Paradise Lost as a Christian Myth
By: Sarah Johnson
John Milton’s Paradise Lost is such an engaging text because it relays a story about the Christian faith in the same way as Homer portrayed Greek culture in The Odyssey. There are many similarities and differences between both texts, and both offer up some mythical story of the past. Both stories have a similar writing style and similar characters and settings, while having notable differences in culture and worship; the main difference being that Greek culture was polytheistic and Christianity is very much monotheistic. Milton reworked a Bible story into a myth of his own culture, with many similar devices and themes employed by ancient authors like Homer.
The story of Homer’s The Odyssey is the perfect example of a myth. It has strange creatures, like the Cyclops Polythemus, fascinating settings like faraway islands, carnage, like when Odysseus slaughters the suitors, and instances of the supernatural when Odysseus meets Circe the sorceress. Both poems display many similar themes throughout, which makes them distinguishable as myths. First and foremost, they include a life changing journey of some sort that the characters must overcome. In The Odyssey, it is clearly the journey of Odysseus’ trip back to Ithaca, and in Paradise Lost, it is the journey of Adam into manhood and Satan as he tries to destroy mankind. Paradise Lost outlines the birth of Adam, how Eve came about, how they fell, and what happens afterward. It also shows Satan’s journey from good to evil, and how he deteriorates as the story continues. These epics also have other recurring themes that define them as myths. They use disguise; such as when Satan changes into the form of a snake, and when Odysseus disguises himself as a beggar when he returns home to Ithaca. There are journeys to the underworld such as when the fallen angels descend into Hell and when Odysseus must follow the river ocean to journey to the underworld. Myths usually contain a war or some kind of battle such as the war between Heaven and the fallen angels, and In The Odyssey, Odysseus has the famous battle with Polythemus the Cyclops. Myths also use temptation, such as when Eve is tempted by a disguised Satan, and Odysseus is tempted many times by the female sex with Circe, Calypso and the Sirens. The main difference is where each poem left the reader at the end. The Odyssey had a very joyous ending, where the kingdom was restored to Odysseus and he was reunited with his family. The ending of Paradise Lost concluded with general despair of falling from God’s grace, but leaving the audience with at least some small sense of hope of starting a new race that can lead good lives to eventually go to heaven to be with their maker. Winston Weathers has many ideas about Milton’s myth. He talks about how Milton’s myth is very much a struggle between good and evil in the human experience. “In us each there dwells the capacity for Christ and the capacity for Satan” (Weathers, 264). This kind of battle between good and evil is also apparent in the Odyssey, however it is not a defining feature. The suitors who are trying to woo Penelope are the evil force, as well as Circe, and Polythemus.
The style of the two epic poems is very similar which further proves that Paradise Lost is indeed a myth of a different culture. Both epics are organized into books and lines, and both are well known stories of their respective cultures. Homer tends to write in Ionian Hexameter, whereas Milton’s Paradise Lost was written in Iambic Pentameter. Homer’s The Odyssey is a story that was passed down orally in Greek culture by performers who would recite the epic from memory to the audience, and Paradise Lost was written with the intent to be read. Both poems begin in medius res as Paradise Lost begins with after the war in heaven, whereas The Odyssey begins with Odysseus and Calypso. Paradise Lost is a very familiar story to Christians as it is based on the original told in The Bible, however, Milton makes it his own by giving the perspectives of characters such as Satan, and making it into a generally enjoyable and entertaining read. One major similarity between these two epic poems is that they tend to give the supernatural or God characters very human qualities. The gods in The Odyssey can be tempted; Poseidon gets angered and wants to avenge the blinding of Polythemus.
“My ship was shattered by Poseidon, who drove it upon the rocks at the edge of this land of yours; a wind had carried it in from the open sea, and the Earthshaker dashed it against a headland.” (IX. ll. 283-286).
These are emotions that Gods are not meant to have. Poseidon was clearly angry at Odysseus for blinding Polythemus, so he got carried away and tried to kill Odysseus and his crew in a terrible tempest. They are supposed to be above these characteristics. Milton also gives his God a human side in Paradise Lost when God creates humankind. Satan states;
“More angels to create, if at least
Are his created, or to spite us more,
Determined to advance into our room
A creature formed of earth, and him endow” (IX. ll. 146-149).
