1. The Fall of Satan by John Milton

2. The Fall of Satan by John Milton
Click on the title to start the video.

3. The Fall of Satan Introducing the Epic Poem
Evil is neither suffering nor sin; it is both at the same time; it is something common to them both.
—Simone Weil
(1909–1943)
The Angel Michael Binding Satan (c.1850) by William Blake.

4. The Fall of Satan Introducing the Epic Poem
Why does evil exist?
If there is a merciful God, why does he allow so much human suffering?
Think about these two age-old questions and how they are related.
The Angel of Divine Presence (detail) by William Blake. Watercolor.

5. The Fall of Satan Introducing the Epic Poem
The excerpt in your textbook comes from the beginning of Milton’s epic poem Paradise Lost.
Paradise Lost presents the struggle between good and evil on an epic scale.
In Milton’s epic, as in the Bible, the original choice of evil over good leads to the suffering and burdens of humanity.
[End of Section]

6. The Fall of Satan Literary Focus: Style
Milton also uses epic similes, elaborate comparisons that draw parallels between dissimilar things.
Epic similes
can extend for many lines
are one characteristic of a literary epic, an epic that is the product of an individual writer
are sometimes also called Homeric similes, after the ancient Greek writer Homer who wrote down the Odyssey and the Iliad

7. The Fall of Satan Literary Focus: Style
And aging Priam was the first to see him
sparkling on the plain, bright as that star
in autumn rising, whose unclouded rays
shine out amid a throng of stars at dusk—
the one they call Orion’s dog, most brilliant,
yes, but baleful as a sign: it brings
great fever to frail men. So pure and bright
the bronze gear blazed upon him as he ran.
This epic simile is from the Iliad.
Here, Homer compares the hero Achilles, re-entering the battle, to Sirius, the brilliant star that appears near the constellation of the hunter Orion and is often called the “dog star.”

8. The Fall of Satan Reading Focus: Analyzing Milton’s Style
Milton’s work can be challenging to read because it contains
many allusions, or references, to the Bible and to classical literature
unfamiliar words
constructions that do not always follow the standard subject-verb-object order

9. The Fall of Satan Reading Focus: Analyzing Milton’s Style
The footnotes and side glosses will help you with unfamiliar names and terms.
“O Prince, O Chief of many thronèd Powers, That led the embattled Seraphim° to war Under thy conduct
—lines 128–130
129. Seraphim: highest order of angels.

10. The Fall of Satan Reading Focus: Analyzing Milton’s Style
Use context clues to help you figure out the meanings of unfamiliar words.
That durst dislike his reign, and, me preferring, His utmost power with adverse power opposed
—lines 102–103
If you’re not sure what adverse means, what nearby word might give you a clue?

11. Satan Rouses his Followers to Wage War Against God Richard Westall

12. The Battle of the Angels
Gustave Dore

13. The Fall of the Rebel Angels by Pieter Brueghel

14. The Downfall of the Rebel Angels
William Blake

15. Satan Rises from the Burning Lake
John Baptist Medina

16. Satan Laments the Loss of Heaven
Gustave Dore

17. Satan Encounters his Offspring, Sin and Death, at the Gate of Hell
John B. Medina

18. The Temptation of Eve
William Blake