paradise lost失乐园赏析课件
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《失乐园》隐喻的认知分析路易斯说,隐喻是诗歌的生命原则,是诗人的主要文本和荣耀。
巴克拉德说,诗人的大脑完全是一套隐喻的句法。
费尼罗撒指出,隐喻是自然的揭示者是诗歌的实质(束,2000:120-1)。
因此,诗歌的创作离不开隐喻的使用。
诗人常常通过隐喻来创造优美的意境、传递深刻的内涵,让读者放飞思想的缰绳,任意驰骋,与诗人产生共鸣。
约翰.弥尔顿(1608-1674)是17世纪英国最伟大的诗人。
《失乐园》,这首史诗成功地奠定了诗人在英国文学史中的地位,被誉为是继乔叟和莎士比亚之后英国文学中第三位最重要的诗人。
《失乐园》取材自《圣经·创世纪》,由无韵诗体写成,具有独特的语言特点。
诗歌中多样的,复杂交织的文体特征和丰富的隐喻表达正是其崇高风格的体现。
因此,出现了大量有关《失乐园》的研究,这些研究都是从传统的修辞学和文学批评的角度进行研究的,而从认知视角解读却很少。
有鉴于此,本文从认知视角探索约翰.弥尔顿的隐喻结构的叙事策略,运用概念整合理论分析《失乐园》文本的内涵及其革命主题,并用概念隐喻理论去分析GOD IS LIGHT(上帝是光明),HAPPINESS IS LIGHT(快乐是光明);EVIL IS DARKNESS(邪恶是黑暗),SADNESS IS DARKNESS(悲伤是黑暗)这些隐喻表达。
通过研究发现:第一,Fauconnier和Turner提出的概念整合理论对《失乐园》隐喻性文本极具解释力。
因为,人们的认知和心理机制大致相同,对每一部文学作品的判断和评估须整合其作者对世界的独特体验。
第二,通过分析弥尔顿诗作中的光明和黑暗隐喻,约翰.弥尔顿的隐喻并非仅仅是语言层次的体现,而与认知隐喻思维相关。
《失乐园》中的隐喻源自我们日常生活中基本的概念隐喻,同样它们也是基于作者个人对世界的体验。
第三,本研究证明了概念整合理论和概念隐喻理论是有效的,强有力的认知工具,可以很好地运用到诗歌阐释和意义构建中。
弥尔顿失乐园英文评述paradiselostParadise LostMelton's magnum opus, the blank-verse epic poem Paradise Lost, was composed by the blind and impoverished Milton from 1658 to 1664 (first edition) with small but significant revisions published in 1674 (second edition). As a blind poet, Milton dictated his verse to a series of aides in his employ. It has been argued that the poem reflects his personal despair at the failure of the Revolution, yet affirms an ultimate optimism in human potential.The extract from Paradise Lost ids mainly talking about: Mammon who was the least erected spirit that fell from Heaven, discovered and robbed wealth with evil and greed from earth to build his paradise. When he was in Heaven, he was preferred gold and pavement other than admiring holy and bright side. This time, Mammon educated people to be greed and evil. He led a group of people to seize treasure from the mother of earth. With spade and pickax, all the miseducated men were devoted to trenching a field or casting a rampart. Soon his group had opened the hill into a spacious wound and gained ribs of gold. Meantime, another team digged many caves, magic flames under caves melted the gold and then pured all those with somewhat magic thicks. At the same time, the third groups had finished various models for architecture. Still with magic power, all the gold in boiled liquid flowed followed pipes of the buildings. It sounds like a pleasure beautiful music. Quickly and unexpected, a resplendent and magnificent palace was just stood there.The story wants to show that the roots of human’s disasters. People tends to be emotional and easy to be on the wrong pathdue to lack of rational, strong will. That’s why people would always break regulations when influenced by various factors from the outside of the world. So is paradise lost. The author criticised those attitude and ill-mind. He affirmed people’s gumption, negated infinite hedonism. And also he affirmed people’s sens e of pride, negated the breeding pride and ambition. Just like the least erected spirit Mammon, he was too evil and greedy, and mislead the delicate human to be the same ones. They destroyed the earth, plundered the wealth resources of earth. All these com from their easily broken will. People there build up the resplendent and magnificent palace, hoping eternally lived in easy and comfortable without worries and danger.In the extract of Paradise Lost, Milton shows excellent means of artistic expression. Dazzling and lyric figure of speech. Such as veins of liquid fire, as in an organ from one blast of wind, rose like an exholatior, or build like a temple. He also use the manner in which Latin is used in speaking or writing. Furthermore,he used canorous tone which expressed the sweet of tonality. For example, too many arow of pipes the sound-board breathes anon out of the earth a fabric huge of dulcet symphonies and voices sweet. There is also a part of argument by Milton in the extract, let none admire that riches grow in hell. That soil may bestdeserve the precious bane. And here let those who boast in mortal things, and wondering tell of Babel, and the works of Memphian kings. Learn how their greatest monuments of fame, and strength, and art, are easily out-done by spirits reprobate, and in an hour what in an age they with incessant toil and hands innumerable scarce perform.Features of Milton’s works.(1) Milton is one of the very few truly great English writers who is also a prominent figure in politics, and who is both a great poet and an important prose writer. The two most essential things to be remembered about him are his Puritanism and his republicanism.(2) Milton wrote many different types of poetry. He is especially a great master of blank verse. He learned much from Shakespeare and first used blank verse in non-dramatic works.(3) Milton is a great stylist. He is famous for his grand style noted for its dignity and polish, which is the result of his life-long classical and biblical study.(4) Milton has always been admired for his sublimit of thought and majesty of expression.。
Satan is comparable in many ways to the tragic heroes of classic Greek literature but, Satan's hubris far surpasses those of previous tragedies. 撒旦在许多方面相当经典的希腊文学的悲剧英雄,但撒旦的傲慢远远超过之前的悲剧。
Formerly the most beautiful of all angels in Heaven, he's a tragic figure曾经最美丽的天使在天堂,他是一个悲剧性人物The image of Satan in Paradise Lost is extremely complex and subtle. He seems to be almost heroic in the earlier portion of the poem, grand and majestic in appearance, fearless in character. 弥尔顿在《失乐园》中撒旦的形象是极其复杂和微妙。
他似乎几乎英雄在前面部分的诗,和雄伟的外观,无所畏惧的性格。
but when facing with the god`s cruel punishment, although it so heavy a burden for him to bear, he got through it, he was not scared to quivered. Instead, he made his mind to oppose god. He soon recovering from defeat and he called on all his followers to regain their courage. He told them to do good reparation to the future fight. 这会让人感觉绝望,痛苦将深化在这样的环境中。
