Satan: Hero or Villain?

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Julie Jentzen

ENG 320 A

Dr. O'Neill

April 19, 2003

Satan: Hero or Villain?

When picturing a heroic act, one would usually envision a feat that involves doing something courageous; such as rescuing a damsel in distress or single-handedly slaying an enemy army. The common element that links together the typical pagan epic heroes are these type of impressive public actions (5). In Paradise Lost, Milton depicted Satan as an almost praise-worthy figure. Milton's Satan bears many of the qualities similar to the classic Greek hero: he is strong, courageous, and charismatic (4). In Paradise Lost, Milton's character of Satan depicts the role of a hero in a non-conforming way.

It is fascinating that Milton chose to begin his epic with the introduction of Satan, a figure who has been world-renowned for the prevalent representation of evil throughout history. Traditionally in an epic poem, the first character to be introduced to the reader would be the heroic figure. This is a bold move on Milton's part because he is daring enough to break away from the traditional structure of an epic poem without knowing what his audiences' response will be. Due