst° so sad previously Greatly rejoyc’d, and thus his joy broke forth.

O thou who future things canst represent As present, Heav’nly instructer, I revive At this last sight, assur’d that Man shall live With all the Creatures, and thir seed preserve. Farr less I now lament for one whole World Of wicked Sons destroyd, then I rejoyce For one Man found so perfet and so just, That God voutsafes to raise another World From him, and all his anger to forget. But say, what mean those colourd streaks in Heavn, Distended° as the Brow of God appeas’d, spread out Or serve they as a flourie verge° to binde border, boundary The fluid skirts of that same watrie Cloud, Least it again dissolve and showr the Earth?

310 Paradise Lost

850

855

860

865

870

875

880

886–7. Cf. Gen. 6:6: “it repented the Lord that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart.”

892–5. This covenant marked by the rainbow – that God will not again destroy the earth by flood (Gen. 9:15–17) – is a type of the covenant of grace through which God will save humankind.

899. Cf. Gen. 8:22: “While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease.”

900–1. The restoration of nature following the Flood is seen as a type of the renewal of all things after the final conflagration at the Last Judgment, “new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness” (2 Pet. 3:13).

To whom th’ Archangel. Dextrously thou aim’st; So willingly doth God remit his Ire, Though late repenting him of Man deprav’d, Griev’d at his heart, when looking down he saw The whole Earth fill’d with violence, and all flesh Corrupting each thir way; yet those remoov’d, Such grace shall one just Man find in his sight, That he relents, not to blot out mankind, And makes a Covenant never to destroy The Earth again by flood, nor let the Sea Surpass his bounds, nor Rain to drown the World With Man therein or Beast; but when he brings Over the Earth a Cloud, will therein set His triple-colour’d Bow, whereon to look And call to mind his Cov’nant: Day and Night, Seed time and Harvest, Heat and hoary Frost Shall hold thir course, till fire purge all things new, Both Heav’n and Earth, wherein the just shall dwell.

The End of the Eleventh Book.

Book 11 311

885

890

895

900

BOOK 12 THE ARGUMENT

The Angel Michael continues from the Flood to relate what shall succeed; then, in the mention of Abraham, comes by degrees to explain, who that Seed of the Woman shall be, which was promised Adam and Eve in the Fall; his Incarnation, Death, Resurrection, and Ascention; the state of the Church till his second Coming. Adam greatly satisfied and recomforted by these Relations and Promises descends the Hill with Michael; wakens Eve, who all this while had slept, but with gentle dreams com- pos’d to quietness of mind and submission. Michael in either hand leads them out of Paradise, the fiery Sword waving behind them, and the Cherubim taking thir Stations to guard the Place.

As one who in his journey bates° at Noone, stops for refreshment Though bent on speed, so heer the Archangel paus’d Betwixt the world destroy’d and world restor’d, If Adam aught perhaps might interpose; Then with transition sweet new Speech resumes.

Thus thou hast seen one World begin and end; And Man as from a second stock proceed. Much thou hast yet to see, but I perceave Thy mortal sight to faile; objects divine Must needs impaire and wearie human sense: Henceforth what is to com I will relate, Thou therefore give due audience, and attend. This second sours of Men, while yet but few; And while the dread of judgement past remains Fresh in thir mindes, fearing the Deitie, With some regard to what is just and right Shall lead thir lives and multiplie apace, Labouring° the soile, and reaping plenteous crop, tilling Corn wine and oyle; and from the herd or flock, Oft sacrificing Bullock, Lamb, or Kid, With large Wine-offerings pour’d, and sacred Feast, Shal spend thir dayes in joy unblam’d, and dwell

1 succeed. Follow after.

7 second stock. from Noah himself, but also as a type of Christ in whom believers are ingrafted; see 3.287–89. 9 mortal sight to faile. Adam no longer sees the visions or pageants as before, but simply listens to Michael’s

narration; cf. Rom. 10:17, “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” Michael, however, continues to see the visions (128).

Book 12 313

Long time in peace by Families and Tribes Under paternal rule; till one shall rise Of proud ambitious heart, who not content With fair equalitie, fraternal state, Will arrogate Dominion undeserv’d Over his brethren, and quite dispossess Concord and law of Nature from the Earth, Hunting (and Men not Beasts shall be his game) With Warr and hostile snare such as refuse Subjection to his Empire tyrannous: A mightie Hunter thence he shall be styl’d Before the Lord, as in despite of Heav’n, Or from Heav’n claming second Sovrantie; And from Rebellion shall derive his name, Though of Rebellion others he accuse. Hee with a crew, whom like Ambition joyns With him or under him to tyrannize, Marching from Eden towards the West, shall finde The Plain, wherein a black bituminous gurge° whirlpool Boiles out from under ground, the mouth of Hell; Of Brick, and of that stuff they cast° to build decide A Citie and Towre, whose top may reach to Heav’n; And get themselves a name,° least far disperst reputation In foraign Lands thir memorie be lost Regardless whether good or evil fame. But God who oft descends to visit men Unseen, and through thir habitations walks To mark thir doings, them beholding soon,

24–35 one. Nimrod. Cf. Gen. 10:8–10: “And Cain begat Nimrod: he began to be a mighty one in the earth. He was a mighty hunter before the Lord . . . And the beginning of his kingdom was Babel.” Milton identifies Nimrod as the first king, in terms that equate kingship with tyranny. He explains “before the Lord” as meaning either that he openly defied God (“despite,” 34) or that he claimed divine right (“second Sovrantie,” 35) from heaven, like the Stuart kings.

29 law of Nature. Grounded in reason, and dictating a government based on “fair equalitie, fraternal state” (26). 36–7. Drawing upon a false etymology linking the name Nimrod with the Hebrew “to rebel,” Milton

associates Nimrod with kingship generally (cf. 1.484 and 6.199 for other rebel kings). The lines allude also especially to Charles I, who accused the Puritans of rebellion in the Civil War but who in Milton’s view was himself a rebel against God for usurping the absolute monarchy belonging only to God.

40–59 Plain. The plain of Shinar in ancient Babylon (“Sennaar,” 3.467). Gen. 11:4 describes the building of the “Towre” of Babel and refers to the “Citie” (Babylon). “And they said, Go to, let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven, and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth.” Though Genesis does not directly associate Nimrod with the tower, he was traditionally made responsible for both tower and city (Gen. 10:9–10).

Comes down to see thir Citie, ere the Tower Obstruct Heav’n Towrs, and in derision sets Upon thir Tongues a various° Spirit to rase° divisive / obliterate Quite out thir Native Language, and instead To sow a jangling noise of words unknown: Forthwith a hideous gabble rises loud Among the Builders; each to other calls Not understood, till hoarse, and all in rage, As mockt they storm; great laughter was in Heav’n And looking down, to see the hubbub strange And hear the din; thus was the building left Ridiculous, and the work Confusion nam’d.

Whereto thus Adam fatherly displeas’d. O execrable Son so to aspire Above his Brethren, to himself assuming Authoritie usurpt, from God not giv’n: He gave us onely over Beast, Fish, Fowl Dominion absolute; that right we hold By his donation; but Man over men He made not Lord; such title to himself Reserving, human left from human free. But this Usurper his encroachment proud Stayes not on° Man; to God his Tower intends stops not with Siege and defiance: Wretched man! what food Will he convey up thither to sustain Himself and his rash Armie, where thin Aire Above the Clouds will pine° his entrails gross, waste away And famish him of Breath, if not of Bread?

To whom thus Michael. Justly thou abhorr’st That Son, who on the quiet state of men Such trouble brought, affecting° to subdue aspiring Rational Libertie; yet know withall, Since thy original lapse, true Libertie Is lost, which alwayes with right Reason dwells

62 Confusion. Taken to be the meaning of “Babel,” where God in punishment confounded the original lan- guage of humans into multiple languages (Gen. 11:9).

64–71 aspire / Above his Brethren. Adam’s response suggests that republicanism is a matter of natural law, clearly understood as such by Adam; he echoes an argument Milton often invoked to support republi- canism against monarchy.

81–90 Rational Libertie. As Milton often did and as Abdiel did earlier (6.179–81), Michael links political to psychological servility, and political liberty to inner freedom, i.e., the exercise of “right Reason” and con- trol of passions.

314 Paradise Lost

Book 12 315

Twinn’d, and from her hath no dividual° being: separate Reason in man obscur’d, or not obeyd, Immediately inordinate desires And upstart Passions catch° the Government seize From Reason, and to servitude reduce Man till then free. Therefore since hee permits Within himself unworthie Powers to reign Over free Reason, God in Judgement just Subjects him from without to violent Lords; Who oft as undeservedly enthrall His outward freedom: Tyrannie must be, Though to the Tyrant thereby no excuse. Yet somtimes Nations will decline so low From vertue, which is reason, that no wrong, But Justice, and some fatal curse annext Deprives them of thir outward libertie, Thir inward lost: Witness th’ irreverent Son Of him who built the Ark, who for the shame Don to his Father, heard this heavie curse, Servant of Servants, on his vitious Race. Thus will this latter, as the former World, Still tend from bad to worse, till God at last Wearied with their iniquities, withdraw His presence from among them, and avert His holy Eyes; resolving from thenceforth To leave them to thir own polluted wayes; And one peculiar Nation to select From all the rest, of whom to be invok’d, A Nation from one faithful man to spring:

90–101. This passage, presenting loss of liberty as often (though not always) God’s punishment for a nation’s servility. implicitly interprets the Restoration of Charles II as a divine judgment on the baseness of the English.

101–4 th’ irreverent Son. Ham, son of Noah, looked on the nakedness of his father and brought down Noah’s curse upon himself and his “vitious Race” (depraved descendants): “Cursed be Canaan; a servant of ser- vants shall he be unto his brethren” (Gen. 9:25). Milton is probably thinking of the Canaanites (descen- dants of Ham’s son Canaan), since “Race” did not carry its modern meaning. Noah’s curse was used, however, to justify black slavery, as blacks came to be classed among Ham’s descendants.

111 one peculiar Nation. Israel, specially chosen by God, cf. Deut. 14:2, “The Lord hath chosen thee to be a peculiar people unto himself.” In Christian Doctrine 1.4 Milton notes the “national election, by which God chose the whole nation of Israel for his own people.” And, like many Puritans, he thought for a time that God had chosen England as a new Israel.

113 one faithful man. Abraham, whose name means “father of many nations.” Lines 113–51 are based on Gen. 11:27–17:9.