paradiselost失乐园赏析课件paradise-lost失乐园赏析课件————————————————————————————————作者:————————————————————————————————日期:Paradise LostType of WorkParadise Lost is an epic poem which —like the epic poems of Homer, Dante, Vergil, and Goethe—tells a story about momentous events while incorporating grand themes that are timeless and universal.Date CompletedMilton completed the first version of Paradise Lost in 1667. It consisted of 10 books. In 1668 and 1669, he added an introductory comment about the verse form and a special section with summaries of each book. In 1674, he published the final version of the epic, in which he divided Books 7 and 10 into two books each. The completed work thus had 12 books instead of 10. He also placed each summary at the beginning of the book it summarized.SourcesMilton used the Bible, Homer's Iliad andOdyssey, Vergil's Aeneid, and the stories in Greco-Roman mythology as sources of information and as writing models. The Bible's Book of Genesis is the main source for his retelling of the story of creation and the first humans, Adam and Eve.SettingsThe settings are heaven, hell, the firmament (苍穹) (Chaos), and earth.CharactersGod the Father, God the Son: (trinity)Two of the three divine persons making up the all-powerful Godhead, the single deity (神性)that created and ruled all that exists outside of itself. The third divine person, the Holy Spirit, does not play a role in Paradise Lost. God the Father is portrayed as just but merciful, condemning (批判) the defiant (目中无人)and unrepentant (不后悔的) rebel angels but permitting redemption of the repentant Adam and Eve. God the Son volunteers to redeem them by becoming human and enduring suffering and death.Satan (Lucifer, Archfiend): Powerful and prideful angel who, with legions (众多的) of supporters, leads an unsuccessful rebellion against God and suffers eternal damnation. To gain revenge, he devises a plan to corrupt God's newly created beings, Adam and Eve, through deceit. Modern readers often admire him for his steely defiance (藐视). He would rather rule in hell, he says, than serve in heaven. It was not Milton's intent, however, to create an admirable character; rather his intent was to create a character of colossal (巨大的) hatred —loathsome (令人讨厌的), execrable (恶劣的), incurably remorseless (冷酷无情的).Adam and Eve: The first human beings, created by God to fill the void(真空)that resulted when God cast Satan and his supporters out of the celestial realm. Adam and Eve live on the planet earth in utter happiness in a special garden where spring is the only season and love and godly living prevail. Though they have all that theywant and need, cunning Satan tells them they can have knowledge and status beyond their reach if only they eat of the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge. Eve can become a goddess, he says. Vanity overtakes her. She eats. Adam reluctantly does thesame.Gabriel, Raphael, Michael, Uriel: Powerful and fearless angels on the side of God. Beelzebub, Mammon, Belial, Moloch: Powerful leaders in Satan's army. In a great council in hell, each of them speaks his mind on what policy devil-kind should follow after losing paradise. Should they make a new war? Should they make peace?Ithuriel, Zephron: Angels who expel Satan from the Garden of Eden with the help of a sign from God. Satan returns to the garden later to complete his devious enterprise.Mulciber: Fallen angel who designs hell's capital city and seat of government, Pandemonium. In ancient Roman mythology, Mulciber is another name for Vulcan (Greek: Hephaestus), god of fire and the forge. As ablacksmith, he kept shop in burning mountains (volcanoes).Sin: Daughter of Satan. She was born from his head in the manner of Athena, Greek goddess of wisdom and war, who sprang from the forehead of Zeus, king of the gods.Death: Son of Satan and SinVarious Other Angels and DevilsMilton's Solar SystemIn describing the planets and other celestial bodies, Milton models God’s creatio n on the Ptolemaic天动说的design (also called the geocentric design) rather than the Copernican design (also called the heliocentric 以太阳为中心的design). The former placed earth at the center of the solar system, with the sun and other celestial bodies orbiting it. Copernicus and other scientists later proved that the earth orbits the sun. Milton was aware of the Copernican theory, but he used the Ptolemaic design—either because he believed it was the more credible theory or becausehe believed it would better serve hisliterary purpose. In Paradise Lost, Adam inquires about the movements of celestial bodies—in particular, whether earth orbits the sun or vice versa—in his conversation with the archangel天使Raphael, but Raphael gives no definite answer. Raphael may have been speaking for Milton. Style and Verse FormatMilton wrote Paradise Lost in dignified, lofty, melodic English free of any colloquialisms and slangs that would have limited the work's timeliness and universality. The format, Milton says in an introductory note, is "English heroic verse without rhyme"—in other words, blank verse, the same verse form used by Shakespeare in his plays. Milton's strong religious faith infuses the poem with sincerity and moral purpose, but he does not allow his enthusiasm for his subject to overtake control of his writing. Though Milton frequently uses obscure allusions to mythology and history, as well as occasional difficult words and phrases, his language is never deliberately affected or ostentatious炫耀的. What is more, itdoes not preach and does not take the reader on circumlocutory迂回的expeditions. Like a symphony composer—mighty Beethoven, for example —Milton is always in control, tempering his creative genius with his technical discipline. With a good dictionary and an annotated有注解的text, a first-time reader of Milton can easily follow and understand the story while developing an appreciation for the exquisite writing.Epic ConventionsIn Paradise Lost, Milton used the classical epic conventions—literary practices, rules, or devices established by Homer that became commonplace in epic poetry. Some of these practiceswere also used in other genres of literature. Among the classical conventions Milton used are the following:(1) The invocation 祈祷of the muse, in which a writer requests divine help in composing his work.