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Paradise Lost: Allegories of Satan to Milton
Paradise Lost, thought to be the most preeminent epic in English literature, is shrouded in arguments trying to divulge the poem’s true hero. Satan is controversially conveyed as the Byronic epic protagonist, whereas God is portrayed as an almighty tyrant. The depiction of these obvious moral ambiguities brings about apparent disapproval and criticism from other authors. However, the general thesis of the ten-book epic, as defined by Milton in Book I, is to “justify the ways of God to men” and to make clear the conflict between God's eternal foresight and free will (1 Milton). The probable cause for the sympathetic interpretation of Satan is thought to have formulated from real experiences. John Milton’s representation of Satan in Paradise Lost, as a proud and right existence, portrayed with obvious compassion, is in response to the events that occurred throughout his life.
John Milton was born on December 9, 1608 on Bread Street in Cheapside, London, near St. Paul’s Cathedral at the height of the Protestant Reformation in England. Milton’s grandfather, Richard Milton, was a Roman Catholic and disowned John Milton’s father, John Milton Sr. when he decided to leave Roman Catholicism in favor of turning Protestant. Milton had two siblings, a younger brother, Christopher, and an older sister, Anne. His mother, Sarah Jeffrey, was a religious daughter of a merchant sailor. His father was a composer of music and had gained notable prosperity as a legal secretary whose duties included preparation and notarization of documents, as well as real estate transactions and money lending. The wealth obtained by Milton’s father was enough to procure the family a second country home and also went about to fund Milton’s education and studies.
At twelve Milton attended St Paul's School near his home and it is said that Milton was an eager student from the beginning; oftentimes he seldom stopped reading before...