John Milton

John Milton is the most important poet of the Puritan’s age and his poetry was connected historical events of the time. He was very interested in the Latin, Greek and Italian culture. During the civil war he supported Puritans because he believed that the Republic was a better condition for independent religion.

Works

His works can be classified according to three period:

1. a period devoted to study: he wrote Italian’s poems, showing his knowledge of Italian language.
2. a period in which he took part in the political struggles: he wrote political pamphlets, in which he defended/supported religious , civil and domestic liberties, freedom of the press , parliament and divorce .
3. a period of blindness and poverty: he wrote Paradise Lost and Paradise Regained.

Paradise Lost

It’s an epic poem about Satan’s rebellion against God, who was considered a tyrant. It consists of two dramas linked with the failure of the Puritan revolution:

1. the fall of the angels (divine drama)
2. the fall of Adam and Eve (human drama)

Milton wants to warn against the sin of pride (orgoglio), indeed Satan, Adam and Eve had the ambition to became equal to God.

Satan

He is the real hero of Paradise Lost and he shows the characteristics admired by Milton: courage, pride, self-confidence, ambition…

He embodies his Puritan ideals of independence (Satan rebels against a tyrannical God just like Milton rebels against a despotic king).

After having been banished fro Even it took revenge against God corrupting his new creation: man; in the form of a snake he persuades Eve to eat an apple from the Forbidden Tree.

He feels equal to God and like a military leader gives courage to his soldiers.