Paradise Lost Book 9

Paradise Lost Book 9

1. Context

   • Milton on Cromwell's side in Civil War (17th Century)
     • Connection with Satan - both on losing side
   • Pardoned by King but sent to countryside
   • Satan knows what he's lost, like Giovanni
   • Not allowed to forget that Satan was once good
     • St Augustine - evil is chosen

2. Critics

   • Blake 'He was a true Poet of the Devil's party without knowing it'
   • Obsessed by wickedness of women

3. Quotes

   • Adam 'Our joynt hands will keep from wilderness with ease'
     • Expects easy work
   • Satan 'Under shew of Love well feign'd'
     • Eve will be easy to manipulate when pretend to love her

4. Innocence

   • Eve assuming Serpent is good
     • Don't know evil exists
     • Like Annabella assuming Giovanni tells truth about church
   • Had to decide if she should take fruit back to Adam
     • Innocence is changed
       • Doesn't want Adam to stay alive if she dies and have new women

5. Summary

   • Starts with Satan flying round the earth and talking about his torment. He enters a serpent so he can get into Eden. Eve suggests her and Adam work separately but he doesn't want to as he fears for her safety. Eventually he lets her go. Satan sees Eve and catches her attention. He leads her to a tree that he said gave him the power of speech. She realises it’s the forbidden tree but Satan makes her look at him and says the tree gave him a ‘life more perfect’. Eve eats apple but takes some to Adam who is horrified but he doesn’t want to be apart from Eve so eats fruit. Adam and Eve wake up naked, sad and ashamed. Book ends with them fighting.