Skip over navigation  Paradise Lost  John Milton  Study
Questions & Essay Topics  Key Facts   Study Questions  1. Satan
is the most well-developed character in Paradise Lost. Is he a
sympathetic character? Examine one of his soliloquies and
identify the character traits and poetic techniques that make
him seem appealing or forgivable.  One reason that Satan is easy
to sympathize with is that he is much more like us than God or
the Son are. As the embodiment of human errors, he is much
easier for us to imagine and empathize with than an omniscient
deity. Satan’s character and psychology are all very human, and
his envy, pride, and despair are understandable given his
situation. But Satan’s speeches, while undeniably moving, subtly
display their own inconsistency and error.  When Satan first
sees Earth and Paradise in Book III, he is overcome with grief.
His description of his situation is eloquent; his expression of
pain is moving. Perhaps we pity Satan as he struggles to find
his new identity while reflecting