100

105

110

Him on this side Euphrates yet residing, Bred up in Idol-worship; O that men (Canst thou believe?) should be so stupid grown, While yet the Patriark liv’d, who scap’d the Flood, As to forsake the living God, and fall To worship thir own work in Wood and Stone For Gods! yet him God the most High voutsafes To call by Vision from his Fathers house, His kindred and false Gods, into a Land Which he will shew him, and from him will raise A mightie Nation, and upon him showre His benediction so, that in his Seed All Nations shall be blest; he straight° obeys immediately Not knowing to what Land, yet firm believes: I see him, but thou canst not, with what Faith He leaves his Gods, his Friends, and native Soile Ur of Chaldæa, passing now the Ford To Haran, after a cumbrous Train Of Herds and Flocks, and numerous servitude;° servants and slaves Not wandring poor, but trusting all his wealth With God, who call’d him, in a land unknown. Canaan he now attains, I see his Tents Pitcht about Sechem, and the neighbouring Plaine Of Moreh; there by promise he receaves Gift to his Progenie of all that Land; From Hamath Northward to the Desert South (Things by thir names I call, though yet unnam’d)

316 Paradise Lost

115 Bred up in Idol-worship. Tereh, Abraham’s father, worshiped idols. 117 Patriark. Noah, who lived 350 years after the Flood. 125–6 his Seed. Cf. Gen. 12:3: “in thee shall all families of the earth be blest.” Michael restates that prophecy

and applies it to the Messiah, the Seed of the woman (148–50). 127–9 with what Faith. Cf. Heb. 11:8: “By faith Abraham, when he was called . . . obeyed; and he went

out, not knowing whither he went.” Adam, who no longer sees the visions, must accept the story of Abraham by “Faith,” analogous to the faith Abraham himself displays.

130 Ur. A city on the west bank of the Euphrates, in the region of “Chaldæa.” 131 Haran. A city in northwestern Mesopotamia (now Turkey), reached by a “Ford” across one of the trib-

utaries of the Euphrates. 135 Canaan. The Promised Land of the Hebrews, in the area of modern Israel and the West Bank. 136 Sechem. Modern Nablus, a city in central Canaan. 137–46 by promise. Cf. God’s promise to Abraham (Gen. 12:7), “Unto thy seed will I give this land.” Also

Gen. 17:8, “I will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art a stranger, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession.” The Promised Land was bounded on the north by “Hamath,” a city on the Orontes river in west Syria; on the south by the wilderness (“Desert”) of Zin; on the east by “Mount Hermon”; and on the west by the Mediterranean Sea, the “great Western Sea.”

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From Hermon East to the great Western Sea, Mount Hermon, yonder Sea, each place behold In prospect, as I point them; on the shoare Mount Carmel; here the double-founted stream Jordan, true limit Eastward; but his Sons Shall dwell to Senir, that long ridge of Hills. This ponder, that all Nations of the Earth Shall in his Seed be blessed; by that Seed Is meant thy great deliverer, who shall bruise The Serpents head; whereof to thee anon Plainlier shall be reveald. This Patriarch blest, Whom faithful Abraham due time shall call, A Son, and of his Son a Grand-childe leaves, Like him in faith, in wisdom, and renown; The Grandchilde with twelve Sons increast, departs From Canaan, to a land hereafter call’d Egypt, divided by the River Nile; See where it flows, disgorging at seaven mouthes Into the Sea: to sojourn in that Land He comes invited by a yonger Son In time of dearth,° a Son whose worthy deeds famine Raise him to be the second in that Realme Of Pharao: there he dies, and leaves his Race Growing into a Nation, and now grown Suspected to° a sequent° King, who seeks by / succeeding To stop thir overgrowth,° as inmate° guests overpopulation / foreign Too numerous; whence of guests he makes them slaves Inhospitably, and kills thir infant Males: Till by two brethren (those two brethren call Moses and Aaron) sent from God to claime His people from enthralment, they return With glory and spoile back to thir promis’d Land.

143–7 Mount Carmel. A mountain range near Haifa, on the Mediterranean coast of Israel. Jordan. The river was thought incorrectly to have two sources (“double-founted”), the Jor and the Dan. Senir. A ridge of Mount Hermon.

152 faithful Abraham. This is the first personal name Michael identifies; he later supplies several names of persons and places. Abraham is given the epithet “faithful” by Paul in Gal. 3:9.

153 Son. Isaac. Grand-childe. Jacob. 155–64. Jacob’s son Joseph, the next youngest of his twelve sons, rose to a high position in Egypt and invited

his father and brothers to that land to escape famine; his story is told in Gen. 37–50. 158. Adam can evidently see geographical features, but not the scenes or persons Michael sees and describes. 165–214. The story of the Israelites enslaved in Egypt and freed by “Moses” and “Aaron” is told in Exod. 1–14. 172 spoile. “jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and raiment” (Exod. 12:35).

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But first the lawless Tyrant, who denies° refuses To know thir God, or message to regard, Must be compelld by Signes and Judgements dire; To blood unshed the Rivers must be turnd, Frogs, Lice and Flies must all his Palace fill With loath’d intrusion, and fill all the land; His Cattel must of Rot and Murren° die, plagues affecting cattle Botches° and blaines° must all his flesh imboss, boils, tumors / blisters And all his people; Thunder mixt with Haile, Haile mixt with fire must rend th’ Egyptian Skie And wheel on th’ Earth, devouring where it rouls; What it devours not, Herb, or Fruit, or Graine, A darksom Cloud of Locusts swarming down Must eat, and on the ground leave nothing green: Darkness must overshadow all his bounds, Palpable darkness, and blot out three dayes; Last with one midnight stroke all the first-born Of Egypt must lie dead. Thus with ten wounds° plagues The River-dragon tam’d at length submits To let his sojourners depart, and oft Humbles his stubborn heart, but still as Ice More hard’nd after thaw, till in his rage Pursuing whom he late dismissd, the Sea Swallows him with his Host, but them lets pass As on drie land between two christal walls, Aw’d by the rod of Moses so to stand Divided, till his rescu’d gain thir shoar: Such wondrous power God to his Saint° will lend, holy person Though present in his Angel, who shall goe Before them in a Cloud, and Pillar of Fire, By day a Cloud, by night a Pillar of Fire,

318 Paradise Lost

175–90 Signes and Judgements. The ten plagues God sent upon the Egyptians to force Pharaoh to release the Israelites.

191 River-dragon. Literally, the crocodile, here referring to the Egyptian Pharaoh, termed “the great dragon that lieth in the midst of his rivers” (Ezek. 29:3).

193–4 Ice / More hard’nd. Ice which thawed and then was refrozen was thought to be harder than never- melted ice.

194–214 Sea / Swallows him. Pharaoh’s forces (“Host”) were drowned in the Red Sea as it rushed back after the “rod of Moses” caused it to divide, forming “two crystal walls” which the Israelites passed between (Exod. 14:5–31.).

201–4 present in his Angel. Milton’s explanation, here and also in Christian Doctrine 1.5, as to how the Lord guided his people in a “Cloud” and a “Pillar of Fire” (Exod. 13:21–2).

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To guide them in thir journey, and remove Behinde them, while th’ obdurat King pursues: All night he will pursue, but his approach Darkness defends° between till morning Watch; prevents Then through the Firey Pillar and the Cloud God looking forth will trouble all his Host And craze° thir Chariot wheels: when by command shatter Moses once more his potent Rod extends Over the Sea; the Sea his Rod obeys; On thir imbattelld ranks the Waves return, And overwhelm thir Warr:° the Race elect° armies / chosen people Safe towards Canaan from the shoar advance Through the wilde Desert, not the readiest way, Least entring on the Canaanite allarmd° aroused, called to arms Warr terrifie them inexpert,° and feare inexperienced, unskilled Return them back to Egypt, choosing rather Inglorious life with servitude; for life To noble and ignoble is more sweet Untraind in Armes, where rashness leads not on. This also shall they gain by thir delay In the wide Wilderness, there they shall found Thir government, and thir great Senate choose Through the twelve Tribes, to rule by Laws ordaind: God from the Mount of Sinai, whose gray top Shall tremble, he descending, will himself In Thunder Lightning and loud Trumpets sound Ordaine them Lawes; part such as appertaine To civil Justice, part religious Rites Of sacrifice, informing them, by types And shadowes, of that destind Seed to bruise The Serpent, by what meanes he shall achieve Mankinds deliverance. But the voice of God

216 not the readiest way. The Israelites’ passage through the desert lasted thirty-eight years (Exod. 13:17–18).

225 great Senate. The Seventy Elders of the Sanhedrin (Num. 11:16–25), which Milton cites as a divinely ordained pattern of republican government in his Readie and Easie Way (1660).

226–32 Laws. God delivered ceremonial, civil, and moral/religious laws (the Ten Commandments) to Moses on “the Mount of Sinai,” with “Thunder Lightning and loud Trumpets” (Exod. 19–23).

232–3 types / And shadowes. The principle of typology, whereby persons and events in the Hebrew Bible are understood to prefigure Christ or matters pertaining to his life or to the church.

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To mortal eare is dreadful; they beseech That Moses might report to them his will, And terror cease; he grants what they besaught Instructed that to God is no access Without Mediator, whose high Office now Moses in figure beares, to introduce One greater, of whose day he shall foretell, And all the Prophets in thir Age the times Of great Messiah shall sing. Thus Laws and Rites Establisht, such delight hath God in Men Obedient to his will, that he voutsafes Among them to set up his Tabernacle, The holy One with mortal Men to dwell: By his prescript a Sanctuary is fram’d Of Cedar, overlaid with Gold, therein An Ark, and in the Ark his Testimony, The Records of his Cov’nant, over these A Mercie-seat of Gold between the wings Of two bright Cherubim, before him burn Seaven Lamps as in a Zodiac° representing like the planets The Heav’nly fires; over the Tent a Cloud Shall rest by Day, a fiery gleame by Night, Save when they journie, and at length they come, Conducted by his Angel to the Land Promisd to Abraham and his Seed: the rest Were long to tell, how many Battels fought, How many Kings destroyd, and Kingdoms won, Or how the Sun shall in mid Heav’n stand still A day entire, and Nights due course adjourne, Mans voice commanding, Sun in Gibeon stand, And thou Moon in the vale of Aialon,

320 Paradise Lost

236–8. Cf. the Israelites’ plea to Moses, “Speak thou with us and we will hear: but let not God speak with us, lest we die” (Exod. 20:19).

240–4 Mediator. Moses is a type (“figure”) of Christ in his role as mediator between the people and God; “all the Prophets”: in Christian typological explication, the prophets of the Hebrew Bible were read as foretelling Christ as Messiah.

