How far is the Prologue a grand opening to “Paradise Lost"?

Question: How far is the Prologue a grand opening to “Paradise Lost"?

Or, How far is Milton's Prologue in Book I of Paradise Lost modelled on classical tradition?

Answer: The first twenty-six lines which form the Prologue to Paradise Lost suggest the theme of the epic, introduce the major characters, give a taste of the style and point to the moral values, Milton intends to profess. Like a classical poet, Milton at the very beginning of his epic states the theme of his great poem and invokes a muse. He says that the subject of his epic is man's first disobedience. The emphasis is upon Man not upon Satan who is not mentioned in the Prologue and not referred to until line 34. Milton follows his classical ancestors not only in the immediate introduction of his theme but also in the grammatical structure which is highly Latinized.

The Prologue shows that the subject matter has been taken from the first chapters of Genesis: the disobedience of Man in eating the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge and his fall as a consequence, bringing death into the world, and all the woes from which man has continued to suffer. But we should notice that although the story begins with the man who fell, it also mentions the greater Man (Christ) who will redeem mankind.

The invocation to a Muse is a classical device. But we are to notice that Milton's Muse is called "Heavenly Muse" or the Divine Spirit, who is localized not, as he might have been by Homer or Virgil, upon Mount Olympus or Mount Helicon, but on the secret top of Oreb or of Sinai, sacred in Hebraic belief, associated here, particularly with Moses.

Since a Muse was invoked by a classical poet to aid him in what he was attempting to write, Milton asks his Muse to lead him higher than the Aonian mount of the classical poets, since the subject of his epic is higher than theirs. The Prologue begins as a classical invocation but with one exception, it is in the form of Christian prayers to the Holy Spirit read by the Christians into the second verse of Genesis: and the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. Milton says, "Thou from the first was present, and with mighty wings outspread. /Dove like satest brooding on the vas abyss /And madst it pregnant" (Line 19-22)

Milton is aware of his greatest limitation- his blindness. So he says,

"What in me is dark, illumine,

That to the height of this great argument 

I may assert Eternal Providence

And justify the ways of God to men."

Thus, in the first twenty-six lines, we may trace the theme of the epic. We also know that the materials were drawn chiefly from Genesis and that Milton is writing a classical epic but he intends with the help of the Heavenly Muse to transcend the classical. In a poem both Hebrew and Christian, he deals with the most profound of all problems, to justify the ways of God to men. Thus, in the first twenty-six lines, Milton has blended three great civilisations. The main sources of the Renaissance religion's poetry: Classical, Hebrew, and Christian..

Milton follows the classical models not only in form and convention but also in respect of grammatical structure. The first sentence, for example goes on until line before the construction becomes clear with the verb Sing. This device is perfectly suited to sustain the flow of the passage. The sense is developed, extended and modified in a great variety of ways, by the subordination of clauses. and the skilful use of conjunctions, prepositions and relative pronouns- 'and, whose, with, till.' Normal English word order is reversed so that the object of the opening sentence, may be placed at the very beginning. Thus the theme of the poem, which is the object of the sentence, gets an important place. When the first verb of the sentence comes, it rings out with tremendous emphasis "Sing, Heavenly Muse".

The first six lines have tremendous power and sublimity. Milton introduces all the things he is going to deal with disobedience death, loss of Eden, and restoration through one greater Man- before he brings in the verb. The technique indicates a vast design in the reader's mind and there is wonderful congruity between syntax and versification. Again ambition and humility are mixed in the sense and movement of the verse. The poet shows his self-confidence in stating that he is attempting something as yet unattempted. At the same time, he makes a humble appeal to the Heavenly Muse to raise and support him in his noble venture of writing an epic. There is also a poignant reference to his limitation as a poet his blindness. It balances the tone between modesty and self-confidence till the verse soars to the impressive conclusion of the prologue.

"And justify the ways of God to men"

The climax of the Prologue is simple in its grandeur. The placing of the pauses, the rise and fall of emotion, the high emotional state in which the poet's sense of dedication and of communion with the great Biblical figures of the Old Testament is communicated, the humble tone of appeal to have his darkness illumined and his mind elevated, and his simplicity of purpose in the concluding line- all these represent poetic art of a high order.