He shows that before the world was as it is now known, there was darkness, and even after God created form, the darkness remained.īefore the heavens thou wert, and at the voice That action is then reinforced by Milton’s description of God’s Creation. In doing so, Milton pays homage to the grandness of God and develops Him as a more active figure. Just as it is proven throughout the epic that even Satan is not a wholly evil figure, through the above Biblical reference, Milton is stating that even God does not exist wholly without darkness.įrom there, Milton goes on to describe God as “th’ Eternal coeternal beam” (3.2) and “bright effluence of bright essence increate” (3.6), making God into not only a reflection of light, but the object of light itself. However, despite Milton’s strong religious beliefs, using such a strong statement from the Bible as a reference is actually an argument against that statement. Using a reference to the Bible through John 1.5, which states, “God is Light, and in him is no darkness at all,” is a strong way to invoke both divine imagery as well as the popular reference of knowledge and thought as light. Milton’s use of light and dark in the first 55 lines of Book three creates a static and blurred delineation between the two states, expressing that few things are completely one or the other light can exist in the darkness, and darkness in the light.īy addressing his muse in this book as “holy Light” (3.1), Milton is asking God or rather one of God’s minions to aid him in a correct portrayal of God Himself. Book three begins with an invocation of Light as a muse, and from then on, the discussions between God and Christ and the decisions of Satan often use light and dark imagery to express contrast. ![]() ![]() Throughout Paradise Lost the motif of light and dark recurs, figuratively contrasting God and Satan, Heaven and Hell. Part of Milton’s genius lies in his ability to stack motif on top of motif, theme on top of theme and image on top of image with high density, without losing any of the effectiveness of his words in fact, that density increases the effectiveness.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |