referring to original sin

Satan is claiming what is his

democratic under Satan

on earth. Satan introduces death and sin on earth while God introduces eternal live and love.

"Better to reign in hell, than to serve in heaven". Now Satan finds out that he is king of nothing.

Satan is not hell born, like sin and death. He is from heaven, so be warned :-) .

See the drawing: http://s3.amazonaws.com/ourheritagemedia%2Foriginal%2Fb9080514cad6767ac04d4137741bebac.jpg

Like the sirenes odyssey xii 184- 191. Sweet sounds of the voices that come from our mouths, and he who listens will not only expierience great pleasure before he goes back home but will also far more knowledgeable than before.. All is a lie off course.

Satan is no leader or absolute ruler as he presents himself. In fact he has nothing to say in the matter and it is decided for him.

Evil is scared of a even worse fate than hell. They prefer peace; they are cowards.

Al least Moloc has some self insight and all his advice turns out to be dreams or illusions or proud imaginations.

AKA God.

Here Satan claims he is inferior because he envied the throne of god, waged war and lost. Rather ironic that he mentions it as a benefit from hell.

Like God created Adam first as his equal , he created Satan also first (and equal). And then free choice... . Free choice is a gift that makes a being.

The other creature is the snake. Since this creature is equal or not much inferior than themselves it makes them ridiculous. All the grandeur of Satan from book 1 is deflated when he put himself on the same level of a snake.

When Milton repeats himself it is to make an important point. Here Satan's "labour" is "difficult" because it is in vain, since he is alienated from God. So he certainly does not look heroic here.

Satan is nothing if not incongruous…or, more specifically, ridiculous. One would've assumed that he, and by extension, the rebel angels, had learned that rebellion (overt or covert) against God supremacy was useless. But here they are again, this time plotting to avenge the perceived wrongs of their own rebellion.

Belial seems to suggest that the devils cannot ultimately win against God's omniscience and power, and further rebellion might actually put them in a worse state than they are already in.

Here is the oberture of Satan's words. None of the three past fallen angels was so praised. "With Atlantean shoulders" offers an image of someone that will carry big weights, and in this context it seems like he'll be be one who will do it, the hero.

Satan seems to be justifying his role as the leader in hell based upon his knowledge that he will receive the greatest punishment from heaven. Since their mission is to do the opposite of good, nobody will try to upstage Satan by doing more evil than him, and in turn increase their punishment. In another context we might consider this an epic quality (like "taking one for the team"), but in this context he is acting without merit and nobility...so this goes into the ridiculous column.

Here the author makes a reference to the Bible when he says "Oh how fall'n!" This is referenced in the book of Isaiah where it describes Satan's fall and how much he had changed from being such a respected Angel, to being thrown down into the lake of fire, and becoming the leader of other fallen angels like himself. Here you can also feel a wave of emotion from he author where he puts himself into the story to describe Satan's transformation.

Milton introduces Satan as subject of epic

It should be meaning Lucifer and his advocates. Here in this composition, Satan, Lucifer and Serpent are confused. It seems the author wanted to imply the notion that Satan is the same person with Lucifer, which is not the concept as suggested in the Bible.

In seventeenth-century usage, the term is associated with secret meetings for plotting insurgency. Was there ever a more secret and more insurgent meeting!

I've always been confused over whether or not "Chaos" referred to here is the same as the character Chaos in the poem.

Aeschylus' Prometheus expresses the same sentiment and a favorite saying of Julius Caesar was that he would rather be the first man in a village, than the second in Rome.

Unlike Dante's well-structured Inferno, the topography of Milton's Hell is muddled and uncertain; conveying more a state of mind than a sense of place.

Milton's Hell is a chaotic, ill-defined region of turbulent darkness as opposed to the brilliant light that illuminates the orderliness of Heaven.

Beautiful words but what does it mean? Help is appreciated.

