How does Milton explore evil and corruption in Paradise Lost books 9 and 10?
In book 9, Milton explores how evil and corruption are spread through lies. Satan, the prince of lies, doesn't act openly, as he has learned he cannot prevail that way, but through deception. He hides after entering paradise as a mist, then enters the body of a snake, disguising himself. He corrupts Eve by playing on her vanity and desire for freedom and power, telling her that he learned to speak, even though a snake, from eating the forbidden fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. He suggests to her that God does not have her best interests at heart in forbidding the fruit but is doing so to protect his own agenda. Satan thus spreads suspicion and distrust.
Eve is corrupted by giving in to her own weakness and desire for power. Adam is corrupted by his desire to be with Eve, even if she...
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is evil. It is interesting, too, that Satan, having done his dirty work, disappears like any cheap con man who has cheated someone of their life savings. With psychological perception, Milton shows, too, that a sense of having done something wrong leads to intense shame and that shame leads to blame and arguing and anger between people who want to deny their own wrongdoing. Evil wounds people deeply.
In book 10, Milton makes clear that evil and corruption are the fruits of free will: God has given humans the gift of choice. Further, book 10 reveals that perpetrators of evil pay a price: back in hell, Satan discovers he has been turned into a dragon and his followers into serpents, which make them unhappy. Original sin in humans causes a cycle of more and more sin, leading to misery and death. Milton ties happiness closely to obedience to God and misery to the corruption that grows from challenging God's wisdom.
How is evil explored in book nine of John Milton's Paradise Lost?
The nature of evil in Book 9 of Paradise Lost can be explored through themes of vengeance, duplicity, and persuasion.
One way to explore evil in Book 9 is through the theme of vengeance. In this section, Satan carries out his plan against God. Satan’s conflict with God revolves around power. He wants the unfettered authority attributed to God. As Satan declares in Book 1, “Better to reign in Hell, than serve in Heav'n.” Now, in Book 9, Satan’s evilness takes the form of vengeance. “For only in destroying I find ease,” he admits. In Book 9, Satan disrupts Adam and Eve’s existence in paradise and shows God his creations are vulnerable. He harms them to compensate for a perceived slight, so vengeance is linked to evil.
To carry out his vengeance, Satan employs deceit, so another way to explore evil is through duplicity. Satan doesn’t interact with Eve as Satan but as a serpent. He disguises himself to trick Eve. The serpent is the “fittest imp of fraud” where “His dark suggestions hide / From sharpest sight.” To succeed, Satan has to conceal his evil machinations from view, which he successfully does.
Finally, evil can be explored through persuasion. Adam fails to persuade Eve to work together instead of alone. Meanwhile, Satan persuades Eve to eat the fruit from the tree. As Adam is good and Satan is evil, persuasion (at least in Book 9) is portrayed as evil. Concerning Satan’s convincing rhetoric, the narrator writes, "Into the Heart of Eve his words made way, / Though at the voice much marveling." Indeed, Satan’s words are piercing, captivating, and, thus, persuasive.