PARADISE LOST AND EPIC DEVICES
In
the seventeenth century, the models for an epic poet were Homer, Virgil, Tasso,
Ariosto and Spenser. Milton was an ambitious poet and he wanted to write a poem
which should rank with Homer and Virgil's. He studied all the classical epics.
Homer sang of Archilles and Odysseus: Virgil had glorified Rome and Aeneas but
Milton decided to write a universal epic.
In
the divisions and style, Milton's poem follows Homer's Iliad and Virgil's
Aeneid. Taking Paradise Lost as a whole, one can see that the rules of
classical epic as discussed by Aristotle are followed, to a large extent, by
Milton. The action deals with a great subject, derived form the Scriptures. It
deals with the Fall of Man and to this all other episodes in the epic are
related and subordinated. Satan's fall is a prelude to the main action. The
action is entire, having a beginning, middle and an end. What is more, the
vastness of the theme, encompassing the whole of the human race, makes it a
unique epic.
Paradise Lost is a story of Human action
dealing as it does with "man's first disobedience" and his fate. As
all other epics, it has a hero, though there has been a controversy as to who
it is. But Adam is its hero. In the poem, we have other great figures too. But
it is Adam and Eve around whom the poem revolves. Milton's great moral purpose
was to "justify the was of God to men."
Paradise Lost Book-I Epic style: The style of
Paradise Lost has all the grandeur which the epic poem demands. Milton is the
"mighty-mouthed inventor of harmonies." The march of the poetic lines
resembles the ocean waves with their sonority, and grandeur. The meaning of the
words, the syntax, the division of sentences, constantly remind the scholarly
reader of classical writers. The opening-sentence, the first line of Satan's
speech on looking at his surroundings, his words to Beelzebub, and the
description of Satan's shield and spear - all these reflect Milton's grand
style.
Book-I
of Paradise Lost is just a part of the epic but several epic devices and
conventions are made us to in it.
1.
Statement of Theme: In the tradition of Homer and Virgil, Milton states the
theme of his poem in the first lines.
2.
Invoking of the Muse: According to the classical convention established by
Homer, Milton invokes the Muse to help him in his great task of writing the
epic:
‘
And chiefly thou O'Spirit, that dost prefer Before all temples, the upright
heart and pure, Instruct me, for thou knowest... What is dark in me. Illumine,
what is low raise and support... ‘
Milton,
like other classical poets, invokes the Muse again in the course of Book-I,
seeking her aid in enumerating the fallen angles. But Milton's Muse is not one
of the Greek Muses. She is the Heavenly Muse of religious poetry who inspired
the poets and prophets of Israel.
3. Milton plunges in the middle of the action:
The poet begins his epic with a picture of the rebel angels floating on the
lake of fire in Hell. How they fell into Hell is described in subsequent Books.
Satan and his company of fallen angels are important because of the role they
play in the Fall of Man.
4.A
roll-call of the devils is given according to the classical convention. It can
be compared with the catalogue of ships in Homer's Iliad.
5.
The speeches in the poem are modelled on the speeches in Homer's Iliad and
Virgil's Aeneid. The speeches of Satan and Beelzebub are elaborate, revealing
their thoughts, motives, feelings, doubts and hope, At the end of each speech
are words such as "so Satan spake," etc.
6.
Milton employs Homeric similes to heighten his theme to grandeur. In this he
follows the convention of Virgil, Lucan, Tasso and Spenser. His similes not
only ennoble and enrich the poetry; they are also the organic' part of his
story. Some examples of epic similes are the comparison of Satan's bulk to a
sea-beast, comparison of the fallen angels to forest oaks struck by lightning,
the simile of bees in spring time. Satan's shields is compared to the moon seen
through Galileo's telescope. It recalls Homer's description of Achilles'
shield. Other rhetorical' devices used by Milton also follow epic tradition.
One such is the employment and repetition of numbers such as "three"
and "nine". These devices add a stately tone to the poem.
Milton
adds a new dimension to the classical epic poetry. Though Milton invokes the
Muse to help in his task, the point note is that he seeks the aid, not of the
pagan Muse, but of the Heavenly Muse, the Holy Spirit. And though he employs
similes to add grandeur to his poem, Milton is really being a Protestant
Christian when appearing most classical. As Kingsley Widmer has said, these
similes are "denigration of paganism." Though Milton has displayed
his vast classical learning, he has employed it for his puritan theme-the
justification of the ways of God to men. Paradise Lost is thus, a classical
epic imbued with Christian theology."
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