(2) Telling a story with which readers or listeners are already familiar; they know thecharacters, the plot, and the outcome. Most of the great writers of the ancient world—as well as many great writers in later times, including Shakespeare—frequently told stories already known to the public. Thus, in such stories, there were no unexpected plot twists, no surprise endings. If this sounds strange to you, the modern reader and theatergoer, consider that many of the most popular motion pictures today are about stories already known to the public. Examples are The Passion of the Christ, Titanic, The Ten Commandments, Troy, Spartacus, Pearl Harbor, and Gettysburg.(3) Beginning the story in the middle, a literary convention known by its Latin term in media res 资源(in the middle of things). Such a convention allows a writer to begin his story at an exciting part, then flash back to fill the reader in on details leading up to that exciting part.(4) Announcing or introducing a list of characters who play a major role in the story. They may speak at some length about how to resolve a problem (as the followers of Satan do early in Paradise Lost).(5) Conflict in the celestial realm. Divine beings fight and scheme against one another in the epics of Homer and Vergil, and they do so in Paradise Lost on a grand scale, with Satan and his forces opposing God and his forces.(6) Use of dramatic irony. Dramatic irony is a literary devicein which a character in a story fails to see or understand what is obvious to the audience or readers. Dramatic irony appears frequently in the plays of the ancient Greeks. For example, in Oedipux Rex, by Sophocles, dramatic irony occurs when Oedipus fails to realize what the audience knows—that he married his own mother. In Paradise Lost, dramatic irony occurs when Adam and Eve happily go about daily life in the Garden of Eden unaware that they will succumb to the devil's temptation and suffer the loss of Paradise. Dramatic irony also occurs when Satan and his followers fail to understand that it is impossible ultimately to thwart挫败or circumvent divine will and justice.Plot SummaryAll Hell broke looseBook IV, Paradise Lost.The Invocation of the Muse/doc/4f3501395.html,ton opens Paradise Lost by asking a muse to inspire his writing. In ancient Greece and Rome, poets had always requested “the muse” to fire them with creative genius when they began long narrative poems, called epics, about godlike heroes and villains. In Greek mythology, there were nine muses, all sisters, who were believed to inspire poets, historians, flutists, dancers, singers, astronomers, philosophers, and other thinkers and artists. If one wanted to write a great poem, play a musical instrument with bravado, or develop a grand scientific or philosophical theory, he would ask for help from a muse.When a writer asked for help, he was said to be “invoking the muse.” The muse of epic poetry was named Calliope [kuh LY uh pe]. However, in Book 7, Milton identifies Urania—the museofastronomy—as the goddess to whom he addresses his plea for inspiration.In Milton’s time, writers no longer believed in muses, of course. Nevertheless, since they symbolized inspiration, writers continued to invoke them. So it was that when Milton began Paradise Lost, he addressed the muse in the telling of his tale, writing, “I thence invoke thy aid to my adventurous Song.”The StorySatan and his followers rebel against God. But God and his mighty angels defeat the rebels in a terrible war. God casts them into a dark abyss with a lake of fire. There, the defeated legions deplore悲叹their fate and consider their future. In a great council, the many thousands of the fallen assemble in the capital city and seat of government, Pandemonium, where Satan sits on his royal throne, to hear their leaders speak their minds on the course of action they should take. Moloc, a rebel leader who fought fiercely against the forces of the Almighty, calls forrenewed war. Belial彼勒advises a do-nothing policy, maintaining that the horror of their hell will abate in time and that their surroundings will brighten. To challenge God would only result in another defeat and more punishment. After Mammon advises peace, Beelzebub—a majestic, imposing figure—notes that God is creating a new creature, man, who will occupy a new world, earth. If they turn this new creature from his ordained course, using force or trickery, they can enjoy revenge against God, Beelzebub says. His plan is not his own; it is the plan of Satan, his master. The assembly of devils does not respond; they do not know what to say about this proposal. Then the leader of all the accursed, Satan, speaks up. He first bemoans悲叹their environs: Our prison strong, this huge convex of Fire, Outrageous to devour, immures us round Ninefold, and gates of burning AdamantBarred over us prohibit all egress.(Book 2, lines 444-447)But if any of them manages to break free, Satan says, he will encounter a dark void beyond whichare unknown regions and unknown dangers. Nevertheless, Satan, as leader, says he will venture forth and "Through all the coasts of dark destruction seek / Deliverance for us all: this enterprise / None shall partake参与with me." His "enterprise," of course is to work his deceptive charms against the new creatures. He will subvert 破坏God’s plan and give hell a reason to cheer. None in the assemblage spoke against this plan. Instead, all rose with a thunderous noise to give assent:Towards him they bendWith awful reverence prone; and as a GodExtol him equal to the highest in Heaven. (Book 2, 477-479) And so the assembly broke up and ventured off into the regions from whence they came: Rocks, caves, lakes, fens, bogs, dens, and shades of death,A universe of death, which God by curse Created evil, for evil only good,Where all life dies, death lives, and nature breeds, Perverse, all monstrous, all prodigious things,Abominable, inutterable, and worse.