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ETD Abstract Container

Abstract Header

Revolutionary Satan: A Reevaluation of the Devil's Place in Paradise Lost

Lavelle, William H
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ouhonors1429893486

Abstract Details

2015, Bachelor of Arts (BA), Ohio University, English.
Whether viewed as an attempt from a pious man to rationalize the acts of God or an exploration of free will, Milton’s Paradise Lost has cycled through diverging, occasionally contradictory, readings since its publication nearly 400 years ago. A sizeable portion of the poem’s complexity lies in the manner in which it chooses to depict God, who is split into the characters of The Father and The Son, and and the Devil. The most notorious figure in Milton’s ouvre, Milton’s Satan stands apart from former depictions of the Devil in its unapologetic identification with the fallen angel’s goals and desires. This, paired with a God that is noticeably less merciful than is traditionally depicted, gives rise to unsettling questions regarding the nature of Christianity and the mind of a poet who would write such a work in a time when, even amongst growing heterodoxy, certain components of Christian faith were considered unshakable truths. The route that I have taken to solve this incongruity is to divorce the text from its source material and view it as something other than just an expression of religious devotion or theological study. Drawing extensively from Milton’s life, historical predicament and political tracts, this reading views the text as an expression of political disillusionment, an examination of the act of revolt from a man who had passionately supported a doomed revolution.
Beth Quitslund (Advisor)
83 p.
British and Irish Literature; Literature
Milton; John Milton; Satan; revolution; English Revolution; English Civil War; Paradise Lost; 16th century; England; Devil; God; Eden; Genesis; epic poetry; political; republican; revolutionary; rebel; revolt

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Lavelle, W. H. (2015). Revolutionary Satan: A Reevaluation of the Devil's Place in Paradise Lost [Undergraduate thesis, Ohio University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ouhonors1429893486

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Lavelle, William. Revolutionary Satan: A Reevaluation of the Devil's Place in Paradise Lost. 2015. Ohio University, Undergraduate thesis. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ouhonors1429893486.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Lavelle, William. "Revolutionary Satan: A Reevaluation of the Devil's Place in Paradise Lost." Undergraduate thesis, Ohio University, 2015. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ouhonors1429893486

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

ouhonors1429893486
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© 2014, all rights reserved.
This open access ETD is published by Ohio University Honors Tutorial College and OhioLINK.
Release 3.2.12