Who is the hero of Paradise Lost? Satan or Adam? Discuss with your logics.

Who is the hero of Paradise Lost? Satan or Adam? Discuss with your logics.

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Satan embodies all the qualities of an epic hero-justify your logics with reference from the book.

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Critically examine the character of Satan as presented by Milton in ''Paradise Lost''

Much controversy has clustered round the question as to who is the hero of Paradise Lost. The idea that Satan is the hero, or at least a type of hero is widespread, also John Milton never directly mentioned him as the hero. There are very sensible persons who advocate the claim of Satan, and others, that of Adam. Denis Saurat, a French critic puts forward the strange thesis that Milton himself is the hero of Paradise Lost. Several critics assure us that Milton has portrayed himself with his pride and solitary grandeur in the figure of Satan. Probably the most famous quote about Paradise Lost is William Blake's statement that Milton was ''of the Devil's party without knowing it.'' However, the progression, or, more precisely, regression of Satan's character gives a much clear picture of Milton's attitude toward Satan. Let us see some of the features of his character which definitely support the idea of Satan as a hero.

In Paradise Lost Milton plays with the tension that the character of Satan provokes, thereby forcing the readers, to consider the possibility that Satan may actually be a hero. When one applies Aristotle's notion of ''Hamartia'', it seems entirely reasonable to interpret that Satan, having been a good person who fell from grace, is indeed a hero. What makes the debate about Satan as a hero in Paradise Lost so charged for many readers is that the traditional image of a hero is a figure, generally a man, who is fundamentally good person confronting challenges and overcoming them successfully. In Paradise Lost, however, this hero archetype is challenged completely, especially by the character of Satan.

Milton has endowed Satan with all the qualities which make a hero. In fact, it is the grandeur of Satan's character that makes Paradise Lost an epic. Milton has imparted something of himself to Satan, and so Satan arouses our admiration by strength of his character and individuality. The spirit of self-reliance, of mental courage, which rises independent of environment, is a quality possessed only by Satan. There blazes a burst of strong, over-mastering ambition, when he declares-

To reign is worth ambition though in hell;

Better to reign in Hell than serve in Heaven.

It is no ordinary ambition which we see here; there is something colossal in this bold challenge to the Almighty for supreme power. It may be a wicked thing to defy God, but in this case, God is far-removed and unreal, and it is the greatness of the challenge rather than the wickedness, which is the prominent impression.

Milton's Satan in Paradise Lost starts out whole and  good, just as all human beings do, but he undergoes a transformation. The transformation, however, does not diminish him as a heroic figure as long as the reader is willing to reject the traditional archetype of the hero. Satan is ultimately a heroic figure because he is able to bear the weight of impossible pain and suffering while still moving forward and fighting for what he believes in. He does not detach from his aim, knowing exactly what can happen to him if he fails. He has gone a long way and does not want to turn back, whatever may happen. The reader of Milton's Paradise Lost need not agree with Satan's plan of revenge in order to consider him a hero. A hero is someone who persists against all odds. Satan completely recognizes the risks of his decisions and he acts anyway. A true hero is not the one who is wholly good. Instead, a true hero is an individual who is willing and able to acknowledge his human complexity and to continue facing the challenges of life, regardless of the obstacles placed in one's path. Satan is such a hero.

Though fallen, the nobility of his earlier nature does not desert him. He is still as courageous, strong, bold as he was before. Satan is not slightly afraid when he is caught by Ithuriel and Zephon who bring him in front of Gabriel. When Gabriel questions him why he has transgressed the limits fixed for his punishment in Hell, he gives a sarcastic reply-

''Gabriel, thou hast in Heav'n th' esteem of wise;

And such I held thee; but this question asked

Puts me in doubt.

He is not even afraid of fighting Gabriel and his fellow angels, although he is all alone against them. He says that he has more power of endurance and suffering than the other spirits. He does not hesitate to start a battle with the angels. Gabriel angrily rebukes Satan and threats him several times but his courage does not seem to decrease-

Then when I am thy captive, talk of chains,

Proud limitary Cherub! but ere then

Far heavier load thyself expect to feel

From my prevailing arm,

Satan remains as bold in spirit and as defiant as he was before his defeat; and the change of his surroundings cannot in any way dampen his spirit. He will make Heaven of Hell, and undertakes all kinds of risks and dangers in order to take revenge on God-

A mind not to be changed by place or time

The mind is its own place, and in itself

Can make a Heaven of Hell, a Hell of Heaven.

Under the light of above discussion, we can reach into an opinion that although Milton has never straightly entitled Satan as the hero of his epic Paradise Lost, there can be no doubt he can claim to the title of the hero better than anybody else. This figure is heroic in every way. He is a fearless leader, and all the fallen angels submit unquestioningly to his authority. As Abercrombie wrote

''It is surely the simple fact that Paradise Lost exists for one figure that is Satan, just as the Iliad exists for Achilles and Odyssey for Odysseus.''

Satan possesses all the qualities of an epic hero. In the end, Satan calls to mind the Macbeth of Shakespeare. Both characters are magnificent creations of evil. Both are heroic after a fashion, but both are doomed. And finally both create a kind of Hell: Macbeth's on earth, Satan's on universe.