The Son of God in Milton’s Paradise Lost: Taking One for the Team Essay

The Son of God in Milton’s Paradise Lost: Taking One for the Team Among those familiar with the Judeo-Christian belief system, Jesus is normally accepted as a selfless figure, one who became human, suffered, and was put to death out of divine love for humanity. In his portrayal of the Son of God in Paradise Lost, John Milton does not necessarily disagree with the devotion or love present in the Son. His characterization of the Son does not oppose this tradition; rather, it is simply different. By Milton’s portrayal, the Son has an acute craving for attention, a desire for gory revenge over Death, and an appetite for glory. Furthermore, while the Son, after accepting the task of becoming mortal and dying to save Adam’s descendants, receives plenty of specific praise from his father (â€Å" ‘thou... hast been found by merit more than birthright Son of God’†(3.308-9)) and from the narrator (â€Å"[he] breathed immortal love to mortal men† (3.267-8)), he builds up the ramifications of his sacrifice even more in his own language. Such language from the Son comes across as not only grandiose, but even narcissistic at times. The Son of God’s speech betrays narcissism not only in its visual language (that is, the images depicted in the speech), but also in its emphasis on drawing the attention of the angels and future humans to himself. The Father precipitates his Son’s not-quite-selfless speech by musing before all the angels who might actually undertake the doubtlessly miserable task of becoming human, suffering, and dying for the sake of Adam and his descendants. â€Å" ‘Where shall we find such love,’† he wonders,â€Å" ‘[where] in all heaven charity so dear?’† (3.213-6) The implication of such language is that becoming mortal is such a chore, ... ...th the redeemed would complete the Father’s vision. Perhaps this is true in the context of Paradise Lost, but for the Son himself to say so (rather than, say, the narrator) serves no purpose but to boast of his own importance and high place in his Father’s heart. Lastly, we can look at the angels’ reaction to the Son’s acceptance speech. The narrator tells us that â€Å"admiration seized all heaven†Ã¢â‚¬â„¢ (3.271-2). The Son has, in that case, prompted the reaction for which he had aimed. He wanted the admiration and the attention. It is important to notice that, at this point, such admiration is not for the Father’s grace or mercy but rather for the Son, the bringer of said grace and mercy. The Son has succeeded, then, in diverting the attention from the message to the messenger. In true narcissistic fashion, he has made it perfectly clear who the star of this production is.