(Book 2, 621-626)Meanwhile, Satan "with thoughts inflamed of highest design / Puts on swift wings, and toward the Gates of Hell / Explores his solitary flight. . . " (Book 2, lines 630-632). Later, Satan's daughter,Sin, who was born from the archfiend's head, and his son, Death, who was born of Satan's union with Sin, decide to follow and assist their father. In heaven, God the Father and God the Son observe Satan flying in a rage toward earth. Satan will corrupt his new creatures, the Father says, even though they possess the willpower to reject sin. Their penalty will be death. However, because they will not rebel against God but instead succumb to Satan’s temptation, they will be redeemable—if someone takes on the burden of their sin by suffering and dying on their behalf. When the Son offers himself for this task, the Father accepts the offer and approves of his incarnation in the world of man.To reach earth, Satan must fly past Uriel, a member of the highest-ranking order of angels,the Seraphim. Uriel watches over earth from his post at the sun. Disguising himself as one of the cherubim—the second-highest-ranking order of angels—Satan asks Uriel to point out the planet where man dwells so that he may go there, admire this new creature, and praise his great Maker. Uriel instructs him, and Satan resumes his journey and arrives at earth.The sight of Paradise disheartens him, for it reminds him of all that he lost in his rebellion against God. After struggling with self-recrimination and doubt, Satan regains himself and enters Paradise, taking the shape of a cormorant—a web-footed sea bird—and perching in the Tree of Life (a tree producing fruit which, when eaten, yields everlasting life) to observe the newly created Adam and Eve. They are beautiful, happy creatures who surprise Satan with their ability to speak and think logically.Later, when they are asleep, Satan whispers evil thoughts into Eve’s ear—of “vain hopes” and “inordinate desires.” When the archangel Gabriel learns of Satan’s presence in Eden, hesends twoangels to expel him. When they confront him, Satan defiantly scorns them and prepares for a fight. An angelic squadron descends toward Eden under the command of Gabriel, and a sign appears in the heavens in which God weighs the adversaries in his golden scales. When Gabriel tells Satan to look at the scales, the archfiend sees that they tip in the favor of the celestial forces, and he flees.On a mission from God, the angel Raphael warns Adam and Eve about Satan. So that they understand the nature of their foe, Raphael tells them the story of Satan’s rebellion and the great war in which angels on both sides fought fiercely. It ended in Satan’s expulsion from heaven, Raphael says, after the Son of God intervened on behalf of the celestial forces. A new world with new creatures was then created to fill the void left by the rebels cast into the deep.Adam, a curious creature, asks Raphael about the earth and its place in creation. Raphael explains the universe but warns Adam to temper his desire for knowledge with humility. When Adam expresses his great satisfaction with Eve as a mate, Raphael again cautions him to be careful. Living with and loving a creature such as Eve, with all of her charm and beauty, is wonderful; however, Adam must not let her divert his attention from his responsibilities to God.Satan returns to the Garden of Eden in the form of a snake and tempts Eve to eat fruit of the Tree of Knowledge in defiance of a divine command never to do so. If she and Adam taste the fruit, he says, they will become gods. Eve eats. After Satan leaves, Adam—though reluctant—also eats. And so Adam and Eve fall from grace, and the Son of God pronounces judgment on thetransgressing humans.When Satan returns in triumph to hell, the multitude of fiends cheer him but suddenly turn into serpents. Earth becomes a place of changing seasons; the eternal spring is no more. Adam is downcast, wishing for death, and blames Eve for leading them astray. But they reconcile and decide to go on, confessing their wrongdoing and pleading for forgiveness.。
英国文学——简析《失乐园》A Brief Analysis of Paradise LostCreated as children of God, Adam and Eve lived happily in the Garden of Eden. They owed the paradise, as well as got incomparable rights and enjoyed unrivalled happiness. In the paradise, they named kinds of bionts and made friends with them. All senses seem perfect, until Satan was appeared and prevailed on Eve to pick the forbidden fruit.Be tempted to eat the forbidden fruit, we considered it as degeneration ,Adam and Eve had made human's pardoned crime, in terms of that, it is an “inevitable and enticing”incident actually. Then I’ll make a brief analysis of the Paradise Lost.For Adam and Eve:Described as the most powerful creatures in the world, Adam had the ability to labor and got corresponding harvest, as well as absolute rights in his paradise except the tree of knowledge. But he was a bit greedy, he felt lonely and implored God created a fere for him, therefore Eve was born. Eve wa s created by Adam’s rib, she was destined to be dominated by Adam, or we can say, woman is birth to be dominated by man, this is , in my opinion, one of what writer want to say, but it is less important. Adam and Eve ate delicious fruit and owed sheer freedom, they could have lived carefree, but they were unable to immune to the temptation and finally ate the apple .What’s a pity!As son of God, Adam was once pride of him and gained full affection from him. Just because of that, God created a woman called Eve to accompany with Adam. They loved each other and shared all things ---this was the reason that why Adam finally atethe forbidden fruit. After that, they possessed wisdom and quickly realize what they like actually! They felt ashamed because of their nude, and tried to find the way to disguise themselves. Then Adam and Eve were punished by God and driven out the Paradise. At last, , human's degeneration came in.The humanity has created the civilization because of the display wisdom; and got the curse because of abused the