Here is a list of questions I need help answering based on John Milton’s “Paradise Lost” (Book 1)
This is a link to the poem’s full text:
http://www.paradiselost.org/8-Search-All.html
Questions:
- Name 4 epic conventions
a.
b.
c.
d.
- Why do you think Milton chose to write Paradise Lost in the epic form? Why not a sonnet? Why not a simple narrative form? What does the epic genre do for the story as a whole?
- Do you see any similarities between Milton’s Satan and Shakespeare’s Macbeth? Which flaws might both share? What strengths might both share? (HINT: lines 36-70 are helpful)
- What type of leader is Satan? Find 1 quote to support your interpretation.
- Paraphrase the following quote: “The mind is its own place, and in itself/ Can make a Heaven of Hell, a Hell of Heaven.” Do you agree with these comments?
- Note the most powerful description of Hell from Book 1.
- Is it preferable to live in a prison as a warden or to be a servant in a beautiful place for a demanding master? What is Satan’s opinion on that question? Find a quote to support your claim.
- Is God a tyrant? ‘an absolute ruler unrestrained by law or constitution; a usurper of sovereignty; a ruler who exercises absolute power oppressively or brutally.”