Like the cescent of Odysseus into Hades: spirits pass by

flower of heaven: a flower has a temporal beauty, cut in his prime and then dies: once yours now lost...

Once they hear that voice .. new courage and revive. Satan brings hope in hell. A battlecry.

Satan the new king / possessor of hell. He brings his quality: a good functioning independent free mind.

Beautiful words. Hope gives strength, if that does now work: hate wil do also do nicely...

There is no "good" without "evil" : the same that you won't have day or night. Satan brings balance, it is his being.

It all depends from which viewpoint you look. Tyranny from God: who is good of evil?

A contrast with the boldness of 105 all is not lost etc. Is satan saying those words without confidence? Empty threats? He already lost from god.

The Muses tell him what they saw and heard. The writers mind is supposed to see and hear what the muses saw and heard. It gives authority and he is speaking the truth because he is directly connected to the goddesses of memory...

This feels like it could be a reference to the Kabbalah, particularly to the top (Keter) and bottom (Malkhut) sefirot which are identified respectively with the Crown and the Kingship/Rulership of God.

Theme: The subject of man's first disobedience

A very clear religious reference to the Holy Spirit, one of the three divine persons. Jesus has already been referenced in the poem's opening as the "greater man" who will "restore us." Still waiting for God the father to be mentioned clearly.

A reference to Moses who received the ten commandments from God and taught them to his people.

This is the standard introduction to epic poetry throughout the ancient world, as can be seen in the worlds of Homer, Virgil and many others.

This refers to where Moses received the Ten Commandments. Certainly a noble man and noble deed.

This is an example of the noble doings of a noble man. A reference to Jesus of Nazareth, known as "the second Adam" , and 'Restores us, and regain the blissful Seat'.

Maybe another classical epic reference. Aristotle was talking about the august, heroic and godlike properties of the epic. Milton here wishes to "justify the ways of God to men", not just to make men in awe, but to make men understand what is heroic. By doing this, he deviates from the epic norm, and rebels (being the key word of the poem perhaps). "What in me is dark illumin" could be interpreted as a quest for knowledge, which led to the original sin. Do desire for knowledge and disobedience go hand in hand? And is disobedience so bad?

revolt, opposed, rebellious...words that reflect the act of disobedience and that keep coming up. Milton questions disobedience as an act of sin, and this is what I really like about the poem. It challenges the christian ideals of obedience.

The first reference to Satan clearly emerging as the hero of the poem.

Instead of praising heroic deeds to the likes of Achilles, Milton uses the formula to reflect upon the act of disobedience as a heroic act.

Clearly the opening lines of an epic, but varying greatly from the classical theme. Man's first disobedience seems to be the heroic deed the poem wishes to illustrate

The narrator seems to call Satan's rhetorical abilities into question by writing that his speech is received as "worthy" by his listeners, but that it has no substance.

The narrator took the identity of satan to write book 1 and 2, like an actor and now is returning to the light, returning to his own identity, like a prophet.

This gives me much hope in God's insight and power regarding this whole breech by Satan.

This is the God I don't like, who seems to be choosing some men over others, even though all are apoarently sinners.

In the Bible, long and disheveled hair is associated with eroticism.

Eve's self-reflection amid this male cosmology is interrupted and she's urged into the arms of waiting Adam.

This may not imply Eve's inferiority, as Eve is to Adam as Adam is to God, since the Son stands in the same relation to the Father.

"Millions" of spiritual creatures and they can't keep Satan from Adam and Eve?Is this because they spend their time with ceaseless praise? This sounds like the demands of a tyrannical God.

Eve refers to the sun as "him" and the "morn" and Night as "her". This is odd because she supposes that God made "he" and "She" with specific qualities - why does she make anthropomorphic the times of day?

It seems that the fall of Mankind also brought about the fall of the animals under their dominion, since the Lion no longer dandles the kid.