247–56 Tabernacle. A portable “Sanctuary” (Exod. 25–6). 256–7. Cloud . . . fiery gleame. Described in Exod. 40:38. 259–60 Land. Canaan; see 137–46 and note. 263–9. At Joshua’s bidding, the sun stood still in “Gibeon,” and the moon in “Aialon,” (both a few miles north

of Jerusalem) “until the people had avenged themselves upon their enemies,” the Amorites ( Josh. 10:12–13). Israel. Isaac’s son Jacob was named Israel (“He that striveth with God”) and his descen- dants (“descent”) would come to be known as the Children of Israel (Gen. 32:28).

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Till Israel overcome; so call the third From Abraham, Son of Isaac, and from him His whole descent, who thus shall Canaan win.

Here Adam interpos’d. O sent from Heav’n, Enlightner of my darkness, gracious things Thou hast reveald, those chiefly which concerne Just Abraham and his Seed: now first I finde Mine eyes true op’ning, and my heart much eas’d, Erwhile perplext with thoughts what would becom Of mee and all Mankind; but now I see His day, in whom all Nations shall be blest, Favour unmerited by me, who sought Forbidd’n knowledge by forbidd’n means. This yet I apprehend not, why to those Among whom God will deigne to dwell on Earth So many and so various Laws are giv’n; So many Laws argue° so many sins indicate Among them; how can God with such reside?

To whom thus Michael. Doubt not but that sin Will reign among them, as of thee begot; And therefore was Law given them to evince° make evident Thir natural pravitie,° by stirring up depravity (original sin) Sin against Law to fight; that when they see Law can discover sin, but not remove, Save by those shadowie expiations weak, The bloud of Bulls and Goats, they may conclude Some bloud more precious must be paid for Man, Just for unjust, that in such righteousness To them by Faith imputed, they may finde Justification towards God, and peace Of Conscience, which the Law by Ceremonies Cannot appease, nor Man the moral part Perform, and not performing cannot live.

273–7 Mine eyes true op’ning. Adam supposes that the promise made to him pertains to Abraham’s seed, but he has yet to understand that Abraham is, in this, a type of Christ (see below, 446–50).

291–9 shadowie expiations. The ceremonial sacrifices of “Bulls and Goats” under the Law are types point- ing to Christ’s efficacious sacrifice, which alone can win “Justification” for humankind, by Christ’s merits being “imputed,” attributed vicariously, to them through “Faith.” The theological doctrine of justification holds that fallen humans cannot perform the commandments of the Law, or appease God through cere- monial sacrifices. Cf. Gal. 2:16: “A man is not justified by the works of the law, but by the faith of Jesus Christ.”

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So Law appears imperfet, and but° giv’n only With purpose to resign° them in full time yield Up to a better Cov’nant, disciplin’d From shadowie Types to Truth, from Flesh to Spirit, From imposition of strict Laws, to free Acceptance of large Grace, from servil fear To filial, works of Law to works of Faith. And therefore shall not Moses, though of God Highly belov’d, being but the Minister Of Law, his people into Canaan lead; But Joshua whom the Gentiles Jesus call, His Name and Office bearing, who shall quell The adversarie Serpent, and bring back Through the worlds wilderness long wanderd man Safe to eternal Paradise of rest. Meanwhile they in thir earthly Canaan plac’t Long time shall dwell and prosper, but° when sins except National interrupt thir public peace, Provoking God to raise them enemies: From whom as oft he saves them penitent By Judges first, then under Kings; of whom The second, both for pietie renownd And puissant deeds, a promise shall receive Irrevocable, that his Regal Throne For ever shall endure; the like shall sing All Prophecie, That of the Royal Stock Of David (so I name this King) shall rise A Son, the Womans Seed to thee foretold, Foretold to Abraham, as in whom shall trust All Nations, and to Kings foretold, of Kings

322 Paradise Lost

300–6. A more complete exposition of the theological concept of typology, according to which Judaism fore- shadows and is perfected by Christianity, the Old Law of justice is fulfilled in the New Law of love, and the covenant made with Moses is superseded by a “better Cov’nant,” the covenant of grace (cf. Heb. 8:6).

310–14 Jesus. The Greek equivalent of the Hebrew “Joshua,” who, rather than Moses, led the Children of Israel into the promised land of Canaan, being in this a type of Christ leading his people to the heavenly paradise.

320–34 Judges. Military leaders. The history briefly summarized here is recounted in Judges, 1 and 2 Sam., and 1 and 2 Kgs.

321–4 The second. The second king of Israel was David, promised by the prophet Nathan that “thy throne shall be established for ever” (2 Sam. 7:16).

325–7 Royal Stock. The Messiah was prophesied to come of David’s lineage, and Jesus was referred to as Son of David (Luke 1:32).

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The last, for of his Reign shall be no end. But first a long succession must ensue, And his next Son for Wealth and Wisdom fam’d, The clouded Ark of God till then in Tents Wandring, shall in a glorious Temple enshrine. Such follow him, as shall be registerd Part good, part bad, of bad the longer scrowle, Whose foul Idolatries, and other faults Heapt° to the popular° summe, will so incense added / people’s God, as to leave them, and expose thir Land, Thir Citie, his Temple, and his holy Ark With all his sacred things, a scorn and prey To that proud Citie, whose high Walls thou saw’st Left in confusion, Babylon thence call’d. There in captivitie he lets them dwell The space of seventie years, then brings them back, Remembring mercie, and his Cov’nant sworn To David, stablisht as the dayes of Heav’n. Returnd from Babylon by leave of Kings Thir Lords, whom God dispos’d,° the house of God inclined (to permit) They first re-edifie, and for a while In mean estate live moderate, till grown In wealth and multitude, factious they grow; But first among the Priests dissension springs, Men who attend the Altar, and should most Endeavour Peace: thir strife pollution brings Upon the Temple it self: at last they seise The Scepter, and regard not Davids Sons,° descendants Then loose it to a stranger, that the true Anointed King Messiah might be born

332–4 his next Son. Solomon, noted for “Wisdom,” built a “glorious Temple” to house the Ark of the Covenant (1 Kgs 6–7). clouded Ark. So called because “a cloud covered the tent of the congregation” which held the Ark when the Israelites wandered in the desert (Exod. 40:34).

339–45 proud Citie. Babylon. The Babylonian captivity and the destruction of the Temple (sixth century BCE) are recounted in 2 Kgs 25 and Jer. 39:1–10.

346–50 Cov’nant sworn. The promise to David to make “his throne as the days of heaven” (Ps. 89:29). leave of Kings. The Persian kings Cyrus the Great, Darius, and Artaxerxes allowed the Israelites to return from Babylon and rebuild the Temple (Ezra).

353–7 Priests dissension. Strife among the priests allowed the Selucid king Antiochus IV to sack Jerusalem and pollute the Temple; then one of the priestly family of the Maccabees, Aristobulus I, seized the “Scepter,” disregarding the claims of David’s dynasty.

358 stranger. Antipater the Idumean, father of Herod the Great who ruled at the time of Christ’s birth, was procurator of Judaea from 47 BCE.

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Barr’d of his right; yet at his Birth a Starr Unseen before in Heav’n proclaims him com, And guides the Eastern Sages,° who enquire the Magi His place, to offer Incense, Myrrh, and Gold; His place of birth a solemn° Angel tells awe-inspiring To simple Shepherds, keeping watch by night; They gladly thither haste, and by a Quire Of squadrond Angels hear his Carol sung. A Virgin is his Mother, but his Sire The Power of the most High; he shall ascend The Throne hereditarie, and bound his Reign With earths wide bounds, his glory with the Heav’ns.

He ceas’d, discerning Adam with such joy Surcharg’d,° as had like grief bin dew’d in tears, overwhelmed Without the vent of words, which these he breathd.

O Prophet of glad tidings, finisher Of utmost hope! now clear I understand What oft my steddiest thoughts have searcht in vain, Why our great expectation should be call’d The seed of Woman: Virgin Mother, Haile, High in the love of Heav’n, yet from my Loynes Thou shalt proceed, and from thy Womb the Son Of God most High; So God with man unites. Needs must the Serpent now his capital° bruise on the head, fatal Expect with mortal paine: say where and when Thir fight, what stroke shall bruise the Victors heel.

To whom thus Michael. Dream not of thir fight, As of a Duel, or the local wounds Of head or heel: not therefore joynes the Son Manhood to God-head, with more strength to foil Thy enemie; nor so is overcome Satan, whose fall from Heav’n, a deadlier bruise, Disabl’d not to give thee thy deaths wound: Which hee, who comes thy Saviour, shall recure,° heal Not by destroying Satan, but his works In thee and in thy Seed: nor can this be, But by fulfilling that which thou didst want,° lack

324 Paradise Lost

360–9. The story of the birth of Jesus is recounted in Matt. 1–2 and Luke 1–2. 370–1. An echo of Virgil’s prophecy of Augustus (Aeneid 1.287), “imperium Oceano, famam qui terminet

astris” (“he will bound his empire with the ocean, his glory with the stars”). 379. Cf. 5.385–7 and Luke 1:28.

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Obedience to the Law of God, impos’d On penaltie of death, and suffering death, The penaltie to thy transgression due, And due to theirs which out of thine will grow: So onely can high Justice rest appaid.° satisfied The Law of God exact° he shall fulfill strict, perfect Both by obedience and by love, though love Alone fulfill the Law; thy punishment He shall endure by coming in the Flesh To a reproachful life and cursed death, Proclaiming Life to all who shall believe In his redemption, and that his obedience Imputed becomes theirs by Faith, his merits To save them, not thir own, though legal works. For this he shall live hated, be blasphem’d, Seis’d on by force, judg’d, and to death condemnd A shameful and accurst, naild to the Cross By his own Nation, slaine for bringing Life; But to the Cross he nailes thy Enemies, The Law that is against thee, and the sins Of all mankinde, with him there crucifi’d, Never to hurt them more who rightly trust In this his satisfaction;° so he dies, payment of penalty But soon revives, Death over him no power Shall long usurp; ere the third dawning light Returne, the Starres of Morn shall see him rise Out of his grave, fresh as the dawning light, Thy ransom paid, which Man from death redeems, His death for Man, as many as offerd Life Neglect° not, and the benefit imbrace disregard By Faith not void of workes: this God-like act Annuls thy doom, the death thou shouldst have dy’d,

400 theirs. Your descendants’ transgressions which grow out of “thine.” 401–10. Michael restates the theological doctrine that Christ as “Saviour” will stand in place of humankind,

redressing their disobedience by his perfect “obedience” and suffering the “death” that was their punish- ment. Humans can only be saved by Christ’s “merits” attributed to them vicariously (“Imputed”), not by their own good works even if “legal,” conforming to God’s law.

