A rebel angel leans back after being cast from heaven in a detail from “Forthwith upright he rears from off the pool/His mighty stature,” 1866, by Gustav Doré for John Milton’s “Paradise Lost.” Engraving. (Public Domain)
After Satan is cast out from heaven for competing with God, he and his army of rebel angels find themselves suffering in hell. It’s not long, however, before Satan—despite the inevitability of losing to God—attempts to rally his troops to continue their battle against God and the heavenly angels.
“Forthwith upright he rears from off the pool/His mighty stature,” 1866, by Gustav Doré for John Milton’s “Paradise Lost.” Engraving. (Public Domain)
First, Milton says:
“Thither let us tend
From off the tossing of these fiery waves,
There rest, if any rest can harbour there,
And reassembling our afflicted powers,
Consult how we may henceforth most offend
Our enemy, our own loss how repair,
How overcome this dire calamity,
What reinforcement we may gain from hope,
If not what resolution from despair.
Thus Satan talking to his nearest mate
With head uplift above the wave, and eyes
That sparkling blazed…
(Book 1, lines 183–194).”
It Begins Again With One
Gustav Doré interprets this passage in his second illustration for Milton’s “Paradise Lost.” The dark and smoky scene reveals two rebel angels. The rebel angel closest to us sits on jagged earth that juts from a lake of fire, and the fire illuminates the armor he wears.
This rebel angel looks over his shoulder at what transfixes him: Satan, framed by billowing smoke on both sides, stands on the shore of the fiery lake. He’s in the shadows, but his body language—he’s positioned above the rebel angel, with raised arms—lets us know that he is communicating with the rebel angel from a place of authority. And the long spear in his hand lets us know that he is not giving up his battle with God.
Satan addresses another rebel angel after being cast from heaven, in a detail from “Forthwith upright he rears from off the pool/His mighty stature,” 1866, by Gustav Doré for John Milton’s “Paradise Lost.” Engraving. (Public Domain)
Milton’s description and Doré’s illustration reveal that Satan will continue his battle. He’s going to rest in hell, compose himself and his army, endure the onslaught of pain, and continue to “offend” God—his enemy. The rebel angel listens intently and receives his leader’s message.
One Turns to Many
Milton continues:
“Of that inflamed sea, he stood and called
His legions, angel forms, who lay entranced…
Under amazement of their hideous change.
He called so loud, that all the hollow deep
Of Hell resounded. Princes, Potentates,
Warriors, the flow’r of Heav’n, once yours now lost,
If such astonishment as this can seize
Eternal Spirits: or have ye chos’n this place
After the toil of battle to repose
Your wearied virtue, for the ease you find
To slumber here, as in the vales of Heav’n?
Or in this abject posture have ye sworn
To adore the Conqueror? who now beholds
Cherub and Seraph rolling in the flood
With scattered arms and ensigns, till anon
His swift pursuers from Heav’n gates discern
Th’ advantage, and descending tread us down
Thus drooping, or with linked thunderbolts
Transfix us to the bottom of this gulf.
Awake, arise, or be for ever fall’n
They heard, and were abashed, and they sprung…”
(Book 1, lines 300–301, 313–331).
Here, Doré depicts Satan talking to all of the rebel army instead of just one angel. The army has moved from the lake of fire to dry earth. The rebel angels are defeated: They are strewn about the composition in poses of angst and resignation.
Doré has again established the hierarchy of the figures. As in the illustration discussed above, he depicts Satan standing tall and proud above the other rebel angels. His pose hasn’t changed much: He raises his arms, holds his spear, and communicates with his army. One thing that has changed, however, is the number of rebel angels he addresses.
“They heard, and were abashed, and up they sprung” 1866, by Gustav Doré for John Milton’s “Paradise Lost.” (Public Domain)
Satan shames the angels for their resignation and questions their perseverance. He essentially asks: Are you with me or are you with God? The angels are ashamed of themselves, and they ready themselves to continue their opposition to God.
The Danger of Revitalized Evil
Let us continue to consider Milton’s and Doré’s ideas as they pertain to our inner world and the battles that sometimes occur there. Satan, the exemplar of evil, is cast from heaven, for heaven cannot remain pure with him there. We, too, must cast away from ourselves any evil that may sully our divine natures.
Yet this passage presents us with a deeper concern: What if we don’t completely cast away the evil in us? What if we miss something? Milton’s passage and Doré’s illustration suggest that evil quickly multiplies. It takes only one evil desire—even when weakened—to multiply into many if it has a place of refuge within us. And before we know it, we may find ourselves fighting a war we thought we won.
How can we make sure that we search ourselves thoroughly and safeguard ourselves against evil thoughts and actions?
Gustav Doré was a prolific illustrator of the 19th century. He created images for some of the greatest classical literature of the Western world, including the Bible, “Paradise Lost,” and “The Divine Comedy.” In this series, we will take a deep dive into the thoughts that inspired Doré and the imagery those thoughts provoked. For the first article in the series, visit “Illustrious Ideas and Illustrations: The Imagery of Gustav Doré.”