William Blake's image of Adam and Eve in Bk 4 shows them as very classical, if muscular, entities - with Eve of course suitably subject. In the same plate Satan flites about while embracing the serpent (with a bird-like head!). Blake always adds something to a text; I guess just his own imagination.

Which makes the existence of a wall irrelevant, but perhaps the following lines with their references to a wolf and a thief simply indicate that it is impossible to keep evil out.

Interesting that Satan actually names the fruit. It is just a fruit in Genesis. The name, 'Apple' seems unimportant for it is the act of eating a fruit which is the act of disobedience Satan encourages.

Poor Adam, like so many of us, has been distracted by the beauty of a woman. Never mind, he comes out of it well enough; he has knowledge (and the beautiful woman!)

A change signaled by the narrator, Milton, the epic 'Notes' are now to tell of a tragedy. I have read that Bk 9 is about the length of an Euripidean tragedy, c. 1100 lines, and the Book is complete in itself.

The first letter of lines 510 to 514 spell SATAN, an acrostic. Presumably deliberate?

Milton could be referring to Aristotle's doctrine that "the highest end and chief delight of man is a life of intellectual speculation".

Milton points out that age and circumstances should make it impossible for him to produce a work on the scale of PL, and stresses that there must be a force or spirit that is speaking through him.

Milton connect the eaten fruit with sexual desire. In all previous poem we found only a platonic love, no sexual act. But now we see that. The fruit awake them the sexual desire and they make love. Bible's account don't say that but we can say that maybe this has a point from the status of women in Bible. The low status level and their role is not important in men's decisions, not all the time but in most of them.

Adam, outside Bible's account, reveals his emotions and will. He seal his fate with his wife...permantly. Her way, his way, vice versa. Their decision ultimate, their life or death undisputable. Milton went beyond Bible's account and tried to find inner emotions and thoughts. These thoughts which seal permantly their fate.

I think that this part is one of the most powerful in this poem. Satan is the hero, the underground hero, the person which make self critical, as he recognize that Hell has destroyed him. He is prepared for the final hit, which will ruin everything good and virtue and he will take his revenge. This part is out of book of Genesis. Bible actually says very few things about Satan and his intentions. But here Milton trying to give us his deep motives, his propose.

Cape Verde - modern Senegal. An indication of the ever expanding world and Milton's familiarity with it.

A wonderful metaphor describing the rotation of the Earth, and a reference to the Copernican universe.

The knowledge is something good, elogue and precious. But its also secret and hidden. God is the source and He reveals what He want when He want. In Genesis the knowledge is formated in a close account with specific order and theme. In Milton's version there is plurality more broad and epic.

In Genesis we have a simple narration of the creation of man. In Milton's version things are very different. Its no simple, its hard, maybe complicated. It seems more realistic.

Man made in the image of God - one can only look at the world today and wonder what went wrong. Perhaps the creation should have stopped at line 519!

Again an instance of Milton the Classicist. The word is a composite of two common Latin words, and so 'all-making' or 'creating' - which is probably better in the context.

This is, I take it, chaos. A wonderful concept of matter at it most primitive - the universe just after the Big Bang: uncontrolled and violent matter, but matter with the potential to be ordered, as the creation will do. (Note: I do not suggest Milton preempted the Big bang theory - that is mere whimsy on my part.)

I would be interested to know just why Milton makes this departure from the Biblical Genesis. Or does he? Perhaps the Son in that work is called 'God'! Milton often confuses me!!

I often find it difficult to understand who is speaking in this poem, who is the 'I' here for instance. I take it this is the narrator, who is Milton himself, calling upon his muse, Urania. Interesting that this muse may reflect Milton's interest in the heavens (astronomy). Galileo was an older contemporary and Milton, who met him, was well aware of the use of the new telescope in studying the night sky.

Light is conceived as stored in a chamber during the night [Jb 38:19]. Also, "Tabernacle", connects the primal light with the ark of the covenant, which was also kept in a tabernacle.

