Milton is known to participate in the Puritan movement, publishing many pamphlets. I believe it is possible to interpret Paradise Lost as a criticism of both Paganism, and the Catholic and Anglican Churches.

While Milton desperately wished to write an epic in the style of Homer and Virgil, his religious views restricted him from fully endorsing their Pagan ideals. In the Iliad fighting and violence is what’s considered honourable and glorious. Milton rejects this view when he made Satan the hero of his epic. Like the heroes of the Iliad, Satan places great value on his armaments. Even when Satan and his posse were being cast into hell, Satan held on to his large heavy shield. In book 6 line 656 – 657 Milton writes “their armour helped their harm, crushed in and bruised/ into their substance pent, which wrought them pain”. This line reminds me of the scene in Iliad when Ajax is driven mad when he did not receive  Achille’s armour. The stock Satan and his crew placed on physical weaponry is juxtaposed with Ithuriel who only had to “touch lightly” (Milton, 4. 811) with his spear. Milton explains “for no falsehood can endure/touch of celestial temper” (Milton, 4. 811-812). Clearly Ithuriel’s power does not derive from the spear but from God.

Milton also criticizes the Church in some sections of the epic. In Paradise Lost, Milton makes several comparisons between Satan’s followers and Jesus’ disciples. Milton names the fallen angels Moloch, Chemos, Baalim, Astoroth, Astoreth, Thammuz, Dagon, Rimmon, Osiris, Isis, Orus, and, Belial. There are twelve fallen angels much like Jesus’ twelve apostles. Satan gathers this group on the shore of the lake of fire, rather similar to Jesus calling the disciples by the sea of Galilee. Satan’s ‘disciples’ are named after pagan gods. Perhaps Milton is criticizing the idolatrous practice of praying to and worshiping saints. After all, is not the second commandment “You shall not make for yourself a carved image—any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth; you shall not bow down to them nor serve them. For I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God” (Exodus 20: 4-5)? Milton is saying through the fallen angels that the worship of saints is no better than the worship of pagan gods. In book one, around line 300 or so, Milton describes the fallen angels spreading evil and corruption throughout the world. Milton describes the effect of said corruption in lines 370 to 373 “glory of him that made them to transform/ Oft to the image of a brute, adorned/ With gay religions full of pomp and gold”.  Being a Puritan, Milton objects against the elaborate representations of saints through paintings, murals sculptures and stained glass that appear in the Catholic and Anglican church.

I find it very interesting how John Donne uses marriage/sex to compare his relationship with the world and with God. God being purely spiritual cannot engage in such physical acts. Indeed it is almost sacrilege to imagine a carnal relationship with God. As religious poetry it is almost entirely opposite of Traherne’s The Preparative. While Traherne mentions the body being dead and the meditative inward eye to promote the idea of the mortification of the flesh. Donne uses extremely physical imagery such as breathe, break, burn and ravish. Traherne’s language is flowery and flowing, with many fancy words, Donne has a reputation of being a rough and violent poet. Stylistically this may explain the difference. However, I believe Donne’s poetry serves the purpose of reconciling the purely spiritual nature of God and the purely physical nature of the world whereas Traherne’s poem aspire to the spiritual nature of God. Donne uses the Earthly institution of marriage to illustrate to the worldly masses the relationship of God, sin and themselves. The reason that Donne uses betrothed instead of married is because the people will spend eternity in hell if they do not turn to God, however they still have the chance to turn away from sin. Donne then invites God to ravish him to show that God’s dominance over him is far greater than sin. While Donne is merely promised to sin, God has the power to  completely overwhelmed and dominate him.

Let me start by apologizing for starting so late. It’s just that at the start of the year you think ‘I have all the time in the world’, and then you start getting midterms. So here I am, at the second half of the term, starting my first post.

I really enjoy your lectures. I love the fancy words you teach us that describes all these ideas and literary devices. However, I’m never sure what is it that you want me to learn and what is a tangent on the side. I try to take notes in class, but I find my notes very disorganized and confused because I’m always trying to figure out how to organize my notes as I take them. I don’t want to sound like a brat, but I think it will be really helpful to have the key words or ideas ahead of time so I can take notes around that. However, that’s just what I’m comfortable with. I know people in this class that really enjoy your lecture style and find it very relaxing to follow along.

Again, I feel like I must apologize. Not only did I start my blog inordinately late, my first post is an attack on your teaching. I’m terribly embarrassed. I’ll try to write better blog entries from now on.