Revolution is often; if not always, bloody, and there cannot be a revolution without rebels. These rebels become the hero of their society. If the early American heroes such as George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, and many others had not resisted the power of the British Crown, the American Revolution would have never come to past. These freedom fighters, in search of liberty and freedom, rebelled against a powerful government, though they were the underdog, they won. Not every rebel is a revolutionist, however, anyone who defies authority or convention is a rebel. In the article titled “The Hero in Spite of Himself”, Rosette C. Lamont states “the hero cannot, indeed must not, represent his society. The unusual man or woman, the person with greater insight and vital forces, becomes a rebel or a monster” (Lamont 74). Can Milton’s Satan be identify as such? A rebel? The rebel who wishes to start a successful revolt against the tyrannical figure must replace that authority, or persuade the majority of the society to be non-conformist and behave differently. Can Satan, who propose the case against God (the tyrant), but takes on a tyrant’s role himself be identify as a hero? It may seem base on book I and II of Paradise Lost, Milton’s satanic voice depicts the characteristics of an Early American hero; expressing ideas of individualism, rebellion, liberty and freedom; however, the underlying tone of Milton’s satanic voice reveals not a hero but a twisted, unethical and immoral fiend whose primary objective is revenge.
In “Heroism and Paradise Lost” William R. Herman informs of two “basic and contradictory kinds of heroism”: the “Hellenic and Biblical”. As he states, the “Hellenic hero” exemplifies “individuality, self-determination, and physical courage that endure alone against what seems to be ineluctable odds” (Herman 2). The Hellenic hero is stronger than all his peers, and the fate, victory or defeat, of all rest on his shoulders. This hero does not need to have strong morals or ethical values, as opposed to the Biblical hero; who has leading qualifications is not “physical strength but moral strength.” It is this strength that allows the Biblical hero to be obedient to God, and conform to God’s laws. “The Hellene obtains glory through defiance; the Biblical hero obtains glory through submission” (Herman 3-4).
Herman claims that to determine who is or who is not the hero in Paradise Lost the poem must be read through either the spectacles of Hellenic heroism or Biblical Heroism; for Satan to be identify as a hero it has to be done through the characteristics of Hellenic heroism; it is true Satan could never be view as a Biblical hero, conversely, neither can he be view as a Hellenic Hero. Though Satan represents himself as an individual refusing to conform, expressing his opinion on the matter he states “That Glory never shall his wrath or might Extort from me” (I.110). Not only, does Satan want to assert himself as an individual, He will not bow to anyone, not even God. Rita Mae Brown once state “the reward for conformity is that everyone likes you except yourself.” In this case, Satan likes himself way too much. He and his followers have been kick out of heaven, fallen to a “vast and boundless Deep” (I.147), and he somehow manages to retain some of his Angelic features, and he still possess some great weaponry. Though in hell, he finds some heroic qualities within himself to deliver hero-like speeches to the other Rebel Angels. He wants to take arms against the “Sole reigning holds the Tyranny of Heav'n” (I. 124). Satan wants the Fallen Angels to do something; to seek what he propose, convince, the Fallen Angels is Justice against an unjust God. He seems brave in his desire for liberty and freedom against a tyrannical force, stating that God cannot touch his mind. He can make “a Heaven of Hell, a Hell of Heav’n” (I.255) and “Better to reign in Hell than serve in Heav’n” (I.263). Satan is delusional, who in their right mind would choose Hell instead of Heaven. He has allowed his pride and Jealousy to twist his through so much that he contradicts himself. He claims that he can turn Hell in Heaven, though he understands that Hell is his Prison, his punishment. This voice of rebellion is heroic indeed; however, let’s not hurry to be sympathetic to his cause. Satan offer false hope and rather than being realistic about his situation he is pompous and boastful believing that he is as powerful as God:
Nor what the Potent Victor in his rage
Can else inflict, do I repent or change,
Though chang'd in outward lustre; that fixt mind
And high disdain, from sence of injur'd merit,
That with the mightiest rais'd me to contend,
And to the fierce contention brought along
Innumerable force of Spirits arm'd
That durst dislike his reign, and me preferring,
His utmost power with adverse power oppos'd
In dubious Battel on the Plains of Heav'n,
And shook his throne.” (I. 94-105)
He have no regret about his actions in heaven, and he seems to possess a false sense of grandeur, believing that he and his fellow rebels were powerful enough to, somehow, cause harm to The Almighty by shaking his throne. Satan believes that he gives God reason to fear. Satan suggests that Heaven is not yet lost and that the fallen angels (or devils) might rise stronger in another battle if they work together.