wisdom. The fertile soil grown into the thorn, green wilderness became wilderness, the sunny sky became something fishy, limpid rivers drifted sewages. If human nature was impacted evilly, it’ll cause fearful consequence--the destruction. Human beings may lost the right to get eternal life (grows continually), on the contrary, human is stem from the dust, thenhe will regress in the dust. This is an ancient but ever new alarm bell.For Satan:Satan is identified as heinousness chronica lly in people’s eyes. At the beginning, he was the most prestigious angel and possessed incomparable strength. As time goes by, he felt the hypocrisy and dictatorship among angels. In order to change the status, he decided to revolt. He is a negative character in the poem, but at the same time, he is also a warrior, who dare to resist unfair treatment. True, he is treacherous to trick Eve to pick the forbidden fruit and lead human’s degeneration, I think he is a a fierce and powerful person, just like Cao Cao in Romance of the Three Kingdoms. Though his resist was failed, he was not given up insist on fighting until he was exterminated.Satan is a tragic character in the poem, he compromised himself by rebelling God as well as led to human beings’degeneration. On the other hand, Satan’s behaviorsare also obbligato in human’s process of development, is it right?。
Paradise LostType of WorkParadise Lost is an epic poem which —like the epic poems of Homer, Dante, Vergil, and Goethe—tells a story about momentous events while incorporating grand themes that are timeless and universal.Date CompletedMilton completed the first version of Paradise Lost in 1667. It consisted of 10 books. In 1668 and 1669, he added an introductory comment about the verse form and a special section with summaries of each book. In 1674, he published the final version of the epic, in which he divided Books 7 and 10 into two books each. The completed work thus had 12 books instead of 10. He also placed each summary at the beginning of the book it summarized.SourcesMilton used the Bible, Homer's Iliad andOdyssey, Vergil's Aeneid, and the stories in Greco-Roman mythology as sources of information and as writing models. The Bible's Book of Genesis is the main source for his retelling of the story of creation and the first humans, Adam and Eve.SettingsThe settings are heaven, hell, the firmament (苍穹) (Chaos), and earth.CharactersGod the Father, God the Son: (trinity)Two of the three divine persons making up the all-powerful Godhead, the single deity(神性)that created and ruled all that exists outside of itself. The third divine person, the Holy Spirit, does not play a role in Paradise Lost. God the Father is portrayed as just but merciful, condemning (批判) the defiant (目中无人)and unrepentant (不后悔的) rebel angels but permitting redemption of the repentant Adam and Eve. God the Son volunteers to redeem them bybecoming human and enduring suffering and death.Satan (Lucifer, Archfiend): Powerful and prideful angel who, with legions (众多的) of supporters, leads an unsuccessful rebellion against God and suffers eternal damnation. To gain revenge, he devises a plan to corrupt God's newly created beings, Adam and Eve, through deceit. Modern readers often admire him for his steely defiance (藐视). He would rather rule in hell, he says, than serve in heaven. It was not Milton's intent, however, to create an admirable character; rather his intent was to create a character of colossal (巨大的) hatred —loathsome (令人讨厌的), execrable (恶劣的), incurably remorseless (冷酷无情的).Adam and Eve: The first human beings, created by God to fill the void(真空)that resulted when God cast Satan and his supporters out of the celestial realm. Adam and Eve live on the planet earth in utter happiness in a special garden where spring is the only season and love and godly living prevail. Though they have all that theywant and need, cunning Satan tells them they can have knowledge and status beyond their reach if only they eat of the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge. Eve can become a goddess, he says. Vanity overtakes her. She eats. Adam reluctantly does the same.Gabriel, Raphael, Michael, Uriel: Powerful and fearless angels on the side of God. Beelzebub, Mammon, Belial, Moloch: Powerful leaders in Satan's army. In a great council in hell, each of them speaks his mind on what policy devil-kind should follow after losing paradise. Should they make a new war? Should they make peace?Ithuriel, Zephron: Angels who expel Satan from the Garden of Eden with the help of a sign from God. Satan returns to the garden later to complete his devious enterprise.Mulciber: Fallen angel who designs hell's capital city and seat of government, Pandemonium. In ancient Roman mythology, Mulciber is another name for Vulcan (Greek: Hephaestus), god of fire and the forge. As ablacksmith, he kept shop in burning mountains (volcanoes).Sin: Daughter of Satan. She was born from his head in the manner of Athena, Greek goddess of wisdom and war, who sprang from the forehead of Zeus, king of the gods.Death: Son of Satan and SinVarious Other Angels and DevilsMilton's Solar SystemIn describing the planets and other celestial bodies, Milton models God’s creation on the Ptolemaic天动说的design (also called the geocentric design) rather than the Copernican design (also called the heliocentric 以太阳为中心的design). The former placed earth at the center of the solar system, with the sun and other celestial bodies orbiting it. Copernicus and other scientists later proved that the earth orbits the sun. Milton was aware of the Copernican theory, but he used the Ptolemaic design—either because he believed it was the more credible theory or because he believed it would better serve hisliterary purpose. In Paradise Lost, Adam inquires about the movements of celestial bodies—in particular, whether earth orbits the sun or vice versa—in his conversation with the archangel天使Raphael, but Raphael gives no definite answer. Raphael may have been speaking for Milton. Style and Verse FormatMilton wrote Paradise Lost