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Comparing Evil In Macbeth And John Milton's Paradise Lost

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Choosing Evil Paradise Lost by John Milton and William Shakespeare’s Macbeth are two literary works that follow two leading characters as they walk down destructive paths. In the former, a man obtains the Scottish throne by means of prophecies and bloodshed, while the latter recounts the journey of Satan from Heaven to Hell. Despite being set in different time periods and environments, there are distinct similarities in the structure of both works, the most noticeable being the lives of the two main characters. Since Satan traditionally embodies the darker portion of human nature, it shows in the similarities between Macbeth and Satan. Both desire a throne that does not belong to them and are driven by jealous ambition. However Satan falls …show more content…

Macbeth is described as a valiant fighter and King Duncan says, “noble Macbeth hath won,” the title of Thane (Shakespeare 1.2.68). However, after the three witches prophesize “All hail, Macbeth, that shalt be king hereafter!” (1.3.51), Macbeth goes against the King and begins his bloody quest for the throne, fueled by his wife and supporters, engaging in reckless killings of other potential heirs to the throne. As hallucinations plague him, his mental state slowly deteriorated, and he was taken over because he ended up a horribly ambitious ruler who only wanted power. Similarly, Satan was also previously known as a great angel in Heaven before he led a rebellion against God. His followers were the lesser demons, followed him as they fell from Heaven and suffered losses alongside him. Like Macbeth, when met with certain defeat he declares that it is “Better to reign in Hell than serve in Heaven”, showing a stubbornness that is borderline delusional (Milton 1.263). As Macbeth was driven by jealousy for the power of the Crown, Satan became jealous of God’s son, Jesus, which further fueled his desire to spite

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Satan most effectively utilizes pathos in John Milton’s Paradise Lost in order to persuade his followers to fight against the forces of Heaven. When commenting on the fallen angels’ condition, Satan describes, “Fall'n Cherube, to be weak is miserable Doing or Suffering: but of this be sure, To do ought good never will be our task, But ever to do ill our sole delight,” (Milton ll. 157-160). Satan appeals to the “suffering” of his forces in Hell because of their weakness in not continuing to defy God.

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Macbeth... the valiant warrior who turned against himself due to an inner greediness for power. It all starts at the beginning when he gets “promoted” to Thane of Cawdor because of his excellent fighting skills and bravery in battle. Then if that’s not enough the three witches tell him he will be king. With the taste of power he has now gotten through his promotion, he can’t help but take what the witches say to heart. He wants more, he wants it faster: he continues to be impatient and eventually his “vaulting ambition o’erleaps itself and falls on thy other” (1.7.26-28).

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Similarly, Macbeth betrayed his king for possession of the crown. Judas and Macbeth both betrayed truly good men who were important figures. Due to the severity of his actions and committing the worst treachery, treachery against one’s benefactor, Judas is frozen and being eaten by one of Satan’s three heads. Therefore, one can assume that Macbeth’s placement in Hell would also be in the ninth circle getting eaten by Satan, since he has committed treacheries against friend, guest, kin, lord, and benefactor. Macbeth brings up this awful punishment when he talks about his defense against the approaching armies.

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Evil comes in many different forms; sometimes there is a clear line between good and evil, but there are times where evil can overcome good. The two stories that represents these two forms are Macbeth and Beowulf. In Macbeth, the story starts out with Macbeth who is a loyal servant to King Duncan. His wife convinces Macbeth to kill King Duncan to gain power and become the new king. After hesitating, he murders King Duncan and this starts transforming him into a paranoid person.

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Satan’s rebellion begins when God decided to give his Son of being the King of the angels. Satan was one of the highest angels in Heaven, who was called Lucifer. Satan could have been one of the smartest and most important angel. Satan was recognized second in power right below God, who has the almighty power. Satan decided to rebel against God because second place was not good enough for Satan.

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The Thane of King Duncan, Macbeth hears a prophecy that he himself will become king later on in the future after King Duncan. This then leads to Macbeth being overcome by greed. Since Macbeth greeds to be king so bad, he murders King Duncan and takes his place of the throne. Macbeth starts to live with so much guilt and fear that he commits even more murders to have his power safe. Macbeth is so confident in the prophecies that his life comes to a downfall and he gets killed by the people he did wrong.

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Throughout the Tragedy of Macbeth, we see several changes that Macbeth goes through. From the beginning, Macbeth is depicted as a hero and a valiant soldier. However as the novel continues, his character changes dramatically from a champion to a tyrant. After winning a battle, Macbeth is given the title of Thane of Cawdor. This sparks his ambition to do whatever it takes to remain in power.

