" How Satan’s willful ignorance and pride are the sources of his folly in Paradise Lost. p>

Satan is a powerful topic in Christian literature He is referred to as many things, fro The Accuser to The Father of Lies. He is the enemy of God and mankind in the Christian tradition and leader of the demonic forces which war against God. Satan is often believed to be a powerful otherworldly and supernatural entity, often beyond human comprehension. Milton in “Paradise Lost” proposes a different creature filled with human follies and failings, the most important being pride which brings about his ignorance of God’s power.

Pride or hubris in this case, is one of the seven deadly sins of Christendom. Essentially, it is an act of failing to give proper credit to God. 1 When this happens one no longer follows God, but turns away from Him. ”2 This is very much a quality of Milton’s Satan.

Satan in Paradise Lost turns away from God. Satan says, concerning heaven “The happier state in heaven, which follows dignity, might draw envy from each inferior” 3 showing his belief that only creatures of a lesser nature could wish for Heaven. Satan goes even further than this, as he calls a council in Hell to determine the best way to defeat God “Whether by open war or covert guile” 4. Such a belief is great pride, as Satan does not know his place according to the divine order.

Satan’s great pride can be said to flow from various sources. Some may believe that Satan has truly convinced himself that God can be defeated. This is in many ways a logical thought: why would Satan oppose God if he believes that God can overpower him? I would, however suggest a different course. Satan is noted at one point only pretending to be God. As well, whenever God reveals His power to Satan, Satan runs. This is because Satan truly knows that he has no power to match God’s.

During the war in heaven, Satan is described as “Affecting all equality with God” 5. Satan is not truly convinced that he is God’s equal; he is only pretending to be the equal of God. In fact, in this war with heaven Satan can only at most claim equality with the other angels for “Equal in thir Creation they were form'd” 6. We see that in three days of fighting in heaven, Satan and his army has failed to conquer heaven. Satan has been defeated in battle by Michael whose sword “shar’d all his (Satan’s) right side” 7.

Since Satan is defeated so powerfully by Michael it would be reasonable for Satan to give up his battle, seeing that he is outmatched by an opponent so close to his power. This, however, is not an option for Satan. He decides to continue the battle until the Son comes “full of wrath bent on his enemies” 8.. The Son then easily drives the demons out of Heaven into chaos, where they fall to Hell.

Now it is expected that Satan would consider surrender since he is so powerfully outmatched. Satan cannot defeat his fellow angel Michael, let alone stand against the power of God who cast Satan out of Heaven so easily. Satan, however, still maintains his powerful hubris. Satan does not want to follow God. As Beelzebub puts it, he does not want to be “enslav’d”9. under God’s “iron scepter”10.

Satan’s pride then is what leads to his ignorance of how powerless he is to defeat God. Milton has done this intentionally to display human failings in Satan. In the bible the apostles Peter and John write about why people reject God. In the gospel of John Christ says “This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. 11. ”This is perfect for describing Satan; he hates God because he does not want to follow Him. As well, we see the Apostle Peter write “But they deliberately forget that long ago by God's word the heavens existed and the earth was formed out of water and by water.” 12.

Milton has written his Satan keeping these verses in mind. He writes Satan to show this false pride which turns him away from God; one who forgets that God is the creator and one who shuns God because he wishes to turn away from God. This foolishness and deviance of wisdom leads to some of Milton’s parodies in the text.

Biblically “The fear of the lord is the beginning of knowledge” 13. Milton is following this reasoning as he parallels Satan’s actions with events that show a perversion of wisdom. The most obvious symbol of this is with the birth of Sin. The birth of Sin is a parody of the birth of Athena from Zeus’ head. 14. In Sin, however, we see that she comes from the left side of Satan’s head, which is noted to be the sinister side. 15. This suggests that instead of Satan begetting a fair being like Athena, he has brought forth a creature composed only of his baser and vile nature.

Sin as well parallels Athena in many ways. First and foremost we see it in their appearances. “but familiar grown, I pleas’d, and with attractive graces won The most averse, thee (Satan) chiefly,” 16. Sin says, showing that only the “averse” would care to gaze upon her; all others found her to be disgusting. Satan, as the most perverse of all, found her the most beautiful. 17. This parallels wisdom whose beauty is “so bright that only the enlightened may gaze upon her”. 18.

As well, we may take the analogy further and see that an alternative name for Athena is Minerva. This Minerva is not only a goddess of wisdom, but also a goddess of death. She brings death to many while Sin bears Death into the world. 19. This joining of Sin, Death, and Satan forms an unholy trinity, an unholy trinity that exists in mockery of God and therefore wisdom.

As well, we see that Milton makes another parallel of Satan and wisdom through the book Ecclesiasticus. 20. This is an apocryphal work that was included in some protestant bibles at this time. 21. We see the fullness of this parallel in the distorted tree of knowledge which is grown in Hell. Those who eat and drink wisdom are to be satiated in Heaven, yet the tree planted in Hell cannot fill the hunger of the demons. This represents the folly of those who inhabit Hell. 22.

Thus, throughout the poem we see that Satan is the opposite of Christ. He claims to be independent of God, yet we know that he is not. All of Satan’s actions are allowed by God s that His plan of salvation for the human race will come through. 23. Thus he acts only as the opposite of wisdom: folly. 24.