403–4 love. Cf. Rom. 13:10, “Love is the fulfilling of the law.” 406. Cf. Gal. 3:13, “Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree.” 426–7 Faith not void of workes. Humans can obtain the “benefit” of Christ’s merits only by “Faith,” but

not without the “workes” that flow from faith. Cf. 11.64 and note, and also Jas. 2:26, “faith without works is dead.”

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In sin for ever lost from life; this act Shall bruise the head of Satan, crush his strength Defeating Sin and Death, his two maine armes, And fix farr deeper in his head thir stings° deadly effects Then temporal° death shall bruise the Victors heel, temporary, bodily Or theirs whom he redeems, a death like sleep, A gentle wafting to immortal Life. Nor after resurrection shall he stay Longer on Earth then certaine times to appeer To his Disciples, Men who in his Life Still follow’d him; to them shall leave in charge To teach all nations what of him they learn’d And his Salvation, them who shall beleeve Baptizing in the profluent° streame, the signe flowing Of washing them from guilt of sin to Life Pure, and in mind prepar’d, if so befall, For death, like that which the redeemer dy’d. All Nations they shall teach; for from that day Not onely to the Sons of Abrahams Loines Salvation shall be Preacht, but to the Sons Of Abrahams Faith wherever through the world; So in his seed all Nations shall be blest. Then to the Heav’n of Heav’ns he shall ascend With victory, triumphing through the aire Over his foes and thine; there shall surprise The Serpent, Prince of aire, and drag in Chaines Through all his Realme, and there confounded leave; Then enter into glory, and resume His Seat at Gods right hand, exalted high Above all names in Heav’n; and thence shall come, When this worlds dissolution shall be ripe, With glory and power to judge both quick° and dead, living To judge th’ unfaithful dead, but to reward His faithful, and receave them into bliss, Whether in Heav’n or Earth, for then the Earth Shall all be Paradise, far happier place Then this of Eden, and far happier daies.

So spake th’ Archangel Michael, then paus’d,

326 Paradise Lost

447–50. Michael here makes explicit the meaning of the promise offered typologically to Abraham’s seed. 454 Prince of aire. One of Satan’s titles; cf. Eph. 2:2, “prince of the power of the air.”

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As at the Worlds great period;° and our Sire endpoint, consummation Replete with joy and wonder thus repli’d.

O goodness infinite, goodness immense!° boundless That all this good of evil shall produce, And evil turn to good; more wonderful Then that which by creation first brought forth Light out of darkness! full of doubt I stand, Whether I should repent me now of sin By mee done and occasiond, or rejoyce Much more, that much more good thereof shall spring, To God more glory, more good will to Men From God, and over wrauth grace shall abound. But say, if our deliverer up to Heav’n Must reascend, what will betide the few His faithful, left among th’ unfaithful herd, The enemies of truth; who then shall guide His people, who defend? will they not deale Wors with his followers then with him they dealt?

Be sure they will, said th’ Angel; but from Heav’n Hee to his own a Comforter will send, The promise of the Father, who shall dwell° make to dwell His Spirit within them, and the Law of Faith Working through love, upon thir hearts shall write, To guide them in all truth, and also arme With spiritual Armour, able to resist Satans assaults, and quench his fierie darts, What° Man can do against them, not affraid, as much as Though to the death, against such cruelties With inward consolations recompenc’t, And oft supported so as shall amaze Thir proudest persecuters: for the Spirit Powrd first on his Apostles, whom he sends To evangelize° the Nations, then on all convert

469–78. These lines do not affirm a simple concept of felix culpa – that the Fall was fortunate in bringing humans greater happiness than they would otherwise have enjoyed – but rather, that the Fall provided God an occasion to bring still greater good out of evil. Cf. 5.496–503 for the prelapsarian plan for Adam and Eve’s growth in perfection.

486 Comforter. The Holy Spirit, who for Milton is much subordinate to both Father and Son. 489 upon thir hearts. Cf. Heb. 8:10, “I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts.” 491–2 spiritual Armour. Cf. Eph. 6:11–16: “Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand

against the wiles of the devil . . . Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.”

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Baptiz’d, shall them with wondrous gifts endue° endow To speak all Tongues, and do all Miracles, As did thir Lord before them. Thus they win Great numbers of each Nation to receave With joy the tidings brought from Heav’n: at length Thir Ministry perform’d, and race well run, Thir doctrine and thir story written left, They die; but in thir room, as they forewarne, Wolves shall succeed for teachers, grievous Wolves, Who all the sacred mysteries of Heav’n To thir own vile advantages shall turne Of lucre and ambition, and the truth With superstitions and traditions taint, Left onely in those written Records pure, Though not but by the Spirit understood. Then shall they seek to avail themselves of names,° honors Places° and titles, and with these to joine offices Secular power, though feigning still to act By spiritual, to themselves appropriating The Spirit of God, promisd alike and giv’n To all Beleevers; and from that pretense,° assertion of right Spiritual Lawes by carnal° power shall force fleshly, worldly On every conscience; Laws which none shall finde Left them inrould,° or what the Spirit within written (in the Bible) Shall on the heart engrave. What will they then But force the Spirit of Grace it self, and binde His consort Libertie; what, but unbuild His living Temples, built by Faith to stand, Thir own Faith not anothers: for on Earth

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501 speak all Tongues. Cf. Acts. 2:4–7, where the apostles speak in many tongues. 506 story written. In the Gospels and Epistles. 507–11 Wolves. Cf. Acts 20:29: “after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing

the flock.” See “Lycidas,” 113–29. 513–14. The Bible (“those written Records pure”) can only be rightly understood by the illumination of the

Spirit in each Christian. 515–37. The history summarized is of the corruption of the Church and persecutions of conscience in patris-

tic times and after, under the popes and Christian rulers, but the passage also alludes to what Milton saw as the revival of “popish” superstitions in the English Church after the Restoration and the fierce perse- cution of dissenters.

526 his consort Libertie. Cf. 2 Cor. 3:17: “Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.” Milton insisted in his prose tracts that Christ’s gospel and the Spirit of God promote liberty, civil and religious.

527 living Temples. Individual Christians, cf. 1 Cor. 3:16: “Know ye not that ye are the temple of God.”

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Who against Faith and Conscience can be heard Infallible? yet many will presume: Whence heavie persecution shall arise On all who in the worship persevere Of Spirit and Truth; the rest, farr greater part, Will deem in outward Rites and specious formes Religion satisfi’d; Truth shall retire Bestuck with slandrous darts, and works of Faith Rarely be found: so shall the World goe on, To good malignant, to bad men benigne, Under her own waight groaning till the day Appeer of respiration° to the just, respite And vengeance to the wicked, at return Of him so lately promiss’d to thy aid The Womans seed, obscurely then foretold, Now amplier known thy Saviour and thy Lord, Last in the Clouds from Heav’n to be reveald In glory of the Father, to dissolve Satan with his perverted World, then raise From the conflagrant mass,° purg’d and refin’d, burning world New Heav’ns, new Earth, Ages of endless date Founded in righteousness and peace and love To bring forth fruits Joy and eternal Bliss.

He ended; and thus Adam last reply’d. How soon hath thy prediction, Seer blest, Measur’d this transient World, the Race of time, Till time stand fixt: beyond is all abyss, Eternitie, whose end no eye can reach. Greatly instructed I shall hence depart, Greatly in peace of thought, and have my fill Of knowledge, what° this Vessel can containe; as much as Beyond which was my folly to aspire. Henceforth I learne, that to obey is best, And love with feare the onely God, to walk As in his presence, ever to observe His providence, and on him sole depend,

529–30 Infallible. An attack on papal claims of infallibility, asserted though not proclaimed as doctrine until 1870; the attack extends to all religious or civil leaders who attempt to impose an orthodoxy.

543–51. With the account of the Second Coming of Christ, the Last Judgment, and the renewal of all things, the meaning of the “Womans seed” destroying Satan’s works is made fully explicit. Cf. 2 Pet. 3:13, “we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth.”

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555

560

Mercifull over all his works, with good Still° overcoming evil, and by small continually, always Accomplishing great things, by things deemd weak Subverting worldly strong, and worldly wise By simply meek; that suffering for Truths sake Is fortitude to highest victorie, And to the faithful Death the Gate of Life; Taught this by his example whom I now Acknowledge my Redeemer ever blest.

To whom thus also th’ Angel last repli’d: This having learnt, thou hast attained the summe Of wisdom; hope no higher, though all the Starrs Thou knewst by name, and all th’ ethereal Powers, All secrets of the deep, all Natures works, Or works of God in Heav’n, Aire, Earth, or Sea, And all the riches of this World enjoydst, And all the rule, one Empire; onely add Deeds to thy knowledge answerable,° add Faith, corresponding Add vertue, Patience, Temperance, add Love, By name to come call’d Charitie, the soul Of all the rest: then wilt thou not be loath To leave this Paradise, but shalt possess A paradise within thee, happier farr. Let us descend now therefore from this top° hill, summit Of Speculation; for the hour precise Exacts° our parting hence; and see the Guards, requires By mee encampt on yonder Hill, expect Thir motion,° at whose Front a flaming Sword, signal In signal of remove,° waves fiercely round; departure We may no longer stay: go, waken Eve; Her also I with gentle Dreams have calm’d Portending good, and all her spirits compos’d To meek submission: thou at season fit Let her with thee partake what thou hast heard, Chiefly what may concern her Faith to know, The great deliverance by her Seed to come (For by the Womans Seed) on all Mankind.

330 Paradise Lost

567–68 weak / Subverting worldly strong. Cf. 1 Cor. 1:27: “God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty.”

587 paradise within thee. Compare Satan’s interior state at 4.20–2, 75. 589 Speculation. Both extensive view and theological inquiry.

565

570

575

580

585

590

595

600

Book 12 331

That ye may live, which will be many dayes, Both in one Faith unanimous though sad, With cause° for evils past, yet much more cheer’d good reason With meditation on the happie end.

He ended, and they both descend the Hill; Descended, Adam to the Bowre where Eve Lay sleeping ran before, but found her wak’t; And thus with words not sad she him receav’d.

Whence thou returnst, and whither wentst, I know; For God is also in sleep, and Dreams advise, Which he hath sent propitious, some great good Presaging, since with sorrow and hearts distress Wearied I fell asleep: but now lead on; In mee is no delay; with thee to goe, Is to stay here; without thee here to stay, Is to go hence unwilling; thou to mee Art all things under Heav’n, all places thou, Who for my wilful crime art banisht hence. This further consolation yet secure I carry hence; though all by mee is lost, Such favour I unworthie am voutsaft, By mee the Promis’d Seed shall all restore.

