Lets her will rule; reftraint fhe will not brook, And left to' herself, if evil thence enfue, 1185 She first his weak indulgence will accuse. Thus they in mutual accufation spent The fruitless hours, but neither felf-condemning, Man's tranfgreffion known, the guardian Angels forfake Paradise, and return up to Heaven to approve their vigilance, and are approv'd, God declaring that the entrance of Satan could not be by them prevented. He fends his Son to judge the tranfgreffors, who defcends and gives fentence accordingly; then in pity clothes them both, and reafcends. Sin and Death fitting till then at the gates of Hell, by wondrous fympathy feeling the fuccefs of Satan in this new world, and the fin by Man there committed, refolve to fit no longer confin'd in Hell, but to follow Satan their fire up to the place of Man: To make the way eafier from Hell to this world to and fro, they pave a broad high-way or bridge over Chaos, according to the track that Satan firft made; then preparing for Earth, they meet him proud of his fuccefs returning to Hell; their mutual gratulation. Satan arrives at Pandemonium, in full affembly relates with boafting his fuccefs against Man; inftead of applaufe is entertained with a general hifs by all his audience, transform'd with himself alfo fuddenly into ferpents, according to his doom given in Paradife; then deluded with a fhow of the forbidden tree fpringing up before them, they greedily reaching to take of the fruit, chew duft and bitter afhes. The proceedings of Sin and Death; God foretels the final victory of his Son over them, and the renewing of all things; but for the prefent commands his Angels to make feveral alterations in the Heavens and elements. Adam more and more perceiving his fall'n condition heavily bewails, rejects the condolement of Eve; fhe perfifts, and at length appeafes him: then to evade the curfe likely to fall on their ofspring, propofes to Adam violent ways, which he approves not, but conceiving better hope, puts her in mind of the late promise made them, that her feed fhould be reveng'd on the Serpent, and exhorts her with him to feek peace of the offended Deity, by repentance and fupplication. 221 PARADISE LOST. во о к X. ME EAN while the hainous and despiteful act He in the ferpent, had perverted Eve, Her husband she, to tafte the fatal fruit, Was known in Heav'n; for what can 'scape the eye 5 Of God all-feeing, or deceive his heart Omniscient? who in all things wise and just, Hinder'd not Satan to attempt the mind Of Man, with strength entire, and free will arm'd, Complete to have discover'd and repuls'd Whatever wiles of foe or seeming friend. 10 For ftill they knew, and ought to' have still remember'd 12. For fill they knew,] Man collectively (ver. 9) is antecedent to the plural relative they, as Gen. I. 15 And And manifold in fin, deferv'd to fall. Up into Heav'n from Paradise in haste With pity, violated not their bliss. 25 About the new-arriv'd, in multitudes Th' ethereal people ran, to hear and know 16. And manifold in fin, deferv'd to fall.] Every fin is complicated in fome degree: and the Divines, especially thofe of Milton's communion, reckon up feveral fins as included in this one act of eating the forbidden fruit, namely, pride, uxorioufnefs, wicked curiofity, infidelity, difobedience &c, fo that for fuch complicated guilt he defer'd to fall from his happy ftate in Paradise. 17. Up into Heav'n &c.] The tenth book of Paradife Loft has a greater variety of perfons in it than any other in the whole poem. The author upon the winding up of his action introduces all thofe who had any concern in it, and shows with great beauty the influence which it had upon each Ac of them. It is like the laft act of a well written tragedy, in which all who had a part in it are generally drawn up before the audience, and reprefented under those circumstances in which the determination of the action places them. I fhall therefore confider this book under four heads, in relation to the celeftial, the infernal, the human, and the ima ginary perfons, who have their refpective parts allotted in it. To be gin with the celeftial perfons. The guardian Angels of Paradise are de fcribed as returning to Heaven upon the fall of Man, in order to approve their vigilance; their arrival, their manner of reception, with the forrow which appear'd in themselves, and Accountable made hafte to make appear With righteous plea their utmost vigilance, Affembled Angels, and ye Pow'rs return'd and in those Spirits who are faid to rejoice at the converfion of a finner, are very finely laid together in the following lines. Addifon. 23. - dim fadness did not spare That time celeftialvifages, yet mix'd With pity, violated not their blifs.] What a juft and noble idea does our author here give us of the blessedness of a benevolent temper, and how proper at the fame time to obviate the objection that might be made of sadness dwelling in heavenly Spirits! Thyer. Here pity is made to prevent their fadnefs from violating their blifs: but the latter paffion is fo far from alleviating the former, that it adds weight to it. If you read (mix'd 30 35 40 And with pity) in a parenthefis, this crof reafoning will be avoided. Warburton. It is plain that Milton conceiv'd fadnefs mix'd with pity to be more confiftent with heavenly blifs than fadness without that compaffionate temper. There is fomething pleafing, fomething divine even in the melancholy of a merciful mind. And this (adds Mr. Thyer) might be farther confirm'd by the delight we take in tragical reprefentations upon the ftage, where the pleasure arifes from fympathizing with the diftreffes of our fellow creatures, and indulging a pitiful commiferating temper. 40. I told ye then &c.] See book III. 86-96." |