Representing Folly Satan does not leave this state by repenting before God. He follows the familiar verse “As a dog returns to its vomit, so a fool repeats his folly” 25. Satan does consider repentance at several turns. “Hadst thou the same free Will and power to stand? Thou hadst…Be then his Love accurst, since love or hate to me alike it deals eternal woe” 26. Here he begins by thinking of repentance but then decides that both serving God and being hated by God are the same thing to him. Satan is proud and wishes to be his own master.

Satan continues his thinking of repentance. He asks later “Is there no place left for repentance?” 27. considering that maybe he can still turn back. On further reflection, however, we see that his “dread of shame” 28. or pride and “disdain” 29. prevent him from repenting. His thinking further leads him to believe that he can possibly “subdue th’omnipotent” 30. the most foolish thought of all. Instead of recognizing his error, Satan revels in it bringing forth unimaginable folly as he seeks to dethrone God. 31.

Satan’s nature does not allow him to relent. 32. Satan even distorts the truth of Grace to suppose that it is merely a trap for him to rebel again, saying God would know that he can’t persevere under God’s service. 33. God, however, is allowing Satan to make a choice on repentance. He does so to demonstrate his fairness, as well as justify eternal damnation for Satan when Satan disobeys Him again. 34.

This here is where we see how different Satan is from Adam and Eve. While Satan continues in his rebellion, Adam and Eve pray to God asking for mercy. As well, when they are banished from paradise, they obey God’s command to have children and bring humanity into the world. Adam convinces Eve to continue to live and not despair of life because he believes in God’s promises, unlike Satan. He convinces Eve to believe in God as well saying: “I have in view, calling to minde with heed Part of our Sentence, that thy Seed shall bruise The Serpents head; piteous amends, unless Be meant, whom I conjecture, our grand Foe Satan, who in the Serpent hath contriv'd Against us this deceit: to crush his head” 35. Thus we see that Adam and Eve’s chief difference from Satan is what they do after they have sinned: they repent.

Satan’s pride therefore births his folly. Satan chooses not to acknowledge the power of God because he does not want to follow God. In doing so, Satan forms his unholy trinity of himself, Sin, and Death. These are the aspects of himself that he brings into the world. First bearing Sin, and then committing incest to bring Death, we see a symbolism that is reflected in James.

James writes “After desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.” 36. This desire which is being spoken of is desiring something that points away from the will of God. Satan’s pride is entwined with that desire. He wishes to be on the right hand of the Father as The Son is, because he considers himself the equal of God, which is above his given station. Then, in an act of open rebellion, Satan begets Sin, the perversion of wisdom. Sin, upon growing and being further desired by Satan does in fact give birth to Death.

This is again a parody of the power of pride. These perversions come into existence because of Satan, and we are able to see that they are vile creations. Not only do they exist, but they also infect the world. After Satan is successful and both Adam and Eve have eaten of the fruit, Sin and Death are free to enter the world. This is not just the result of Satan, but also the result of mankind refusing to trust God, and again because of pride.

Eve ate of the fruit because of the promise of Satan. He told her that if she and Adam ate the fruit “ye shall be as gods.” 37. Because of this Eve ate the fruit. Eve’s pride then was the same as Satan’s: she wanted to be a God just like Satan. In her desire to become a god, she sinned by eating the fruit, and then was kicked out of the garden and allowed to die.

Thus not only does Satan’s pride cause him to disobey God, it causes him to convince others to do the same. Not only does Satan do this with Adam and Eve, but he also tricks his own followers. “War hath determined us” 38. Satan says through Beelzebub, tricking his own followers to follow the course which Satan had set. He has told them that there is no course for them but to continue rebelling against God because He will not forgive them after they have already gone this far, even though (as we have seen earlier) he considers this option himself.

Satan allows his pride to fuel his ignorance of God. Satan doesn’t want to follow God, he wants to lead. Because of this he decides that it would be better if he were in control of Heaven, and allows this desire to fuel his decisions. These decisions lead him forward in a series of events where it becomes increasingly clear that Satan cannot best God; Satan cannot win.

Not only does it become clear as the events of Paradise Lost move forward that Satan cannot win, but we also see that he gets himself into deeper and deeper trouble, and still Satan refuses to turn back. He gets cast into Hell where the fallen angels contemplate repentance, but they do not repent. Instead, Satan goes forward and convinces man to turn against God.

Events culminate when the fallen angels are turned into demons as they are forced to dawn the forms of serpents. A tree of knowledge is planted in hell, but it cannot slake the thirst of the demonic host. The food turns to ash in their mouths and still the demonic host does not repent.

Thus we see that in Paradise Lost pride is folly. Eve believes that she can become a god and so she eats of the fruit, but then is soon aware of what she has done and repents. Satan believes that he can defeat God and he is easily cast down. In fact, he is used by God to further His own purposes. Satan realizes God is more powerful, but because of his pride born of willful ignorance he spurns God and continues his rebellion, thus sealing his doom.

Works Cited:

Mulryan, John. “Satan’s Headache: The Perils and Pains of Giving Birth to a Bad Idea” Milton Quarterly 39.1 (2005): 16-22

Forey, Margaret. “Milton’s Satan: Wisdom Reversed.” Essays in criticism 302-319 oxford journals

Benet, Diana Trevino. “Adam’s Evil Conscience and Satan’s Surrogate Fall” Milton Quarterly 39.1 (2005) 2-13

Milton, John. “Paradise Lost” John Milton The Major Works including Paradise Lost. Eds Stephen Orgel and Johnathan Goldberg. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991

The New International Version Bible. Holman bible publishers, gen. ed. Tenessee: Nashville, 1995