The Divine Comedy and Paradise Lost by Dante Alighieri, two of the greatest epics of all time, share more than meets the eye. Milton’s mission in creating the next great Christian Epic and redefining and renewing some of the themes, sacred truths, and ideas that Dante discussed throughout The Divine Comedy is evident when you examine both epics. One of these universal truths was that justice played a major role in both human society and the structure the divine universe.
Both novels define and play a different role in justice. Dante portrays justice in his epic as being perfect, divine, infallible and especially so in Paradiso. Paradise Lost presents justice in a more complex and diverse way, particularly when it comes to the human role, since God is portrayed as an omnipotent, tyrannical figure. The reader wonders why God allows man to fall if he is so all-knowing and just. Or Satan, to succumb to power’s temptation? In order to answer this question, one character of immense importance that is frequently overlooked must be given due consideration: The Son God. Milton’s compromise is achieved by the Son, who represents the middle ground between two seemingly contradictory truths in theology: God’s all-powerful will and humanity’s need for free choice. Milton is able to capture these two truths through his portrayal of the Son as a separate being from God. He also uses the Son’s many acts of love and mercy. To make the justice of God more understandable to the human mind, and to avoid being viewed as some sort of tyrannical law, the justice is distributed by loving and compassionate hands.
When Satan awakens from his sleep in Hell, Milton writes of the banishing of the fallen angels. Milton mentions the expulsion of fallen angels as Satan awakens within the pits. Milton says “Such a prison eternal justice had ordained/ For those who rebelled, here was their prison/ In total darkness.” (1.70-72). Milton’s poem begins by highlighting the omnipotence and predetermined nature of God. The reader is made to feel pity for Satan and wonder how God can be so oppressive.
Michael’s description of the Angelic conflict in Adam’s story quickly erases God’s omnipotence. Even before the Angelic War began, God already knew that Satan was going to be tempted by his own comrades and would lead them into war. Milton makes this point by saying that “And nightly before Him, the golden lamps burning/ Did not shine” (5.713-715). Milton is highlighting the fact that God knew before the angelic war started. Milton, by doing this, raises yet another question: Is God’s justice tyrannical? Or does God’s justice include grace and love?
The role of justice in war is made relevant by the next line, when God “smiles to His only son” (5.718), and tells Him about the impending conflict, as well as how He will stop it. In Book 6, when God commands the Son to stop the war, His words show the importance of the Son in the distribution of justice. God says that he has transfused “such virtue and grace/Immense” into the Son. This shows that God’s separation from the Angelic war is not due to stern punishment, nor to complete obliteration. It is because of “virtues, and graces”, which the Son possesses (6.703-704). It may seem that God’s punishment to Hell is not the most merciful way to demonstrate His love for justice. However, it represents the importance He places on freedom in all of creation. God’s love for freedom seems to transcend all boundaries in the epic. In order to prevent the Angels from being completely unmade and obliterated they are sent into a place that allows them to continue to be free, even if they may have eternal punishment.
Other than the Angelic War is the punishment of men after their fall. God foresaw the fall of mankind even before they were created. God knows that Satan’s “false guile” will lead him to Earth, and that Man will succumb to Satan’s “faithless descendants.” (3.92-96). God’s omniscience may make it seem like the punishment for Man is complicated by His omniscience. God knows that Man has sinned out of his own volition, but He still must punish mankind. It is not surprising that God would take some responsibility for the fall of mankind, since He created their free will. God’s Son is sent to demonstrate the love and mercy necessary to bring about His justice. God refers to His Son as “Man’s Friend and Mediator” (10.16) when He sends Him to judge Man. This emphasizes the Son’s role in lovingly translating God’s Justice to humanity. Even the Son himself mentions how he would “temper so/Justice with Mercy” (10.80), becoming God’s instrument in distributing divine Justice on Earth.
God’s justice is manifested through love, and the Son’s volunteerism to save mankind represents one of God’s most striking and powerful examples. God and Son discuss free will as they watch Satan make his way towards Earth. This conversation is one of the earliest themes in the epic. God’s discussion about how “mercy will shine brightest” (3.133) is one of the major themes in this conversation. God decides that he will ask the question of which being from Heaven is willing and able to be mortal in order to show mercy. And “just or unjust to save?” (3.215). God being the only Heavenly entity capable of interpreting and distributing God’s justice in a perfect way is no surprise. In this case, it would be the Son. God makes the difficult choice to send the Son to earth to help a less fortunate race.
The central theme in Paradise Lost is justice. Justice is ultimately not something that can be determined solely through humans. It isn’t something God does tyrannically. Justice is much more beautiful and complex: God and Man working in concert to better interpret God’s eternal will. Milton shows how God confirmed that idea when He recognized that Man would need the Son in order for them to fully understand God’s justice. Milton believes God is no more than a tyrant without the Son. Man’s interpretations of God’s plan would be impossible without His love. Milton can achieve something incredible by showing that the Son is different from God. This is because Milton presents the Son’s character as being quite distinct.
Works Cited
No changes are necessary.
Milton, John, & Gordon Teskey Paradise Lost. W.W. Norton published a work in New York in 2005. Print.