The symbolism of light is universal and occurs in the ancient Near East as a whole in a manner similar to the symbolism of light in the bible. OT. Light is vision and Yahweh gives light to the eyes [Ps 13:4]. The light of the eyes is also hope [Ezr 9:8] and revelation. Light is the element of moral good [Is 51:4] and [Jn 3:20].

Light was not 1 of the 4 elements, but Milton makes it into the 5th essence, or "quintessence" This has also been identified with the "philosophers' stone", a chemical elixir alchemists believed would act as a catalyst to bring the world to a state of perfection.

This light does not emanate from the sun which Milton says has not yet been created. [247-248] Yahweh is the creator of light [Gn 1:3-5] This affirmation is probably intended to raise Him above the dualism of light and darkness.

The story of creation is enriched with many details out of book of Genesis. Of course there is an epic way of narrative and present the earth as a living being which is created in different stages. At the end a beautiful living being is present. Its not coinsidence that the light is coming first.

Labor was the curse laid on Adam after the fall.

Milton has had personal experience with diseases of the eyes and he has made a reference to cures number of times in PL.

Milton here saw us a soft, mild, kind way of our fall, our death. All are coming to an end as the result of our sin. Death come to all of us. In my point of view this is nice, comfortable view, instead our reality. Our painful fall to diseases and death. The end is not peaceful. For the most of the people is painful, violent and hard. But people always tried to calm our violent enviroment. Life never was easy for the human.

Suggesting that his previous happiness has caused his present misery, Milton stresses how one condition can produce its opposite.

What a lie...

So the man was doomed to fall...should be seduct...It seems that everything was planed and from this point of view all our problems todayare planned to be. I don't like the idea and it seems to me that is very comfortable to avoid our responsibilities, but on the other hand its a very complicate philosophycal problem.

This could mean that the actual day of their deaths is in the future, but the process of dying begins instantly.

The "rule" of man over woman could be part of the punishment for the Fall.

could refer to psychological alienation rather than to physical absence.

Even the numbers are Homeric in their magnitude. They also reflect the unknown concept of truly large numbers in Milton's time. John Locke similarly impressed by size refers to the microscope, new at his time, as magnifying an image a million times. He seemed to have no conception of just what that implies.

This seems the first reference to Homer whose rosie fingered dawn begins the day (quite often in fact). The battle is Homeric in its proportions and not decided until God's son, Jesus/Achilles, arrives upon the field.

Adam seems to be asking if God will desert Mankind.

Adam and Eve's state evokes the words of Nirvana - "I think I'm dumb, maybe I'm just happy".

Adam takes his responsibility to have dominion over all of Nature quite literally, commanding the winds and trees and animals to give God praise.

Satan conveniently forgets that the evil will be communicated as well.As a political metaphor, though, he is dead on - the more the King grants freedom, the more honored will be the King.

Satan as usual makes his mischief sound like an act of kindness, by "deigning to ease the load" and plucking an apple.

Blake's Raphael is a rather effeminate figure. Can one ask why much is made of his attire when Adam and Eve, in their purity, are naked. Perhaps it is something to do with hierarchy, after all Raphael also wears a crown (in Blake's image).

This is the God I don't like - the "rigid satisfaction," "death to death" like an eye-for-an-eye. Also, earlier God seemed to say he could not foresee all, and now he seems to be assuming that man will be as bad as Satan, not merely deceived by him.

I think this is one resemblance between Satan and God's Son. They are all confronted with a situation which no one else is brave enough to solve and they both stand out.

This meets my expectations as the Father pronounces the Son of God's exaltation above all names in heaven and earth.

This is disappointing here and seems to be victim blaming particularly that it includes all who follow.

This is easily passed, yet stands as an important philosophical point. God has created his men, angels, etc., as free, but he must do this to make their obedience meaningful. If they were not free to disobey obedience would mean nothing: it is as much a choice as it is to act disobediently.

