Passage 3 Close Reading 51772290 - Paradise Lost PDF

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Summarises a passage from Book X of John Milton's 'Paradise Lost'; Satan and his council transform into serpents in Pandemonium....

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Close Reading Exercise: Passage 3 (Book X. 519-547) This passage narrates the pandemonium that ensues in Hell once Satan returns from the Garden of Eden in Paradise Lost. The preceding ‘Book IX’ illustrates an important pivotal point in Christian tradition where humanity falls from divine grace; the prelapsarian paradise of ignorance bestowed upon Adam and Eve collapses because of their newfound knowledge from the Forbidden Fruit. This passage further contextualises ‘the Fall’ by expanding its impact beyond the terrestrial realm Adam and Eve reside; it is not just humanity that is affected by the prelapsarian world’s collapse. In this passage, John Milton expresses the overall theme of transformation as diminishment to emphasise divine punishment that extends to Satan and his council. This can be explored through three elements: the prominence of sibilance and serpent hissing; anthropomorphic imagery which illustrates the transformative nature within Pandemonium, additionally highlighting the preservation of Hell’s hierarchy; the ideal expectations destroyed by the harsh reality. The first element is immediately present from the outset. Milton informs the reader that ‘the Fall’ will extend to Pandemonium’s inhabitants, “for now were all transformed”1. The word ‘transformed’ is key to introducing the theme of diminishment. While it foreshadows the events to which Satan and his council literally transform into serpents near the passage’s conclusion, Milton introduces the reader to serpentine imagery for two effects. Firstly, the explicit references to serpents, as well as to the serpent’s natural sound of hissing, helps evoke the negative atmosphere of Hell. Satan’s council’s “hissing through the hall”2 identifies how the serpentine sound, which alludes to the serpent’s predatory nature in the natural world, appears to be an actual language amongst Hell’s inhabitants. No language that the human reader can identify and understand is presented. This may unsettle the reader since the language barrier between the reader and Satan’s council obscures the reader’s ability to understand what is happening on their own accord– they only have Milton’s narration to follow. An implicit reference to hissing can also be seen linguistically, as words containing the s

1 John Milton, Paradise Lost, Book X, 519. 2 Idem, 522

consonant are in close proximity to each other. Thus, it can be interpreted that the reader adopts the serpentine language while simultaneously being excluded by it; joining Hell’s council while also being diminished from them. Secondly, Milton expresses how Satan’s council is beneath him in a hierarchal framework, “to serpents all as accessories/To his bold riot”3. As ‘accessories’, implying to something that can be worn or something that appears to be merely decorative in comparison to a more important concept, Pandemonium’s council are in service to Satan but pale in comparison to his power. As the passage continues, Milton widens the serpentine concept to much broader reptilian imagery, referencing various types of both real and mythological animals. Milton overtly names animals twelve times within the passage which escalate in size and threat. For example, a “Scorpion and asp, and amphisbaena dire”4 seem to be smaller than the more dangerous ‘Gorgon’ and ‘dragon grown’. This is because Milton has now transitioned to describe Satan himself instead of his council of ‘accessories’, showing Satan’s power as the most dangerous. Additionally, Satan is depicted as the central figure that the reader must pay attention to because he is “larger than whom the sun/Engenderd […] and his power no less he seemed/Above the rest still to retain”5. This passage details aspects of the epic poetic form where the protagonist, or a character similar to Satan that has a significant impact on and within the narrative like a protagonist, undergoes some type of transformative journey. Creating a sense of foreboding for the reader -which manifests by the passage’s conclusion-, the reader is made to literally envisage Satan and his council transforming into animals due to the abundance of explicit references to animals in the passage’s first half. Continuing into the second half of the passage, Milton juxtaposes expectation from reality. Milton first builds the ideal scenario for Satan where his allies appear to be “sublime with expectation” 6 as he explains how he tricked Adam and Eve. However, all the serpentine allusions within the first half of the passage

3 Idem, 520-521 4 Idem, 524 5 Idem, 529-532 6 Idem, 536

manifest as Satan and his allies become “a crowd/Of ugly serpents; horror on them fell” 7. The word ‘down’ is used three times in a list of three where Satan’s allies drop their military equipment, “down their arms,/Down fell both spear and shield, down they as fast” 8. This alludes to ideas of plummeting or descending which compliments the overall theme of diminishment and directly linking to the term ‘the Fall’. Milton identifies the final juxtaposition between expectation and reality by the passage’s conclusion; “triumph to shame/Cast on themselves from their own mouths,” 9 it is finally made clear that Their desire to trick Adam and Eve becomes their undoing, allowing ‘the Fall’ to negatively impact Satan and his council too. Word count: 822 words including footnotes, quotations and references.

7 Idem, 538-539 8 Idem, 541-542 9 Idem, 546-547...