17 Oct Paradise Lost, Book 2 (Part One) Copy the following questions into a MS Word file and type your answers underneath
Paradise Lost, Book 2 (Part One)
Copy the following questions into a MS Word file and type your answers underneath the questions.
1 – 10 Introduction to Satan’s throne in Hell
One of the skills required to read Paradise Lost effectively is to be able to see when the
narrator is at work seeking to influence our attitude toward the characters. Review these
opening lines to Book 2 (1 – 10) and note several points at which you detect the narrator seeking to guide your perception of Satan.
11 – 42 Satan’s Speech to the Assembled Angels
In this speech, Satan convenes the assembly and tasks the angels to debate the appropriate
way to resume their warfare with God. This is one of several speeches in Paradise Lost in which we see Satan principally as a rhetorician – intent on persuading his audience. In these speeches, Satan frequently presents biased or outright false claims (think “Fake News”). Find THREE instances in this speech (11 – 42) in which you see evidence of Satan’s use of creative license or outright lying.
43 – 108 The Debate in Hell: Moloch’s Speech
The debate begins with a speech by Moloch. You can get some idea of his character by reviewing the gruesome pagan ritual in his honor described in Book 1: 392 – 399. In Book 2, he is described at the “fiercest Spirit / That fought in Heav’n” – though that is not necessarily intended by the narrator as a compliment. Moloch recommends that they engage in “open Warr” – a second all-out attack on Heaven – in which they will use the flaming materials of Hell as their very weapons. Review this speech (51 – 105) from a character perspective. What do you extract from the speech and from the narrator’s comments before the speech (43 – 50) and afterwards (106 – 108) that helps us to get a handle on the character of Moloch?
108 – 228 The Debate in Hell: Belial’s Speech
The second speaker is Belial. Milton clearly intends that he sound somewhat like a modern-day politician – smooth and persuasive. As to whether he should be persuasive is another matter you can ponder. Belial begins his speech by refuting the reasoning behind Moloch’s speech (119 – 145). But at 145, he transitions to a new argument and vision. Review Belial’s recommendation as to how they can “manage” their time in Hell (145 – 225). Try this exercise. Imagine that, instead of Hell, earth is what Belial and the other angels in the debate are referring to. Do you see any points where his words seem oddly appropriate (even familiar) to our human condition? Why might Milton want us to be able to detect something relevant to our own lives in the words of Belial and the other fallen angels?
229 – 298 The Debate in Hell: Mammon’s Speech
The third speaker is Mammon whose name you may recognize as referring to worldly goods and money. Like Belial, Mammon begins with a rebuttal to Moloch’s argument (229 – 249). After that, he turns, like Belial, to his own proposal. Note that of the first three speeches, Mammon’s is the only one that receives applause from the audience (284 – 291). Review the central passage of Mammon’s proposal to the angels (249 – 283). Why do you think that his speech garners applause? Why might it be more attractive to the fallen angels than Belial’s proposal or Moloch’s?
299 – 389 The Debate in Hell: Beelzebub’s Speech
The final speaker in the debate is Beelzebub. But he begins his speech aware that the assembly has already endorsed through its applause the recommendation of Mammon. Therefore, he begins his remarks by refuting Mammon’s proposal (310 – 329) by insisting that God will never permit the angels to be “Princes of Hell” (313) – that is, to treat Hell as their new home. Beelzebub’s alternative proposal runs from 330 – 378 and, after he finishes his remarks, there is an even louder ovation than for Belial and a “full assent” (388) among the angels for his proposal. One of the most interesting questions of Book 2 concerns why the angels are persuaded by Beelzebub’s proposal over Mammon’s. Review the central passage in Beelzebub’s proposal (330 – 378) and explain why you think his proposal is chosen over Mammon’s proposal. Do we learn something about what it means to be “fallen from God” that this proposal is chosen unanimously by the angels?
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