So spake our Mother Eve, and Adam heard Well pleas’d, but answer’d not; for now too nigh Th’ Archangel stood, and from the other Hill To thir fixt Station, all in bright array The Cherubim descended; on the ground Gliding meteorous,° as Ev’ning Mist like a meteor Ris’n from a River o’re the marish ° glides, marsh And gathers ground fast at the Labourers heel Homeward returning. High in Front advanc’t, The brandisht Sword of God before them blaz’d Fierce as a Comet; which with torrid heat, And vapour° as the Libyan Air adust,° smoke / scorched

611–13 Dreams advise. The lines suggest that Eve’s dream was also a vehicle of prophecy to her. Cf. Num. 12:6: “If there be a prophet among you, I the Lord will make myself known unto him in a vision, and will speak unto him in a dream.”

615–18 with thee to goe. Eve’s last love lyric in the poem invites comparison with her prelapsarian lyric (4.641–56); it also echoes Ruth’s promise to accompany her mother-in-law Naomi: “whither thou goest, I will go; and where thou lodgest, I will lodge” (Ruth 1:16).

621–3. In these lines Eve describes herself as the central epic protagonist of the poem, through whom “all” is lost and “all” is restored.

605

610

615

620

625

630

635

Began to parch that temperate Clime; whereat In either hand the hastning Angel caught Our lingring Parents, and to th’ Eastern Gate Led them direct, and down the Cliff as fast To the subjected° Plaine; then disappeer’d. low-lying They looking back, all th’ Eastern side beheld Of Paradise, so late thir happie seat, Wav’d over by that flaming Brand,° the Gate sword With dreadful° Faces throng’d and fierie Armes: fearsome Som natural tears they drop’d, but wip’d them soon; The World was all before them, where to choose Thir place of rest, and Providence thir guide: They hand in hand with wandring steps and slow, Through Eden took thir solitarie way.

THE END

332 Paradise Lost

640

645

Textual Notes

Citations are to the 1674 and 1667 editions and to the manuscript (MS) for Book 1; citations to the Arguments are to 1674 and 1668/9. The chosen reading is listed first. I have reversed italic and roman type in the prefatory Latin poem by Samuel Barrow, in the note on the verse, and in the Arguments.

Book 1

Argument

14. hope (1674, 1668) hopes (1669)

2. Forbidden (1674, 1667) forbidd’n (MS) 71. those (1674, 1667) these (MS) / thir (1674, MS) their (1667) 82. Satan (italics supplied) 97. lustre, (MS) lustre; (1674, 1667) 128. Powers ] Powers, (1667, 1674) powers (MS) The omitted comma in the MS allows an

arguably better reading, i.e., many princes (“Throned Powers”) under Satan’s conduct led the embattled Seraphim.

192. Satan (italics supplied) 314. Deep (1674, 1667) deeps (MS). 362. memorial, (1667) memoriall, (MS) memorial (1674) 432. those (1674, 1667) these (MS) 478. thir (1674) their (1667, MS) 504–5. “In Gibeah, when the hospitable door / Expos’d a Matron to avoid worse rape.” (1674)

“In Gibeah, when hospitable Dores / Yielded thir Matrons to prevent worse rape.” (1667) “In Gibeah, when hospitable doors / Yeilded thir Matrons to avoid worse rape.” (MS)

543. Night (italics supplied to conform to usual practice in referring to the character) 603. courage (1667, 1674) valour (MS) 703. founded (MS, 1667) found out (1674). Founded (melted) is preferable; the “ribs of gold”

were already found out at lines 688–90. 757. Satan (italics supplied)

Book 2

Argument

5. shall (1674) should (1668/9)

53. now (1674) now. (1667) 247. Heav’n (1674) Heav’n, (1667) 282. where (1667) were (1674). Either reading is possible but “where” suits the context better. 310. heav’n, (1667) heav’n (1674) 323. sure, (1667) sure (1674) 375. Original (1674) Originals (1667). Either is possible; the 1674 reading emphasizes Adam’s

role as the source of all humankind, including Eve. 414. wee (errata sheet 1668 and 1669) we (1674, 1667) 483. thir (1667) her (1674) 527. his (1667) this (1674). “His” conforms to pronouns in the passage. 628. Gorgons and Hydras, and Chimeras ] Gorgons and Hydra’s and Chimera’s (1674, 1667). The

apostrophes are evidently a printer’s error (see the correct plural “Gorgons”). 631. towards (1674) toward (1667) 712. Level’d (1667) Level d (1674) 801. Afresh (1667) A fresh (1674) 840. Death (italics supplied to conform to usual practice in referring to the character) 845. Death (italics supplied) 859. confin’d (1667) confin d (1674) 894. Night (italics supplied) 973. way (1667) way, (1674) 1001. [y]our (emendation) our (1667, 1674) It is the intestine broils in heaven, resulting in

the creation of hell and the universe, that have encroached on Chaos, not its own per- petual civil wars.

1024. Sin and Death (italics supplied to conform to usual practice in referring to the characters) 1039. brok’n (1667) brok’d (1674)

Book 3

Argument

2. his (1674) the (1668/9) 21. plac’t here, (1674, 1668) plac’t there, (1669)

515. Heav’n. ] Heav’n (1674) Heav’n. (1667) 592. Metal (emendation) Medal (1674, 1667) 630. impure (1674 some copies 1667) impure; (some copies 1667) 653. accostes. (some copies 1667) accostes; (some copies 1667, 1674). A period is usual before

quoted speech.

334 Textual Notes

Textual Notes 335

694. No indentation in 1674 or 1667, but the usual practice in both editions is to begin a new verse paragraph when the speaker changes.

741. in (1674, some copies 1667) with (some copies 1667)

Book 4

Argument

15. find him (1674) find him out (1668/9)

136. grottesque (1667) gottesque (1674) 194. Life, (1667) Life (1674) 412. Power (1667) power (1674) 451. of (1674) on (1667). 627. walk (1674) walks (1667). The context supports either reading. 705. shadier (1667) shadie (1674). The context invites the comparative. 720. stood, (1667) stood (1674) 751. ofspring (1667) ofsspring (1674) 841. be sure (emendation) besure (1674, 1667) 929. thy (1674) the (1667)

Book 5

Argument

6. appearance (1674) appearing (1668/9)

193. Breathe (1674, 1668 errata), Breath (1667) 506. repli’d. (1667) replied, (1674). The period is usual before quoted speech. 617. all. (1667) all (1674) 627. Eevning now approach’d (1674) Eevning approach’d (1667) 635–40. This passage contains three added lines and other changes from 1667. 1674 reads:

Fruit of delicious Vines, the growth of Heav’n. On flours repos’d, and with fresh flourets crownd, They eate, they drink, and in communion sweet Quaff immortalitie and joy, secure Of surfet where full measure onely bounds Excess, before th’ all bounteous King, who showrd

1667 reads: Fruit of delicious Vines, the growth of Heav’n. They eat, they drink, and with refection sweet Are fill’d, before th’ all bounteous King, who showrd

From this point on in Book 5 line numbers in 1667 differ by three lines from those of 1674.

650. God). Th’ Angelic ] Period omitted in both editions, evidently by accident as the capital indicates.

Book 6

311. small, if ] small, If (1674, 1667). The capital is clearly an error, as what follows com- pletes the epic simile begun in line 310.

568. So scoffing in ambiguous words, he scarce (1667) So scoffing in ambiguous words he scarce, (1674)

620. mood. (1667) mood, (1674). The period is usual before quoted speech. 666. under ground (1667) under ground, (1674). The added comma is probably a printer’s

error. 846. Wheels, (1667) Wheels (1674)

Book 7

Book 7 of the 1667 edition in ten books is divided into Books 7 and 8 in the 1674 edition, with lines 1–640 of Book 7 (1667) becoming the new Book 7 (1674).

Argument

The Argument to Book 7 (1674) contains the first half of the Argument to Book 7 as printed in 1668 and 1669.

321. swelling (Bentley’s emendation) ] smelling (1667, 1674) The emendation is widely accepted; the printer’s eye probably registered “smelling” from line 319.

322. and (1674) add (1667) 366. her (1674) his (1667) “her” would refer to Venus as the morning star, “his” to Lucifer.

The change seems deliberate, not accidental. 370. First in the East his glorious Lamp (Fletcher’s plausible emendation) ] First in his East

the glorious Lamp (1667, 1674). The printer evidently transposed “his” and “the.” 451. Soul (Bentley’s emendation) ] Foul (1674), Fowle (1667). The emendation is almost

certainly correct, as the creation of Fowles was treated in lines 417–46. The attempted correction in 1674 mistakenly kept F for the intended S.

494. needless (emendation) ] needlest (1674, 1667), probably an error, though it could be an intended variant.

563. stations (1667) station (1674) 588. Father, for ] Father (for (1674, 1667). The parenthesis should be a comma, given the

opening and closing parentheses in lines 589 and 590.

Book 8

Book 8 (1674) comprises lines 641–1290 of Book 7 in the 1667 edition.

336 Textual Notes

Textual Notes 337

Argument

The Argument to Book 8 (1674) contains the last half of the Argument to Book 7 as printed in 1668 and 1669. 1. Adam inquires (1674) Adam then inquires (1668/9) 2. search (1674) seek (1668/9)

1–3. added in 1674 when Book 7 (1667) was split. 4. Then as new wak’t thus gratefully repli’d. (1674) To whom thus Adam gratefully repli’d.

(7.641, 1667) 269 as (7.906, 1667) and (1674) 313. appeer’d (1674) appeer’d, (7.950, 1667) 466 warme, (7.1103, 1667) (1674?). There is a faint mark above the comma in all 1674 copies

examined, likely foul case rather than a semicolon. The usual line “The end of the . . . Book” was omitted for the 1667 Book 7.

Book 9

Argument

The Argument to Book 9 is the same as that for Book 8 as printed in 1668 and 1669.

75. Satan (italics supplied) 186. Nor (1674) Not (1667) 213. hear (1667) bear (1674) 272. reply’d. (1667) reply’d, (1674). The period is usual before quoted speech. 339. combin’d. (1667, 1674?). Possibly a comma but probably a period. 394. Likest (1667) Likeliest (1674) 581. Fenel, (1667) Fenel (1674). No comma prints in any copy of 1674, but space is left for it. 620 aboundance (1674) abundance (1667) 632 made (1674) make (1667) 687 Knowledge. By the Threatner? ] Knowledge? By the Threatner (1674, 1667). Question

mark is almost certainly misplaced in both editions. 745. Fruits, (1667) Fruits. (1674) 922. hath (1674) hast (1667) 949. long; (1674) long? (1667) 979. thee, (1667) thee (1674) 1016. move. (1667) move, (1674). The period is usual before quoted speech. 1019. we (1667) me (1674) 1058. shame: hee (colon added) ] shame hee (1674, 1667) 1059. more. So (1667) more, so (1674) 1092–3. for . . . from (1667) from . . . for (1674). The 1674 compositor evidently transposed

these words in the two lines. 1098 unclean. (1667) unclean, (1674) The End of the Ninth Book (1674) The End of the Eighth Book (1667)

Book 10

Argument

The Argument to Book 10 is the same as that for Book 9 as printed in 1668 and 1669.

