Paradise Lost
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- Category: English: Novels
- Date Submitted: 09/07/2016 10:47 PM
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Milton’s portrayal of Fall of Man within the tradition of tragedy in Paradise Lost Book 9.
John Milton’s most famous work, his epic poem Paradise Lost addresses the human condition- the fall of man from grace and the promise of his restoration. In deciding to write an epic, Milton consciously places himself in the tradition of prior epic writers, such as the ancients Homer and Virgil, and the medieval and Renaissance poets Dante, Tasso, Ariosto and Spenser, by doing this he raises specific sets of expectations for the readers. Paradise Lost contains many classical and Renaissance epic notions: it begins in medias res; it concerns heavenly and earthly beings and the interactions between them; it uses conventions such as epic similes, catalogues of people and places, invocations to muse; and it contains themes, such as war, nationalism, empire, and stories of origin. The elements of tragedy appear in Book 9 when Milton prepares the readers for the fall, he writes, "I now must change / Those Notes to Tragic," and continues throughout the book to employ tragic conventions. Aristotle defines tragedy as "the imitation of an action that is serious and also as having magnitude, complete in itself." He continues, "Tragedy is a form of drama exciting the emotions of pity and fear. Its action should be single and complete, presenting a reversal of fortune, involving persons renowned and of superior attainments, and it should be written in poetry embellished with every kind of artistic expression." The writer presents "incidents arousing pity and fear, wherewith to interpret its catharsis of such emotions". The character plays an important role in the development of a tragic plot. The tragic hero is led by personal motivations and audience can easily identify with him. The hamartia or tragic flaw brings about his own downfall—not because he is sinful or morally weak, but because he does not know enough and finally the tragic hero's suffering which will be greater than his...
John Milton’s most famous work, his epic poem Paradise Lost addresses the human condition- the fall of man from grace and the promise of his restoration. In deciding to write an epic, Milton consciously places himself in the tradition of prior epic writers, such as the ancients Homer and Virgil, and the medieval and Renaissance poets Dante, Tasso, Ariosto and Spenser, by doing this he raises specific sets of expectations for the readers. Paradise Lost contains many classical and Renaissance epic notions: it begins in medias res; it concerns heavenly and earthly beings and the interactions between them; it uses conventions such as epic similes, catalogues of people and places, invocations to muse; and it contains themes, such as war, nationalism, empire, and stories of origin. The elements of tragedy appear in Book 9 when Milton prepares the readers for the fall, he writes, "I now must change / Those Notes to Tragic," and continues throughout the book to employ tragic conventions. Aristotle defines tragedy as "the imitation of an action that is serious and also as having magnitude, complete in itself." He continues, "Tragedy is a form of drama exciting the emotions of pity and fear. Its action should be single and complete, presenting a reversal of fortune, involving persons renowned and of superior attainments, and it should be written in poetry embellished with every kind of artistic expression." The writer presents "incidents arousing pity and fear, wherewith to interpret its catharsis of such emotions". The character plays an important role in the development of a tragic plot. The tragic hero is led by personal motivations and audience can easily identify with him. The hamartia or tragic flaw brings about his own downfall—not because he is sinful or morally weak, but because he does not know enough and finally the tragic hero's suffering which will be greater than his...