in dignified, lofty, melodic English free of any colloquialisms and slangs that would have limited the work's timeliness and universality. The format, Milton says in an introductory note, is "English heroic verse without rhyme"—in other words, blank verse, the same verse form used by Shakespeare in his plays. Milton's strong religious faith infuses the poem with sincerity and moral purpose, but he does not allow his enthusiasm for his subject to overtake control of his writing. Though Milton frequently uses obscure allusions to mythology and history, as well as occasional difficult words and phrases, his language is never deliberately affected or ostentatious炫耀的. What is more, itdoes not preach and does not take the reader on circumlocutory迂回的expeditions. Like a symphony composer—mighty Beethoven, for example —Milton is always in control, tempering his creative genius with his technical discipline. With a good dictionary and an annotated有注解的text, a first-time reader of Milton can easily follow and understand the story while developing an appreciation for the exquisite writing.Epic ConventionsIn Paradise Lost, Milton used the classical epic conventions—literary practices, rules, or devices established by Homer that became commonplace in epic poetry. Some of these practices were also used in other genres of literature. Among the classical conventions Milton used are the following:(1) The invocation 祈祷of the muse, in which a writer requests divine help in composing his work.(2) Telling a story with which readers or listeners are already familiar; they know thecharacters, the plot, and the outcome. Most of the great writers of the ancient world—as well as many great writers in later times, including Shakespeare—frequently told stories already known to the public. Thus, in such stories, there were no unexpected plot twists, no surprise endings. If this sounds strange to you, the modern reader and theatergoer, consider that many of the most popular motion pictures today are about stories already known to the public. Examples are The Passion of the Christ, Titanic, The Ten Commandments, Troy, Spartacus, Pearl Harbor, and Gettysburg.(3) Beginning the story in the middle, a literary convention known by its Latin term in media res 资源(in the middle of things). Such a convention allows a writer to begin his story at an exciting part, then flash back to fill the reader in on details leading up to that exciting part.(4) Announcing or introducing a list of characters who play a major role in the story. They may speak at some length about how to resolve a problem (as the followers of Satan doearly in Paradise Lost).(5) Conflict in the celestial realm. Divine beings fight and scheme against one another in the epics of Homer and Vergil, and they do so in Paradise Lost on a grand scale, with Satan and his forces opposing God and his forces.(6) Use of dramatic irony. Dramatic irony is a literary device in which a character in a story fails to see or understand what is obvious to the audience or readers. Dramatic irony appears frequently in the plays of the ancient Greeks. For example, in Oedipux Rex, by Sophocles, dramatic irony occurs when Oedipus fails to realize what the audience knows—that he married his own mother. In Paradise Lost, dramatic irony occurs when Adam and Eve happily go about daily life in the Garden of Eden unaware that they will succumb to the devil's temptation and suffer the loss of Paradise. Dramatic irony also occurs when Satan and his followers fail to understand that it is impossible ultimately to thwart挫败or circumvent divine will and justice.Plot SummaryAll Hell broke looseBook IV, Paradise Lost.The Invocation of the Museton opens Paradise Lost by asking a muse to inspire his writing. In ancient Greece and Rome, poets had always requested “the muse” to fire them with creative genius when they began long narrative poems, called epics, about godlike heroes and villains. In Greek mythology, there were nine muses, all sisters, who were believed to inspire poets, historians, flutists, dancers, singers, astronomers, philosophers, and other thinkers and artists. If one wanted to write a great poem, play a musical instrument with bravado, or develop a grand scientific or philosophical theory, he would ask for help from a muse.When a writer asked for help, he was said to be “invoking the muse.” The muse of epic poetry was named Calliope [kuh LY uh pe]. However, in Book 7, Milton identifies Urania—the muse ofastronomy—as the goddess to whom he addresses his plea for inspiration.In Milton’s time, writers no longer believed in muses, of course. Nevertheless, since they symbolized inspiration, writers continued to invoke them. So it was that when Milton began Paradise Lost, he addressed the muse in the telling of his tale, writing, “I thence invoke thy aid to my adventurous Song.”The StorySatan and his followers rebel against God. But God and his mighty angels defeat the rebels in a terrible war. God casts them into a dark abyss with a lake of fire. There, the defeated legions deplore悲叹their fate and consider their future. In a great council, the many thousands of the fallen assemble in the capital city and seat of government, Pandemonium, where Satan sits on his royal throne, to hear their leaders speak their minds on the course of action they should take. Moloc, a rebel leader who fought fiercely against the forces of the Almighty, calls forrenewed war. Belial彼勒advises a do-nothing policy, maintaining that the horror of their hell will abate in time and that their surroundings will brighten. To challenge God would only result in another defeat and more punishment. After Mammon advises peace, Beelzebub—a majestic, imposing figure—notes that God is creating a new creature, man, who will occupy a new world, earth. If they turn this new creature from his ordained course, using force or trickery, they can enjoy revenge against God, Beelzebub says. His plan is not his own; it is the plan of Satan, his master. The assembly of devils does not respond; they do not know what to say about this proposal. Then the leader of all the accursed, Satan, speaks up. He first bemoans悲叹their environs: Our prison strong, this huge convex of Fire, Outrageous to devour, immures us round Ninefold, and gates of burning AdamantBarred over us prohibit all egress.