Satan: A Tragic Hero

Satan is typically viewed as the evil fallen angel who is determined to undermine God. It is not often that someone would use the word “heroic” to describe him or feel any sympathy towards him. However, in John Milton’s “Paradise Lost”, it can be argued that Satan is the protagonist and epic hero of the work. He is made to be a relatable figure and in comparison to God, it is easy to be sympathetic towards him. The epic hero can be summed up to be a good person who makes mistakes and who has a tragic flaw that is ultimately the reason for his fall. Milton has built Satan’s character to have profound thoughts and ideas, but he is easily misguided. Satan wants to pursue what he believes to be true which can be seen in the Book 1 when he says, “The mind is it’s own place, and in itself/Can make a Heav’n of Hell, a Hell of Heav’n”(I.254-255). Satan strongly believes that the mind is separate from the environment so if he is in Hell but his mind makes it seem like Heaven, then it will be Heaven to him. When Satan is first introduced in “Paradise Lost”, it is after his Fall from Grace. This is when readers can really empathize with Satan. Milton writes, “So spake th’ apostate angel, though in pain, /Vaunting aloud, but racked with deep despair”(I.125-126). Satan feels pain and defeat when he wakes up in hell, but he is still determined to lead the other angels and follow out his plan to overthrow God. Satan realizes that God is the only one who can defeat him, and although his is not willing to give up, his humility can be viewed as a positive, heroic trait.
Satan challenges God, which was the catalyst for his Fall from Grace. He wasn’t given the position in Heaven that he felt he deserved, and so his hubris was his downfall. He believes that if God can rule, he should be able to rule too. Satan is determined to be equal to God since God created all creatures from himself. Satan looks at his fall as an opportunity to rule as God does, just in Hell instead of