“What though the field be lost? All is not lost; the unconquerable Will,
And study of revenge, immortal hate,
And courage never to submit or yield:
And what is else not to be overcome?” (I. 105-109)
He is a rebel, but he has no wish to bring individualist revolution. It is not hoping for Justice that drives his actions; rather it is his want of revenge. This revolt against God to place because of his “obdurate pride and steadfast hate, (I. 58) he seeks his own interest and convinces others to follow him.
Upon declaring his dissatisfaction with God the Father, Satan vows to fight Him. He therefore does all that he possibly can to lure other like-minded angels such as Mammon, Belial, Moloch and Beelzebub to join him. Thus, he starts a war which then lasts for three days. As an arrogant creature, Satan does not want to acknowledge God as his sole creator. Instead, he disputes His authority and claims that he created himself. This compels him to launch an attack against God along side his allied forces such as Michael and Son of God who vehemently fight back in defense of God the Father.
This portrays Satan as a very rebellious figure. He ‘uses his charisma and deceptive skills to lure other angels to help him in opposing God’ (William 29). Had he not been defiant, he would not have done that. He would have given God all the respect He deserves. However, since he also felt that he could demand control over Heaven, he had to prove that he was not a loyal and faithful angel. Moreover, he goes ahead to insinuate that God is a tyranny who dictates everyone and conditionally demand respect from them. Unlike other faithful angels, he is not contented with the position of God the Father as the sole creator and controller of the earth, heaven, hell, human beings and all the other creatures in them. He says, he, and other angles are not created by God, but are "self-begot, self-raised." Therefore, they should all command equal share of the leadership and control.
Lucifer’s rebellions led to the outbreak of the Angelic War. After losing the battle, he is banished to the earth. Meaning, he would no longer be accommodated in Heaven. However, as a rebellious creature, this could still not bar him from being rebellious. In fact, he is not so much troubled about this decision because he vows to continue with his rebellion since it is even "Better to reign in Hell than serve in Heaven." It is for this reason that he torments the earth. He poisons the earth and eventually manages to coax man, God’s favorite creature into sin. These are clear indications that he was a very rebellious being who could even go an extra mile to wrack havoc on the unsuspecting Eve who succumbed to his treachery (Patrides 73).
Despite all these efforts, Satan still does not emerge as a hero. His attempts to oppose his creature and declare a war against Him did not yield much fruits. Instead, it caused him many troubles. After losing the war, he is chased out of paradise. At the same time, he loses the trust of other faithful angels such as the Son of God and Michael who join forces to humiliate him. This implies that he was not a hero. Had he been a hero, he would have emerged victorious during such a fiercely fought war. His immoral acts put him into many problems. At one time, he was seriously wounded by Angel Michael who boldly used his powerful sword to stab him. This was the first sign of losing, an experience that deprived him of his heroism. Later, as Milton says, he was single-handedly defeated by the Son of God who had remained obedient to God the Father.
Besides, Satan never managed to become a hero. He was, by no means, a revolutionist. In fact, he was just a selfish angel who wanted to rebel against God, not to benefit others, but to become more proud of his successes. However, he failed to realize that pride actually comes after a fall. All his demands did not portray him as a revolutionist. He did not have the interests of other people at heart. All his demands were ‘motivated by arrogance, selfishness and jealousy’ (Forsyth 117). However, he eventually lost the battle. Instead of achieving any success, he was severely punished by being thrown away from Heaven. Instead, he was taken to the earth in which he could still not manage to outshine God the Father.
In conclusion, Satan was just a rebellious angel. He was a very uncooperative angel who was jealous of God the Father and the influences of the Son of God. He was not content with his position because he felt that God yielded much control over the other angels who, in his opinion, were equal to Him. This justifies his decision to rally his comrades to oppose God. However, he later lost the war before he was banished and sent to hell. His rebellious acts do not depict him as a successful hero. Instead, he only qualifies to be a tragic hero who realizes a degree of success before becoming a victim of his own evil actions. As a proud fighter, Satan realizes that he can not actually compete God the Father. At long last, he recognizes Him as his creator. Satan’s immoral acts can not qualify him to be a biblical hero since he does not want to bring any revolution, but only wants to advance his selfish ill motives. Thus, he is demoted from the most beautiful archangel to a serpent.
Works Cited
Patrides, C. A. Approaches to Paradise Lost: The York Tercentenary Lectures. Toronto: University of Toronto, 2001, print.
Forsyth, N. The Satanic Epic, Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2003. Print.
William R. Herman. Heroism and Paradise Lost College English National Council of Teachers of English. , Vol. 21, No. 1 (Oct., 1959), pp. 13-17
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