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The intended outcome from performing the above-described necessary actions is that the EOP is current and ready for use if any of the identified hazards occurs. Additionally, MMAs have now been established, so additional assistance can be accessed in the event of a major hazard occurrence. Finally, MSC’s emergency management program incorporates an “all-hazard” approach as required by federal and state authority. Human resources oil the emergency management engine at MSC. While all students, faculty, and staff at MSC bear responsibilities in an emergency, the following wield specific emergency management responsibilities: • College President: Responsibilities include authority to declare a college state of emergency, accountability for all aspects of the emergency management process, and duty as the initial incident

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At the beginning of William Shakespeare’s ‘Macbeth’ the protagonist Macbeth is described as ‘brave’, ‘noble’ and ‘honourable’, however Lady Macbeth’s and Macbeths desire for power consumes them. Macbeth’s ambition overrides his conscience and transformed his greatest strength into his greatest weakness. Macbeth’s inability to resist temptations that led him to be greedy for power, Macbeth’s easily manipulative nature which allowed his mind to be swayed, Macbeth having no self control and his excessive pride was what allowed him to renew his previously honourable and celebrated title into one of an evil ‘tyrant’. Macbeth is led by the prophecies of the witches after they foretell he will become the Thane of Cawdor. Not only the witches, but also his wife easily manipulate Macbeth as she attacks his manhood in order to provoke him to act on his desires.

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While I pose to compliment and discover the motivational values that are posed behind Satan’s lies, it ultimately would like to educate the reader about the divine purpose. Being when, why, and who Satan lies to an about; examining a closer meaning between the lines of the text, a fine line that has yet to be crossed. Perhaps this could potentially guide the reader through a new discovery about the relationships and inner bonds Satan potentially has with the other characters listed in the text, as well as those we know cease existence. Perhaps it may lead us to unravel a little something about Milton’s portrayal of Satan. The truth has yet to be

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Within John Milton’s books “Paradise Lost” he creates Satan as the greater character over God. One who works through the individuals to create havoc. Satan is able to skew the minds of man to do what he wants with that individual and to counteract the word of God. A well known example was then Satan manipulated Eve to eat from the fruit of knowledge of Good and Evil. Though some critics may say that within Eve was Satan’s ultimate defeat others may say Satan’s evil soul is embedded in Adam and Eve, soon enough they are kicked from the palace of lush gardens, and everlasting life.

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Macbeth is a heroic warrior who gained two titles, Thane of Glamis and Thane of Cawdor, from the point of view he received at the battle against Norway. But Macbeth can be a self-doubting character who also has kindness. Another character is Lady Macbeth, who is the wife of Macbeth and is more of a dominant character who rejects feminine roles and feels little to no remorse over her mistress's. But she went insane as a result of her guilt. Lady Macbeth and Macbeth, as they both seem to have ambitions and are willing to do anything to get the crown, decide to kill King Duncan, who is king of Scotland.

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As Louis L. Martz dictates in his piece titled, “Paradise Lost: The Realms of Light,” Satan’s descent into Hell, following banishment from Heaven, catalyzes the entrance of light and dark imagery into the novel. Satan, now barred from the, “happy Realms of Light,” recognizes his separation from his former alliance with the divine essence (qtd in Martz 72.) In his brief period of grief, Satan finds himself struggling towards the light that radiates from Heaven, signaling the presence of innate light still within the fallen being. However, this light soon becomes squandered when Satan finds it, “better to reign in Hell, than serve in Heaven,” (1.263) In his decision, the prevalence of darkness within Hell increases and eventually seeps into the secular realms created by God.

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A Heroic Satan (An Analysis of Satan’s Behavior and Heroic Elements in Milton’s, Paradise Lost) If Milton’s, Paradise Lost is an epic, then who is the epic hero? This is a question addressed by manys scholars throughout their engagement of study in this piece of literature. In all of life, it is most often taught that Satan is an evil figure, leading numerous beings astray from the path they should be taking.

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Shakespeare’s ability to illustrate the battle between good and evil is arguably one of his best skills as a writer. Incorporating the art of the morality play, he shows the battle of these two forces for a man’s soul. But the beauty of his writing comes to light in how he shows this process. In both Macbeth and Othello, Shakespeare portrays evil as corrupting, while the source of evil differs.

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