A review by lesliecalhoun
A Preface to Paradise Lost by C.S. Lewis

3.0

Just in one short section of this Preface, Lewis poignantly explains why Milton's Satan is not a comic character and should rather be taken extremely seriously. According to Lewis, Milton began Satan's character in a regal and powerful position and gradually reduced him down through the layers of politician and secret agent and peeping tom and toad to finally the serpent that accosted Eve. Rather than being an apology for his earlier and more grandiose depictions of Satan, Milton's purpose in portraying this decline of Satan's is to show the process of one's character who has allowed themselves to be ruled by injured merit, self-pity, and utter self-focus. Lewis contrasts how Milton uses the speeches of Adam and Satan to show what their interests and values are. Adam speaks on a range of subjects all outside himself while Satan, even when addressing something other than himself, always ends up speaking about his position. This and other facets of Satan's character have made him seem comic and indeed have made him one of Milton's best characters. Lewis explains this latter belief by saying that perhaps Milton did have some sort of similarity to Satan and his pride and lust and anger and envy and violence...but then don't we all? Lewis aptly points out that it is far easier for an author to write a character that is worse than him, for all he has to do is drop the moral barriers that are so hard to keep up in the first place and allow his animal side to run rampantly in his imagination. To write a character better than oneself, an author must try to rise above himself and imagine what these higher qualities would look and feel like in a person. Therefore, Milton's well-drawn character of Satan, who at times might seem ludicrous and laughable, should be regarded with caution and solemnity. Each of us takes selfish and dishonest steps every day, and we have all had a share in propogating misery. However, Lewis concludes his criticism by leaving the decision up to the reader. The reader may choose to laugh at what he views to be a comic character, or he may decide to recognize the truth that Satan lives in a monomaniac selfishness of infinite boredom and yet WANTS to go on living that existence. He firmly believes that it is better to reign in Hell than to serve in Heaven, and readers should survey their own hearts in light of this caricature instead of just dismissing Milton's Satan as a comic figure.