3. Son (1674, 1668), Angels (1669) 9. Track (1674, 1668) tract (1669) meet (1674, 1668) met (1669) 11. in full assembly (1668, 1669) in full of assembly (1674). 15. take (1674) taste (1668, 1669)

58. might (1674) may (1667) 184, 189. Satan (italics supplied) 230, 234. Sin . . . Death (italics supplied to conform to usual practice in referring to the

characters) 241. Avengers (1674) Avenger (1667) 258. Satan (italics supplied) 271. aid. (1667) aid, (1674) 294. Death (italics supplied) 352. Sin (italics supplied) 397. these (1674) those (1667) 408. prevailes (1674) prevaile (1667) 473. sin . . . Death (italics supplied) 550. with fair Fruit (1667) with Fruit (1674) 706. Libecchio. (1667) Libecchio, (1674) 762. not. (1667) not (1674) 778. lap! ] lap? (1674, 1667). The question mark was often substituted for an exclamation point

in printing houses of the period. 801. he draw out, ] he, draw out, (1674, 1667) 827. they then acquitted (1674) they acquitted (1667) 835. bear, (1667) bear (1674) 989–90. “So Death” As Patrick Hume first pointed out (1695), these words at the beginning

of line 990 (1667, 1674) should perhaps have been printed at the end of line 989, which is otherwise the only line in the poem with only eight syllables, while line 990 has twelve. But this metrical irregularity has considerable rhetorical power.

997. miserie (1667) meserie (1674) The End of the Tenth Book (1674) The End of the Ninth Book (1667)

Book 11

Book 10 of the 1667 edition is divided to form Books 11 and 12 of the 1674 edition. Book 11 contains lines 1–897 of the 1667 Book 10.

338 Textual Notes

Textual Notes 339

Argument

The Argument of Book 11 (1674) is roughly the first half of the Argument to Book 10 as printed in 1668 and 1669.

2. but (1674, 1668) and (1669) 3. Cherubim (1674, 1668) Cherubims (1669)

233. coming; (1667) coming? (1674). Conceivably, the question mark was substituted for an exclamation point.

329. footstep trace (1667) foot step-trace (1674) 335. Earth, (1667) Earth. (1674) 380. to the amplest reach (1674) to amplest reach (1667). 1667 conforms to the meter, but

the change may be intended. 427. that sin derive (1667) that derive (1674) 485–7. added in 1674 Dæmoniac Phrenzie, moaping Melancholie And Moon-struck madness, pining Atrophie Marasmus and wide-wasting Pestilence, lines 484–5 in 1667 read: Intestin Stone and Ulcer, Colic Pangs, Dropsies, and Asthma’s, and Joint-racking Rheums. (line 488 in 1674) 551–2. Of rendring up and patiently attend / My dissolution. Michael repli’d, (1674) Of ren-

dring up. Michael to him repli’d (10.548, 1667) 579. last (1674, 1669 errata) lost (1667) 651. makes (1674) tacks (1667) 710. punishment; (1667) punishment? (1674) 787. New verse paragraph. Neither 1674 nor 1667 indent, but new speeches are normally

indented. This speech begins a new page so the compositor may have missed it. 870. who (1674) that (1667)

Book 12

The 1674 edition begins with five added lines, and contains lines 898–1541 of the 1667 Book 10.

Argument

The Argument to Book 12 is roughly the last half of the Argument to Book 10 in 1668 and 1669. Much of the first sentence is new: The Angel Michael continues from the Flood to relate what shall succeed; then, in the men- tion of Abraham, comes by degrees to explain, who that Seed of the Woman shall be, which was promised Adam and Eve in the Fall; his Incarnation, Death, Resurrection, and Ascention; the state of the Church till his Second Coming. Adam greatly satisfied. . . (1674)

. . . thence from the Flood relates, and by degrees explains, who that Seed of the Woman shall be; his Incarnation, Death, Resurrection, and Ascention; the state of the Church till his second Coming. Adam greatly satisfied. . . (1667)

9. Place. (1668, 1669) Place, (1674)

1–5 added in 1674. Lines 897–8 of Book 10 (1667) read: “Both Heav’n and Earth, wherein the just shall dwell. / Thus thou hast seen one World begin and end;” In 1674 these are line 901 of Book 11 and line 6 of Book 12. The paragraph inception at line 6 is new to the 1674 edition.

191. The (1674) This (1667) 238. he grants what they besaught (1674) he grants them thir desire (1667) 300. Law (1667) law (1674) 534. Will deem (1667) Well deem (1674)

340 Textual Notes

Appendix

Sketches for a drama on the subject of the Fall, from Milton’s notebook (the Trinity manuscript). The first two sketches have lines drawn through them, apparently delet- ing them. In the last two sketches, some items are heavily crossed out.

the Persons the Persons

Michael Heavenly Love Moses or (Divine (Wisdome Chorus of Angels Michael. Justice. Mercie Lucifer Heavenly Love Adam The Evening Starre Hesperus

with the serpent) Chorus of Angels Eve Lucifer Conscience Adam Death Eve

Conscience Labour 5 Death Sicknesse 4 Discontent 6 mutes Labour Ignorance 4 Sicknesse with others7 Discontent

mutes Faith Ignorance Hope Feare Charity Death

Faith Hope Charity

5 4 4 6 4 4 7

342 Sketches for Dramas on the Fall

Paradise Lost The Persons

Moses προλογ�ζε� [prologizei ] recounting how he assum’d a true bodie, that it corrupts not because of his with god in the mount declares the like of Enoch and Eliah, besides the purity of ye pl[ace] that certaine pure winds, dues, and clouds præserve it from corruption whence Heavenly Love [ex]horts to the sight of god, tells they cannot se Adam in the state of innocence by reason of sin thire sin

Justice 5 Mercie 6 debating what should become of man if he fall

Mercie 7 Wisdome

(hymne of ye creation) Chorus of Angels sing a

Act 2 Heavenly Love Evening starre chorus sing the mariage song and describe Paradice

Act 3 Lucifer contriving Adams ruine

Chorus feares for Adam and relates Lucifers rebellion and fall

Act 4 Adam 5

fallen 6 Eve 7 Conscience cites them to Gods examination

chorus bewails and tells the good Adam hath lost

Act 5 Adam and Eve, driven out of Paradice

presented by an angel with Labour greife hatred Envie warre famine Pestilence sicknesse 5 discontent 4 mutes to whome he gives Ignorance 6 thire names Feare 4 likewise winter, heat, Tempest &c Death 7 enterd into ye world

his

Sketches for Dramas on the Fall 343

Faith 5 Hope 6 comfort him and i[n]struct him Charity 7

chorus breifly concludes

Several pages later Milton sketched another plan under the title Adams Banishment, crossed out and replaced by the title

Adam unparadiz’d Adams Banishment

The angel Gabriel either descending or entering, shewing since (in earth, as in heaven, describes Paradise. next

this globe was created, his frequency as much\ next first the chorus shewing the reason of his comming to keep his watch in Paradise after Lucifers rebellion by command from god, & withall expressing his desire to see, & know more concerning this excellent new creature man. the angel Gabriel as by his name signifying a prince of power tracing paradise with a more free office comes passes by the station of ye chorus & desired by them relates what he knew of man as the creation of Eve with thire love, & mariage. after this Lucifer appeares after his overthrow, bemoans himself, seeks revenge on man the chorus prepare resistance at his first approach at last after discourse of enmity on either side he departs wherat the chorus sings of the battell, & victorie in heavn against him & his accomplices, as before after the first act was sung a hymn of the creation.

[[sentence inserted from opposite leaf ]] heer again may appear Lucifer relating, & insulting in what he had don to the destruction of man. man next & Eve having by this time bin seduc’d by the serpent appeares confusedly cover’d with leaves conscience in a shape accuses him, Justice cites him to the place whither Jehova call’d for him in the mean while the chorus entertains the stage, & his [is] inform’d by some angel the manner of his fall.

[[sentence inserted from foot of page]] heer the chorus bewailes Adams fall. Adam then & Eve returne accuse one another but especially Adam layes the blame to his wife, is stubborn in his offence Justice appeares reason with him convinces him [[sentence inserted from foot of page]] the chorus admonisheth Adam, & bids him beware by Lucifers example of impenitence the Angel is sent to banish them out of paradice but before causes to passe before his eyes in shapes a mask of all the evills of this life & world he is humbl’d relents, dispaires. at last appeares Mercy comforts him & brings in faith hope & charity promises the Messiah, then calls in faith, hope, & charity, instructs him he repents gives god the glory, submitts to his penalty the chorus breifly concludes. compare this with the former draught.

Select Bibliography

Major Editions (in chronological order)

Paradise lost. A Poem Written in Ten Books. London, 1667. Paradise Lost. A Poem in Twelve Books. London, 1674. Paradise Lost. London, 1688. P[atrick] H[ume], ed. Paradise Lost, with Hume’s commentary. London, 1695. Richard Bentley, ed. Milton’s Paradise Lost: A New Edition. London, 1732. Jonathan Richardson (Father and Son), eds. Explanatory Notes and Remarks on Milton’s

“Paradise Lost.” London, 1734. Thomas Newton, ed. Paradise Lost: A Poem in Twelve Books, 2 vols. London, 1749–52. Henry J. Todd, ed. The Poetical Works of John Milton, 6 vols. London, 1801; 4th edn. 1842. Helen Darbishire, ed. The Manuscript of Milton’s “Paradise Lost,” Book I. Oxford: Clarendon

Press, 1931. F. A. Patterson, et al., eds. The Works of John Milton, 18 vols in 21, with 2-vol. index. New

York: Columbia University Press, 1931–8. Harris Francis Fletcher, ed. John Milton’s Complete Poetical Works, Reproduced in Photographic

Facsimile, 4 vols. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1943–8. Helen Darbishire, ed. The Poetical Works of John Milton, 2 vols. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1952–5. Merritt Y. Hughes, ed. John Milton: Complete Poetry and Major Prose. New York: Odyssey, 1957;

repr. Indianapolis and Cambridge, MA: Hackett, 2003. John T. Shawcross, ed. The Complete Poetry of John Milton. Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1971. Alastair Fowler, ed. Paradise Lost. London: Longman, 1968; 2nd edn. 1998. David Scott Kastan, ed. John Milton: Paradise Lost. Indianapolis and Cambridge: Hackett, 2005.