With this Milton makes it clear that he is the narrator, the one who has visited hell (Bks. 1 and 2) and now, Bk. 3, heaven.

In previous God seems to know everything, the possibility of the fall, the fall, and the cause of the fall. Now the main responsible in this situation is the man, by his own freedom to choose. I think that God loose His power to set the rules or set the rules with so unstable way which many things gone bad.

This is a huge ethical and philosophical problem...Did man had the ability of free will?

Again, Milton describes the first man and woman as special beings. Earlier, he used the word greater to refer to to the one who restored us, which leads me to believe Milton saw the first man as great. Now, he uses the word grand to describe the first couple.

This seems to imply that the first man was a great man and/or his disobedience was a great act.

The idea of worthieness is connected to heroic journeys

A Temple built for Satan like the ones that would have been built for the gods of classical mythology.

Is this an exaggeration or are there millions of fallen angels in Hell?

Three is highly important in Christianity because of the Trinity.

Comparing Satan's army to the armies of Greek Heroes and other great heroes such as King Arthur in the lines that follow.

I love this line. It's so evocative.

Yet Satan has not given up the idea of trying to control Heaven through battle with God.

Satan embracing his new kingdom.

Great line

The mixing of Christianity and Ancient mythology is constant throughout the poem. This is one example.

Implying that God was not sovereign ruler of Heaven before the downfall of Satan and his army?

Satan is being punished for leading Eve astray, even though it lead to the need for Jesus, which Satan (or the narrator?) does not see as fair.

Satan intends to do as he likes anyway in spite of God's will.

The work of Hell is being referred to as God's will? And Satan and his allies no longer have free will?

They did not see God as almighty before their downfall.

They have fallen as far as it is possible for an angel to fall

Satan's downfall has not changed him for the better (as we would expect from a hero) it has redoubled his hate and added a thirst for revenge. He thinks of God as a tyrant.

Again with tragic flaws of a fallen hero

The tragic flaw of a hero that leads to his downfall? Refering to Satan?

Another Christian misreading of Genesis. When Adam and Eve are expelled, they're gone for good. It's time to get on with their lives.

Unusual for epic poem, since in epic poems fate and the gods usually decide what happens, the hero knows this and is fated to challenge it.

Glory (κλέος) is characteristic of all epic poems, especially ancient Greek ones.

Invoking the aid of the muse and adventurous song are signs of an epic poem

calling upon the Beginning is a sign of an epic poem

Calling upon Kalliopi, the muse of epic poetry according to the ancient Greeks is a way to identify epic poetry.

from the Greek Παν (πάντες, όλοι - all ) and (δαίμονας - demon)

https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/scurf

They're going to rebel still, but in a way that won't make God retaliate

What if God merely left them alive to serve as his slaves for all eternity?

Belonging to heaven. Also used in the Divine Comedy. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Empyrean

Just like a good comic book, let the next phase of the nefarious plot unfold with this cliff hanger to Book 2.

God has failed to convert Satan. I imagine this quote was used during Vietnam in conjunction with "hearts and minds."

To me, the challenge to "Invoke" is most tantalizing and this beckons me to comply.

Milton refers to "my adventrous song." He clearly takes credit for authorship although he is asking for assistance. Homer asks the Muse to sing through him, and "to begin when the two ( Achilles and Agemennon) broke and clashed..." Homer is asking the Muse to sing through him. Homer presents himself as a vessel; Milton presents himself as a poet/creator seeking "aid to my adventrous song."

"Satan awakens all his Legions:" like the morning after a party and the leader is the first to wake up and see the damage done and remember the unforgivable actions taken the night before, he realizes they need to get up and deal with their hangovers and injuries and face the music and start their process of recovery. He gets them in motion, and the story begins.

to eat the forbidden fruit from the tree of knowledge of good and evil

Even in love Adam appears to be superior. This was unexpected.