This clearly shows that Satan believes God is creating humankind for the sole purpose of spiting the fallen angels, by letting them know that they can be replaced. He also says that God is creating this new being so that they can take over and God can spread his kingdom. The God shown here is a vengeful God. He clearly is using humankind to get back at Satan. Homer and Milton cannot help but write the Gods in this manner because they are human themselves, and trying to write in an omniscient persona is an experience that is not known. Homer and Milton also use the muses as their inspiration to their epics.
“Sing heavenly muse, that on the secret top,
Of Oreb, or of Sinai, didst inspire
That shepherd, who first taught the chosen seed,
In the beginning how the heavens and the earth
Rose out of chaos: or if Sion hill
Delight thee more, and Siloa’s brook that flowed
Fast by the oracle of God; I thence
Invoke thy aid to my adventurous song,
That with no middle flight intends to soar
Above the Aonian mount, while it pursues
Things unattempted yet in prose or rhyme.” (I ll. 6-16).
Here, Milton uses the device of is a heavenly being who is inspiring the author to convey this story unto humankind so that they can know how man fell from God’s grace, and what they can do to try and redeem themselves in God’s eyes. Homer uses this same device. “Goddess of song, teach me the story of a hero.” (I. ll. 1). Homer uses this muse as a storyteller who must pass the story onto the poet, who can then perform it for the people of Greece. This is a fascinating way to introduce the story. As well as giving it a sort of divine creation, the Gods, or God, inspires the author to write the myth down, so that it can be passed to later generations.
It is very clear from the beginning of The Odyssey that the hero of the epic is Odysseus. He is the main character, the one the whole story revolves around. All the other characters, even the Gods, are secondary. It is his journey, and is written mostly from his point of view.
“The tale begins when all those others who had escaped the pit of destruction were safe in their own lands, sparred by the wars and seas. Only Odysseus was held elsewhere, pining for home and wife” (I ll. 13-16).
In Paradise Lost, the hero is not as easily identified. God is a very judgemental character in this poem and is very hypocritical. He says that Adam and Eve are equals, however when they fall from grace Eve gets a harder punishment from God. The only one who seems triumphant is Satan, because he successfully tempted mankind out of Paradise. Adam is very hopeful at the end of the poem because he sees that mankind is not forever doomed, and some good will come out of what he has done.
“O goodness infinite, goodness immense!
That all this good of evil shall produce,
And evil turn to good; more wonderful
Than that which by creation first brought forth
Light out of darkness! full of doubt I stand,
Whether I should repent me now of sin
By me done and occasioned, or rejoice
Much more, that much more good thereof shall spring,
To God more glory, more good will to men
From God, and over wrath grace shall abound.” (XII. ll. 469-478).
This can arguably make Adam a candidate for heroism, because he was still forgiven and fathered the future generations of mankind. Adam’s character can be identified with either Odysseus or Telemachus, because like Odysseus, he will be a father, however, like Telemachus, he is very innocent socially and sexually (Weathers, 261), and the poem outlines his journey into manhood.
Neil Forsyth believes that “few of us know Homer as well as Milton did” (Forsyth, 137). He also believed that both poems are very similar in how they are interpreted, and that if revelations are made about Homer’s work, then new interpretations of Paradise Lost will arise (Forsyth, 138). Forsyth has a theory that Homer uses a specific “attendance motif” in his writing that Milton picked up and uses in his writing, when scholars are just noticing it recently. “The effect of the motif is thus to mark the status and dignity of the hero in relation to his fellows” (Forsyth, 138). In other words, how does the hero carry himself, and how does it effect how he treats his fellow human beings? Milton was clearly incorporating Homer’s devices into his own work, which makes Paradise Lost a myth, like Homer’s The Odyssey.
Milton reinvents an epic myth from a well known story just like Homer does. Both stories are very similar in style, setting, themes, as well as characters. They take a well known story and give it life by providing different perspectives, and a sense of rhythm in the way the lines flow. Not being a big fan of poetry, these epic poems are so appealing because they do not only convey feelings, but an entire journey of days; like in Paradise Lost, or of years; like in The Odyssey. In comparison to Homer’s The Odyssey, John Milton’s Paradise Lost is indeed a myth of a different culture.
Bibliography:
Homer. The Odyssey. New York: Oxford University Press, 1998.
Forsyth, Neil. Homer in Milton: The Attendance Motif and the Graces. Comparative Literature, Vol. 33, No. 2. (Spring, 1981) pp. 137-155.
Milton, John. The Major Works. New York: Oxford University Press, 2003.
Weathers, Winston. “Paradise Lost” as an Archetypal Myth. College English, Vol. 14, No. 5. (Feb.,1953) pp. 261-264.