Major Biographies and Biographical Resources (in chronological order)

David Masson. The Life of John Milton, Narrated in Connection with the Political, Ecclesiastical, and Literary History of his Time, 7 vols. London: Macmillan, 1859–94; repr. Gloucester, MA: Peter Smith, 1965.

Helen Darbishire, ed. The Early Lives of Milton. London: Constable, 1932. Contains contem- porary lives by John Aubrey, [Cyriak Skinner], Anthony à Wood, Edward Phillips, John Toland, and Jonathan Richardson.

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John S. Diekhoff. Milton on Himself: Milton’s Utterances upon Himself and his Works. New York: Oxford University Press, 1933; repr. New York: Humanities, 1965.

J. Milton French, ed. The Life Records of John Milton, 5 vols. New Brunswick, NJ: Rutgers University Press, 1949–58.

Harris F. Fletcher. The Intellectual Development of John Milton, 2 vols. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1956–62.

William Riley Parker. Milton: A Biography, 2 vols. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1968; rev. Gordon Campbell. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1996.

Gordon Campbell. A Milton Chronology. London: Macmillan, 1997. Christopher Hill. Milton and the English Revolution. London: Faber & Faber, 1977. Barbara K. Lewalski. The Life of John Milton: A Critical Biography. Oxford: Blackwell, 2000;

rev. 2003. John Shawcross. The Arms of the Family: The Significance of John Milton’s Relatives and Associates.

Lexington: University Press of Kentucky, 2004.

Scholarly Resources

Boswell, Jackson C. Milton’s Library: A Catalogue of the Remains of John Milton’s Library and an Annotated Reconstruction of Milton’s Library and Ancillary Readings. New York: Garland, 1975.

Corns, Thomas, ed. A Companion to Milton. Oxford: Blackwell, 2001. Danielson, Dennis, ed. A Cambridge Companion to Milton, 2nd edn. Cambridge: Cambridge

University Press, 1999. Frye, Roland Mushat. Milton’s Imagery and the Visual Arts. Princeton: Princeton University

Press, 1978. Gilbert, A. H. A Geographical Dictionary of Milton. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1919. Huckabay, Calvin. John Milton: An Annotated Bibliography, 1929–1968, rev. edn. Pittsburgh:

Duquesne University Press, 1970. —— John Milton: An Annotated Bibliography, 1968–1988, ed. Paul J. Klemp. Pittsburgh:

Duquesne University Press, 1996. Hunter, William B., et al., eds. A Milton Encyclopedia, 9 vols. Lewisburg, PA: Bucknell

University Press, 1978–83. Ingram, William, and Kathleen Swaim, eds. A Concordance to Milton’s English Poetry. Oxford:

Clarendon Press, 1972. Kirkconnell, G. Watson. The Celestial Cycle: The Theme of Paradise Lost in World Literature with

Translations of the Major Analogues. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1952; repr. New York: Gordian, 1967.

Miner, Earl, ed., with William Moeck and Steven Jablonski. Paradise Lost 1688–1968: Three Centuries of Commentary. Lewisburg, PA: Bucknell University Press, 2004.

Patrides, C. A., and Raymond B. Waddington, eds. The Age of Milton. Totowa, NJ: Barnes, 1980.

Rogal, Samuel. An Index to the Biblical References, Parallels, and Allusions in the Poetry and Prose of John Milton. Lewiston, NY: Mellen, 1994.

Shawcross, John, ed. Milton 1732–1801: The Critical Heritage. London and Boston: Routledge, 1972.

Williams, Arnold. The Common Expositor: An Account of the Commentaries on Genesis, 1527–1633. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1948.

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Wittreich, Joseph A., Jr. The Romantics on Milton: Formal Essays and Critical Asides. Cleveland: Press of Case Western Reserve University, 1970.

Milton Quarterly, 1970– . Milton Studies, 1969– .

Critical Books (relating to Paradise Lost)

Achinstein, Sharon. Milton and the Revolutionary Reader. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1994.

Addison, Joseph. Critical Essays from “The Spectator,” ed. Donald F. Bond. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1970.

Armitage, David, Armand Himy, and Quentin Skinner, eds. Milton and Republicanism. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1995.

Bauman, Michael. Milton’s Arianism. New York: Lang, 1987. Belsey, Catherine. John Milton: Language, Gender, Power. Oxford: Blackwell, 1988. Benet, Diana, and Michael Lieb, eds. Literary Milton: Text, Pretext, Context. Pittsburgh:

Duquesne University Press, 1994. Bennett, Joan. Reviving Liberty: Radical Christian Humanism in Milton’s Great Poems.

Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1989. Blessington, Francis C. “Paradise Lost” and the Classical Epic. London: Routledge, 1979. Bloom, Harold. The Anxiety of Influence: A Theory of Poetry. New York: Oxford University Press,

1973. Bock, Gisela, Quentin Skinner, and Maurizio Viroli, eds. Machiavelli and Republicanism.

Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1990. See especially Blair Worden, “Milton’s Republicanism and the Tyranny of Heaven.”

Bowra, C. M. From Virgil to Milton. London: Macmillan, 1945. Bridges, Robert. Milton’s Prosody, with a Chapter on Accentual Verse. Oxford: Oxford University

Press, 1923. Broadbent, John. Some Graver Subject: An Essay on “Paradise Lost.” London: Chatto & Windus,

1960. Budick, Sanford. The Dividing Muse: Images of Sacred Disjunction in Milton’s Poetry. New

Haven: Yale University Press, 1985. Burden, Dennis H. The Logical Epic: A Study of the Argument of “Paradise Lost.” London: Routledge,

1967. Burrow, Colin. Epic Romance: Homer to Milton. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1993. Cable, Lana. Carnal Rhetoric: Milton’s Iconoclasm and the Poetics of Desire. Durham, NC: Duke

University Press, 1995. Corns, Thomas M. Milton’s Language. Oxford: Blackwell, 1990. —— Regaining “Paradise Lost.” New York: Longman, 1994. Cummins, Juliet, ed. Milton and the Ends of Time. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2003. Curry, Walter Clyde. Milton’s Ontology, Cosmogony and Physics. Lexington: University Press

of Kentucky, 1957. Daniells, Roy. Milton, Mannerism and Baroque. Toronto: Toronto University Press, 1963. Danielson, Dennis. Milton’s Good God: A Study in Literary Theodicy. Cambridge: Cambridge

University Press, 1982.

Select Bibliography 347

Davies, Stevie. Images of Kingship in Paradise Lost: Milton’s Politics and Christian Liberty. Columbia: University of Missouri Press, 1983.

Demaray, John G. Milton’s Theatrical Epic: The Invention and Design of “Paradise Lost.” Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1980.

DiCesare, Mario, ed. Milton in Italy: Contexts, Images, Contradictions. Binghamton, NY: Medieval and Renaissance Texts and Studies, 1991.

Dobranski, Stephen B. Milton, Authorship, and the Book Trade. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1999.

Dobranski, Stephen B., and John Rumrich, eds. Milton and Heresy. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1998.

Duncan, Joseph E. Milton’s Earthly Paradise: A Historical Study of Eden. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 1972.

DuRocher, Richard. Milton and Ovid. Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1985. Edwards, Karen. Milton and the Natural World: Science and Poetry in “Paradise Lost.”

Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1999. Eliot, T. S. “Milton I” and “Milton II,” in On Poetry and Poets. London: Faber & Faber, 1957. Emma, Robert, and John T. Shawcross, eds. Language and Style in Milton. New York: Ungar,

1967. Empson, William. Milton’s God. 1961; rev. edn. London: Chatto & Windus, 1965. Entzminger, Robert. Divine Word: Milton and the Redemption of Language. Pittsburgh:

Duquesne University Press, 1985. Evans, J. Martin. “Paradise Lost” and the Genesis Tradition. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1968. —— Milton’s Imperial Epic: “Paradise Lost” and the Discourse of Colonialism. Ithaca: Cornell

University Press, 1991. Fallon, Robert Thomas. Divided Empire: Milton’s Political Imagery. University Park:

Pennsylvania State University Press, 1995. Fallon, Stephen. Milton among the Philosophers: Poetry and Materialism in Seventeenth-Century

England. Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1991. Ferry, Anne Davidson. Milton’s Epic Voice: The Narrator in “Paradise Lost.” Cambridge, MA:

Harvard University Press, 1963. Fiore, Peter A., ed. “Th’Upright Heart and Pure”: Essays on John Milton Commemorating the

Tercentenary of the Publication of “Paradise Lost.” Pittsburgh: Duquesne University Press, 1967. Fish, Stanley Eugene. Surprised by Sin: The Reader in “Paradise Lost.” New York: St. Martins

Press, 1967; rev. edn. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1998. —— How Milton Works. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2001. Fixler, Michael. Milton and the Kingdoms of God. Evanston, IL: Northwestern University Press,

1964. Forsyth, Neil. The Satanic Epic. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2003. Freeman, James A. Milton and the Martial Muse: “Paradise Lost” and European Traditions of War.

Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1980. Frye, Northrop. The Return of Eden: Five Essays on Milton’s Epics. Toronto: University of Toronto

Press, 1965. Gardner, Helen. A Reading of “Paradise Lost.” Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1968. Giamatti, A. Bartlett. The Earthly Paradise and the Renaissance Epic. Princeton: Princeton

University Press, 1966.

Gilbert, Sandra M., and Susan Gubar. The Madwoman in the Attic: The Woman Writer and the Nineteenth-Century Literary Imagination. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1979. See especially “Patriarchal Poetry and Women Readers: Reflections on Milton’s Bogey.”

Greene, Thomas. The Descent from Heaven: A Study in Epic Continuity. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1963.

Gregerson, Linda. The Reformation of the Subject: Spenser, Milton, and the English Protestant Epic. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1995.

Grose, Christopher. Milton’s Epic Process: “Paradise Lost” and its Miltonic Background. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1973.

Grossman, Marshall. “Authors to Themselves”: Milton and the Revelation of History. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1987.

Guillory, John. Poetic Authority: Spenser, Milton, and Literary History. New York: Columbia University Press, 1983.

Hale, John K. Milton’s Languages: The Impact of Multilingualism on Style. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1997.

Halkett, John. Milton and the Idea of Matrimony: A Study of the Divorce Tracts and “Paradise Lost.” New Haven: Yale University Press, 1970.

Hanford, James Holly. John Milton: Poet and Humanist. Cleveland: Press of Western Reserve University, 1966.