(Book 2, lines 444-447)But if any of them manages to break free, Satan says, he will encounter a dark void beyond whichare unknown regions and unknown dangers. Nevertheless, Satan, as leader, says he will venture forth and "Through all the coasts of dark destruction seek / Deliverance for us all: this enterprise / None shall partake参与with me." His "enterprise," of course is to work his deceptive charms against the new creatures. He will subvert 破坏God’s plan and give hell a reason to cheer. None in the assemblage spoke against this plan. Instead, all rose with a thunderous noise to give assent:Towards him they bendWith awful reverence prone; and as a GodExtol him equal to the highest in Heaven. (Book 2, 477-479)And so the assembly broke up and ventured off into the regions from whence they came: Rocks, caves, lakes, fens, bogs, dens, and shades of death,A universe of death, which God by curse Created evil, for evil only good,Where all life dies, death lives, and nature breeds, Perverse, all monstrous, all prodigious things,Abominable, inutterable, and worse.(Book 2, 621-626)Meanwhile, Satan "with thoughts inflamed of highest design / Puts on swift wings, and toward the Gates of Hell / Explores his solitary flight. . . " (Book 2, lines 630-632). Later, Satan's daughter, Sin, who was born from the archfiend's head, and his son, Death, who was born of Satan's union with Sin, decide to follow and assist their father. In heaven, God the Father and God the Son observe Satan flying in a rage toward earth. Satan will corrupt his new creatures, the Father says, even though they possess the willpower to reject sin. Their penalty will be death. However, because they will not rebel against God but instead succumb to Satan’s temptation, they will be redeemable—if someone takes on the burden of their sin by suffering and dying on their behalf. When the Son offers himself for this task, the Father accepts the offer and approves of his incarnation in the world of man.To reach earth, Satan must fly past Uriel, a member of the highest-ranking order of angels,the Seraphim. Uriel watches over earth from his post at the sun. Disguising himself as one of the cherubim—the second-highest-ranking order of angels—Satan asks Uriel to point out the planet where man dwells so that he may go there, admire this new creature, and praise his great Maker. Uriel instructs him, and Satan resumes his journey and arrives at earth.The sight of Paradise disheartens him, for it reminds him of all that he lost in his rebellion against God. After struggling with self-recrimination and doubt, Satan regains himself and enters Paradise, taking the shape of a cormorant—a web-footed sea bird—and perching in the Tree of Life (a tree producing fruit which, when eaten, yields everlasting life) to observe the newly created Adam and Eve. They are beautiful, happy creatures who surprise Satan with their ability to speak and think logically.Later, when they are asleep, Satan whispers evil thoughts into Eve’s ear—of “vain hopes” and “inordinate desires.” When the archangel Gabriel learns of Satan’s presence in Eden, he sends twoangels to expel him. When they confront him, Satan defiantly scorns them and prepares for a fight. An angelic squadron descends toward Eden under the command of Gabriel, and a sign appears in the heavens in which God weighs the adversaries in his golden scales. When Gabriel tells Satan to look at the scales, the archfiend sees that they tip in the favor of the celestial forces, and he flees.On a mission from God, the angel Raphael warns Adam and Eve about Satan. So that they understand the nature of their foe, Raphael tells them the story of Satan’s rebellion and the great war in which angels on both sides fought fiercely. It ended in Satan’s expulsion from heaven, Raphael says, after the Son of God intervened on behalf of the celestial forces. A new world with new creatures was then created to fill the void left by the rebels cast into the deep.Adam, a curious creature, asks Raphael about the earth and its place in creation. Raphael explains the universe but warns Adam to temper his desire for knowledge with humility. WhenAdam expresses his great satisfaction with Eve as a mate, Raphael again cautions him to be careful. Living with and loving a creature such as Eve, with all of her charm and beauty, is wonderful; however, Adam must not let her divert his attention from his responsibilities to God.Satan returns to the Garden of Eden in the form of a snake and tempts Eve to eat fruit of the Tree of Knowledge in defiance of a divine command never to do so. If she and Adam taste the fruit, he says, they will become gods. Eve eats. After Satan leaves, Adam—though reluctant—also eats. And so Adam and Eve fall from grace, and the Son of God pronounces judgment on the transgressing humans.When Satan returns in triumph to hell, the multitude of fiends cheer him but suddenly turn into serpents. Earth becomes a place of changing seasons; the eternal spring is no more. Adam is downcast, wishing for death, and blames Eve for leading them astray. But they reconcile and decide to go on, confessing their wrongdoing and pleading for forgiveness.God decrees that heaven will remain open for them. But He sends the archangel Michael down to evict them from Paradise. Before Michael leaves, he tells them about events to come in the history of the world and, from a hilltop, shows Adam his progeny—Cain and Abel (and the murder of Cain by Abel) and the descendants who later will form a covenant with God after a great flood.Michael then foretells the advent of a Redeemer, who will die for the sins of humankind—then rise from the grave and leave earth but return later in a second coming. Adam and Eve then walk into their new life.The World was all before them, where to choose Their place of rest, and Providence their guide: They hand in hand with wandering steps and slow,Through Eden took their solitary way.