Eve assumes that the fact that she finds her fulfilment in Adam makes her more fortunate than him. This surprises me particularly as Milton assures us previously that Eve is certainly not Adam's equal and was created to serve Adam.

Pray is essential part of their life. They depend from God's favor and praise Him. There is no independed thesis.

I hear an obedient, submisive woman, willing to make the work of her husband. She accept her lower position.

A pleasant surprise that Adam comforted Eve after her troublesome dream, even though he did not like hearing about it. We see this repeated "Be not disheartened"line 122. This idea is reinforced by line 129 "So cheer'd he his fair spouse, and she was cheer'd;"

why else set here? We have to deal with great ethical problem...it was all set up from the begining? Are we created to hunt knowledge and eternity? Are all these a test?

I think that there is something deep in Eve's emotions...really strong emotions.

I think that Adam was full in love with his wife....!!!

Why does Satan take Eve up into the clouds? What is Milton trying to do here? The only thing that comes into my mind is Satan's temptation of Jesus when he takes up 'on an exceedingly high mountain, and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and promises them to him in exchange for his worship - but I'm not sure there's a connection. I find these lines odd - why does he add them to the traditional 'temptation' narrative?

Sounds like the burning bush (Exodus 3.2): And the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed.

One of many echos of Satan to Prometheus: Power Now drive the adamantine wedge's stubborn edge straight [65] through his chest with your full force.

Quite a rewriting of Genesis. See 1.31: Then God saw everything that He had made, and indeed it was very good.

This may sound blasphemous, but it's Milton's doctrine that is blasphemous-- that creation wasn't complete, wasn't good, until He created Hell.

And ten low Words oft creep in one dull Line (Pope). While Pope may have been thinking of this line, it works because the line is meant to be slow for a region dolorous.

After all the heroic language and deeds preceding, Milton then reminds us that all Satan is after is mischievous revenge. His actions aren't heroic because he's not doing them for heroic reasons.

The epic hero on his sole quest to save his people...There are countless examples of this in mythology and epic poetry.

Satan started the plan and fed it to Beelzebub, who then put it forth to the masses. It's a classic Machiavellian scheme, and allows Satan to be the hero/champion who volunteers for the job.

Mammon echos Satan's words in book 1, arguably the most famous line in the entire poem, "Better to reign in Hell, then serve in Heav'n" (line 263).

Someday God may not be as angry with them - Belial is arguing that they should take a chance at someday being forgiven.

Milton told us that this is precisely what Moloc wanted in lines 45-50.

Moloc thought he was God's equal in strength, but now that he had been proven wrong just wanted to cease to be.

Satan being 'exalted' and 'by merit raised' certainly seemsItalic** heroic here although we know he is not after-all, by being Satan and evil.

Although Death is horrifying, Satan is not afraid. Faced with dark enemy, he is as brave as traditional heroes.

Satan's entire journey is confused and chaotic so he seems to be ridiculous.

Milton associates the devil with the aristocratic virtue of chivalry as with a hero

Satan seems ridiculous here when sarcasm is used to indicate his jealousy of God's love of man.

Satan seems ridiculous here with a "performative contradiction" when he claims precedence in the act of renouncing it.

This refers to the fact that Satan does not argue rationally so he appears to be ridiculous.

Book 2 starts with Satan's monarchal qualities being emphasized as if he were a classic hero.

Devils govern themselves better than men.

The code of the classical hero, as Hektor replying to his wife in book 6 of the Iliad, who had advised him to stay out of the fighting:

Then tall Hektor of the shining helm answered her: “All these<br> things are in my mind also, lady; yet I would feel deep shame<br> before the Trojans, and the Trojan women with trailing garments,<br> if like a coward I were to shrink aside from the fighting;<br> and the spirit will not let me, since I have learned to be valiant and to fight always among the foremost ranks of the Trojans,<br> winning for my own self great glory, and for my father.