Harding, Davis P. Milton and the Renaissance Ovid. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1946. —— The Club of Hercules. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1962. Haskin, Dayton. Milton’s Burden of Interpretation. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press,

1994. Helgerson, Richard. Self-Crowned Laureates: Spenser, Jonson, Milton, and the Literary System. Berkeley:

University of California Press, 1983. Hiltner, Ken. Milton and Ecology. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2003. Hollander, John. The Figure of Echo: A Mode of Allusion in Milton and After. Berkeley: University

of California Press, 1983. Hughes, Merritt Y. Ten Perspectives on Milton. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1965. Hunter, William B. The Descent of Urania: Studies in Milton, 1946–1988. Lewisburg, PA:

Bucknell University Press, 1989. Jacobus, Lee. “Sudden Apprehension”: Aspects of Knowledge in “Paradise Lost.” The Hague: Mouton,

1976. Johnson, Samuel. “Milton,” in Lives of the English Poets, ed. George Birkbeck-Hill. Oxford:

Clarendon Press, 1995, 1.184–200. Kelley, Maurice. “This Great Argument”: A Study of Milton’s “De Doctrina Christiana” as a Gloss

on “Paradise Lost.” Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1989. Kendrick, Christopher. Milton: A Study in Ideology and Form. London and New York:

Methuen, 1986. Kerrigan, William. The Prophetic Milton. Charlottesville: University of Virginia Press, 1974. —— The Sacred Complex: On the Psychogenesis of “Paradise Lost.” Cambridge, MA: Harvard

University Press, 1983. King, John M. Milton and Religious Controversy: Satire and Polemic in “Paradise Lost.”

Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000. Knoppers, Laura Lunger. Historicizing Milton: Spectacle, Power, and Poetry in Restoration

England. Athens: University of Georgia Press, 1994.

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Knott, John R. Milton’s Pastoral Vision: An Approach to “Paradise Lost.” Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1971.

Kranidas, Thomas, ed. New Essays on “Paradise Lost.” Berkeley: University of California Press, 1969. See especially Barbara K. Lewalski, “Innocence and Experience in Milton’s Eden.”

Leonard, John. Naming in Paradise: Milton and the Language of Adam and Eve. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1990.

Lewalski, Barbara K. Paradise Lost and the Rhetoric of Literary Forms. Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1985.

Lewis, C. S. A Preface to “Paradise Lost.” London: Oxford University Press, 1942; repr. 1961. Lieb, Michael. The Dialectics of Creation: Patterns of Birth and Regeneration in “Paradise Lost.”

Amherst: University of Massachusetts Press, 1970. —— Poetics of the Holy: A Reading of “Paradise Lost.” Chapel Hill: University of North

Carolina Press, 1981. —— Milton and the Culture of Violence. Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1994. —— Theological Milton: Deity, Discourse, and Heresy in the Miltonic Canon. Pittsburgh:

Duquesne University Press, 2006. Loewenstein, David. Milton and the Drama of History. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press,

1990. —— Milton: “Paradise Lost.” Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1993. —— Representing Revolution in Milton and his Contemporaries: Religion, Politics, and Polemics in

Radical Puritanism. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2001. MacCaffrey, Isabel. “Paradise Lost” as Myth. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1959. MacCallum, Hugh. Milton and the Sons of God: The Divine Image in Milton’s Epic Poetry.

Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1986. Madsen, William. From Shadowy Types to Truth: Studies in Milton’s Symbolism. New Haven:

Yale University Press, 1968. Martin, Catherine Gimelli. The Ruins of Allegory: “Paradise Lost” and the Metamorphosis of Epic

Convention. Durham: University of North Carolina Press, 1998. —— ed. Milton and Gender. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2004. Martz, Louis L. Poet of Exile: A Study of Milton’s Poetry. New Haven: Yale University Press,

1964. McColgan, Kristin P., and Charles W. Durham, eds. Arenas of Conflict: Milton and the

Unfettered Mind. Selinsgrove, PA: Associated University Presses, 1997. McColley, Diane. Milton’s Eve. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1983. —— A Gust for Paradise: Milton’s Eden and the Visual Arts. Urbana: University of Illinois Press,

1993. Moyles, R. G. The Text of “Paradise Lost”: A Study in Editorial Procedure. Toronto: University

of Toronto Press, 1985. Mulryan, John, ed. Milton and the Middle Ages. Lewisburg, PA: Bucknell University Press, 1982. Murrin, Michael. The Allegorical Epic: Essays in its Rise and Fall. Chicago: University of

Chicago Press, 1980. —— History and Warfare in the Renaissance Epic. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1994. Norbrook, David. Writing the English Republic: Poetry, Rhetoric, and Politics, 1627–1660.

Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1999. Nyquist, Mary, and Margaret W. Ferguson, eds. Re-membering Milton: Essays on Texts and

Traditions. London: Methuen, 1987.

Parry, Graham, and Joad Raymond, eds. Milton and the Terms of Liberty. Cambridge: D. S. Brewer, 2002.

Patrides, C. A. Milton and the Christian Tradition. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1966. —— ed. Milton’s Epic Poetry: Essays on “Paradise Lost” and “Paradise Regained.”

Harmondsworth: Penguin, 1967. —— ed. Approaches to Paradise Lost: The York Tercentenary Lectures. London: Arnold, 1968. Patterson, Annabel, ed. John Milton. New York: Longman, 1992. Prince, F. T. The Italian Element in Milton’s Verse. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1954. Quilligan, Maureen. Milton’s Spenser: The Politics of Reading. Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1983. Quint, David. Epic and Empire: Politics and Generic Form from Virgil to Milton. Princeton:

Princeton University Press, 1993. Radzinowicz, Mary Ann. Milton’s Epics and the Book of Psalms. Princeton: Princeton

University Press, 1993. Rajan, Balachandra. Paradise Lost and the Seventeenth-Century Reader. London: Chatto &

Windus, 1947. —— ed. Paradise Lost: A Tercentenary Tribute. Toronto: University of Toronto Press, 1969. —— The Lofty Rhyme: A Study of Milton’s Major Poetry. Coral Gables: University of Miami Press,

1970. Rajan, Balachandra, and Elizabeth Sauer, eds. Milton and the Imperial Vision. Pittsburgh:

Duquesne University Press, 1999. Revard, Stella Purce. The War in Heaven: “Paradise Lost” and the Tradition of Satan’s Rebellion.

Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1980. Ricks, Christopher. Milton’s Grand Style. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1963. Riggs, William. The Christian Poet in “Paradise Lost.” Berkeley: University of California Press,

1972. Rogers, John. The Matter of Revolution: Science, Poetry, and Politics in the Age of Milton. Ithaca:

Cornell University Press, 1996. Rosenblatt, Jason. Torah and Law in “Paradise Lost.” Princeton: Princeton University Press,

1994. Roston, Murray. Milton and the Baroque. London: Methuen, 1980. Rumrich, John. Matter of Glory: A New Preface to “Paradise Lost.” Pittsburgh: University of

Pittsburgh Press, 1987. —— Milton Unbound: Controversy and Reinterpretation. Cambridge: Cambridge University

Press, 1996. Rumrich, John, and Stephen Dobranski, eds. Milton and Heresy. Cambridge: Cambridge

University Press, 1997. Samuel, Irene. Milton and Dante: The “Commedia” and “Paradise Lost.” Ithaca: Cornell

University Press, 1966. Sauer, Elizabeth. Barbarous Dissonance and Images of Voice in Milton’s Epics. Montreal and Buffalo:

McGill-Queens University Press, 1996. Schwartz, Regina. Remembering and Repeating: Biblical Creation in “Paradise Lost.” Cambridge:

Cambridge University Press, 1988. Sharpe, Kevin, and Steven N. Zwicker, eds. Politics of Discourse: The Literature and History of

Seventeenth-Century England. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1987. See especially Mary Ann Radzinowicz, “The Politics of Paradise Lost.”

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Shawcross, John T. John Milton: The Self and the World. Lexington: University Press of Kentucky, 1993.

Shumaker, Wayne. Unpremeditated Verse: Feeling and Perception in “Paradise Lost.” Princeton: Princeton University Press, 1967.

Sims, James H. The Bible in Milton’s Epics. Gainsville: University of Florida Press, 1962. Smith, Nigel. Literature and Revolution in England, 1640–1660. New Haven: Yale University Press,

1994. Sprott, Ernest S. Milton’s Art of Prosody. Oxford: Blackwell, 1953. Stanwood, P. G., ed. Of Poetry and Politics: New Essays on Milton and his World. Binghamton,

NY: Medieval and Renaissance Texts and Studies, 1995. Steadman, John M. Milton and the Renaissance Hero. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1967. —— Milton’s Biblical and Classical Imagery. Pittsburgh: Duquesne University Press, 1984. —— Moral Fiction in Milton and Spenser. Columbia: University of Missouri Press, 1995. Stein, Arnold. Answerable Style: Essays on “Paradise Lost.” Seattle: University of Washington

Press, 1953. —— The Art of Presence: The Poet and “Paradise Lost.” Berkeley: University of California Press,

1977. Stevens, Paul. Imagination and the Presence of Shakespeare in “Paradise Lost.” Madison:

University of Wisconsin Press, 1985. Summers, Joseph. The Muse’s Method: An Introduction to “Paradise Lost.” Cambridge, MA: Harvard

University Press, 1962. Svendsen, Kester. Milton and Science. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1969. Swaim, Kathleen M. Before and After the Fall: Contrasting Modes in “Paradise Lost.” Amherst:

University of Massachusetts Press, 1980. Tayler, Edward W. Milton’s Poetry: Its Development in Time. Pittsburgh: Duquesne University

Press, 1979. Teskey, Gordon. Delirious Milton: The Fate of the Poet in Modernity. Cambridge, MA: Harvard

University Press, 2006. Tillyard, E. M. W. Milton, rev. edn. London: Chatto & Windus, 1966. Triep, Mindele Anne. Milton’s Punctuation and Changing English Usage, 1582–1676. London:

Methuen, 1970. —— Allegorical Poetics and the Epic: The Renaissance Tradition to “Paradise Lost.” Lexington:

University Press of Kentucky, 1994. Turner, James Grantham. One Flesh: Paradisal Marriage and Sexual Relations in the Age of Milton.

Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1987. Waldock, A. J. A. “Paradise Lost” and its Critics. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press,

1947. Walker, Julia, ed. Milton and the Idea of Women. Urbana: University of Illinois Press, 1988. Webber, Joan. Milton and his Epic Tradition. Seattle: University of Washington Press, 1979. West, Robert H. Milton and the Angels. Athens: University of Georgia Press, 1955. Wittreich, Joseph A., Jr. Feminist Milton. Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1987. Woodhouse, A. S. P. The Heavenly Muse: A Preface to Milton. Toronto: University of Toronto

Press, 1972. Zwicker, Steven N. Lines of Authority: Politics and English Literary Culture, 1649–1689. Ithaca:

Cornell University Press, 1993.