(Book 10, lines 1537-1540)They enter the imperfect world, with all its perils.' ImageryMilton's imagery is at times graceful and elegant, as in this memorable personification in Book 6:Morn,Waked by the circling hours, with rosy hand Unbarred the gates of light. (lines 2-4)At other times, the imagery is imposing and awe-inspiring, as in this description in Book 7 that ends with hyperbole:There LeviathanHugest of living creatures, on the deep Stretched like a promontory sleeps or swims, And seems a moving land, and at his gills Draws in, and at his trunk spouts out a sea. (lines 412-416)In Book 8, Milton describes the commission of the first sin in simple, straightforward language, followed by a succinct personification summing up the terrible effects of the iniquity:[H]er rash hand in evil hourForth reaching to the fruit, she plucked, she eat: Earth felt the wound, and Nature from her seat, Sighing through all her works, gave signs of woeThat all was lost.(line 780-784)Milton also uses personification in Book 4 in this beautiful passage about a quiet night, the starry sky, and the ascendancy of the moon:The wakeful Nightingale;She all night long her amorous descant sung; Silence was pleased: now glow'd the Firmament With living Sapphires: Hesperus that led [Hesperus: evening star which the Greeks associated with the brotherThe starry Host, rode brightest, till the Moonof Atlas; later Hesperus was associated with Lucifer's brilliant light.]Rising in clouded Majesty, at lengthApparent Queen unveiled her peerless light,And o'er the dark her Silver Mantle threw. (lines 602-609)Enjambment跨行连续Milton uses frequently uses enjambment (also spelled enjambement) in the poem. It is a literary device in which a poet does not complete hissentence or phrase at the end of one line but allows it to carry over to the next line, as in these passages from the poem:Of man's first disobedience, and the fruitOf that forbidden tree, whose mortal taste Brought death into the world. . .(Book 1, lines 1-3).Yet Chains in Hell, not Realms expect: mean while From me returned, as erst thou saidst, from flight,This greeting on thy impious Crest receive. 、(Book 6, lines 186-188)Milton's use of enjambment helps the poem flow from one line to the next.Main ThemeIn Book 1 of Paradise Lost, Milton reveals the central theme of the work: to justify the ways of God to man. Justify here means to explain and defend, and ultimately to vindicate澄清, God’s course of action in dealing with Adam and Eve after they succumbed to the temptation of Satan and ate forbidden fruit..Other ThemesInordinate 过度的pride: It leads to Satan's downfall and his continuing defiance of God. Envy: Arising from Satan's pride, it makes him jealous of God the Son, who is the favorite of God the Father.Revenge: It motivates Satan to corrupt Adam and Eve and thereby subvert God's plans.Vanity: It leads Eve to believe—under the temptation of Satan—that she can become godlike.Deceit: Satan appears in many disguises and tells many lies during his mission to trick Adam and Eve.Infidelity: Adam betrays God by siding with Eve and eating the forbidden fruit.Unbridled 不受约束的pursuit of knowledge: It leads Adam and Eve to seek knowledge beyond their ken, knowledge that will make them godlike.V olition意志: Angels and humans alike possess free will, enabling them to make decisions. Satanfreely chooses to rebel against God, and Adam and Eve freely choose to eat forbidden fruit. The consequences of their actions are their own fault, not God's. Milton uses this theme to help support the central theme, "to justify the ways of God to man."Disobedience违抗: All sins are acts of disobedience against God, impairing or cutting off the sinner's relationship with God. Adam and Eve and all of the devils disobey God through their sins.Loyalty: Loyalty to God and his ways are necessary for eternal salvation. Loyalty requires obedience. All of the good angels exhibit loyalty. Repentance悔悟: Even though Adam and Eve have disobeyed God, their repentance makes them eligible for eventual salvation.Hope: At the end of Paradise Lost, Adam and Eve enter the imperfect world with hope; they can yet attain eternal salvation.Redemption赎回: Through the suffering and death of the Son of God, sinful man can reconcile himself with God if he is sincerely sorry for hissins.ClimaxThe climax, or turning point, of Paradise Lost occurs when Adam and Eve succumb to Satan's temptations and eat the forbidden fruit. This act of disobedience results in their downfall and eviction from Paradise.What Is an Angel?An angel is a supernatural being that serves God by praising and adoring Him and by carrying out special missions that assist humans. Angels have the additional task of opposing and punishing devils. Devils are angels cast out of heaven because they rebelled against God. The word angel derives from the Greek word angelos, meaning messenger. The major western religions—Christianity, Judaism, and Islam—all accept the existence of angels. The rank of angels from highest to lowest is as follows:1. Seraphim (Seraph)2. Cherubim (Cherub)3. Thrones4. Dominations5. Virtues6. Powers7. Principalities8. Archangels9. AngelsStudy Questions and Essay Topics1. What does Satan mean when he says, “Better to reign in hell, then [than] serve in heav’n” (Book 1, line 263)?2. What does Belial mean when he says, "This horror will grow milde, this darkness light"? (Book 2, line 220).3. Explain the allusion in the underlined words: "[H]is Altar breathes / Ambrosial Odours and Ambrosial Flowers" (Mammon, Book 2, lines 243-244)4. Write an essay that reviews Milton's use of epic conventions in Paradise Lost. Be sure to give plenty of examples to support your thesis.5. Write an essay explaining the differencebetween the Ptolemaic and Copernican models of the solar system. Include in your essay illustrations of both models.。