In Dryden's translation:

The gates of hell are open night and day; Smooth the descent, and easy is the way: But to return, and view the cheerful skies, In this the task and mighty labor lies.

Repetition of Book 1, line 45:

Him the Almighty Power Hurld headlong flaming from th' Ethereal Skie With hideous ruine and combustion down To bottomless perdition, there to dwell In Adamantine Chains and penal Fire, Who durst defie th' Omnipotent to Arms.

Gen 3.1: Now the serpent was more subtil than any beast of the field which the Lord God had made.

Even if the devils are wrong, they get many great lines. Perhaps this is Milton's feeling towards the Restoration.

The law, as with the fall of Troy, the Melian Dialog, or the destruction of Thebes by Alexander, meant enslaving the women and slaughtering the men.

(1) Another echo of Prometheus, along with adamantine in book 1, and tyranny spoken by Moloch. The bigger point is whether Satan (or other devils) are heroic rebels like Prometheus, or just devils.

(2) The authorship of Prometheus Bound is disputed, due to textual differences from Aeschylus' other works. See the WP article for a starting point.

An echo of the flood in Gen 7.11

the same day were all the fountains of the great deep broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened.

Which itself is an undoing of creation (Gen 1.6)

6 And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.

7 And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so.

8 And God called the firmament Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second day.

Perhaps an echo of Claudio in Measure for Measure (3.1.130:

Ay, but to die, and go we know not where; To lie in cold obstruction and to rot; This sensible warm motion to become A kneaded clod; and the delighted spirit To bathe in fiery floods, or to reside In thrilling region of thick-ribbed ice; To be imprison'd in the viewless winds, And blown with restless violence round about The pendent world; or to be worse than worst Of those that lawless and incertain thought Imagine howling: 'tis too horrible! The weariest and most loathed worldly life That age, ache, penury and imprisonment Can lay on nature is a paradise To what we fear of death.

Immaculate

Belial may be a slimy politician, but his point his sound: the devils don't have the firepower.

Another hint of Prometheus Bound- i.e. the idea of God as a tyrant. To my mind, Milton makes Moloch sound better than Belial because of his courage, even if his advice is less sound.

So Satan takes this task no only because of bravery or hatred but of the king's pride.

Here is a proof of Satan being an epic hero. He has strength and bravery to accomplish a very difficult task, a task that no one can do except him.

The process of Satan's plan is quite logical and effective. But the goal of the plan somehow is not very reasonable. The former fallen angels are talking about how to handle the situation. They want to get out of the pain, but to destruct what God likes is not a way to achieve that. I doubt whether Satan has been driven mad by torment and hatred. This plan can do no good to him except that it can satisfy his enormous ego. As if destructing Eden can destruct the creator of Eden! But perhaps he secretly knows their situation is hopeless so he has no choice but to spend his efforts on making things worse...

Misery wants company...

What would peace be here? I'm not siding with Belial, but what better options do they have?

This is ridiculous. Satan just summarizes the disadvantages of the hell, and then he implies that those disadvantages are the advantages of their union? Maybe union is true(because misery wants company), but when it comes to faith or firm accord, it is too much. It is more like a twisted union bounded by misery. Maybe he says this for encouraging everyone because latter hes' going to find that falling from the heaven is everything but an advantage.

Milton's moving into the world of early science fiction, here, again! again, not at all the world of Genesis - more like the world of Galileo

Milton seems to quote the biblical story almost verbatim at the start of each section, and then lets his imagination go wild with the detail, which bursts out a bit like the animals here burst into living.

I find it interesting that Milton inserts the idea of error into God's creation - way before the Fall. What is the point here of his choice of words, beyond the obvious of the rivers not being straight?

This image of the Earth as 'great Mother', and the idea of the 'womb' of the waters, and of conception, is not at all in Genesis. It seems an image much more drawn from the classics.