Words with the root "obedient" or "obedience" appear thirty-two times in John Milton's Paradise Lost, while the root word "loyal" appears only four times. Nevertheless, bonds of loyalty are at the heart of the story of man's first fall. Questions of morality of character are determined not only by obedience to God, but also by the loyalty that men, angels, and demons maintain toward one another. Milton sees value in the fallen angels' loyalty to Satan, even though they are disobedient and disloyal to God. Equally dynamic bonds of loyalty exist between Satan and God, Abdiel and God, and Adam and Eve. The ethical implications of loyalty are redefined with each relationship until Milton arrives at an ideal of voluntary and reasoned allegiance. Milton admires the virtue of loyalty independent of obedience to God, such that characters who disobey God because of other loyalties are less culpable for their sins. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why Violent Video Games Should Not Be Banned”? Get the original essay Obedience to God is the most explicit virtue offered in Paradise Lost, although what God desires from his creations goes beyond obedience into the realm of loyalty. As the first line says, this is the story of “man’s first disobedience” (Milton 1.1). Obedience is defined as “the action or practice of obeying or doing what is asked of us; submission to the rule or authority of others” (“obedience”). God commands Adam, and by extension Eve, not to eat from the Tree of Knowledge. However, in his defense of the fall, God reveals higher expectations: "Unfree, what proof could they have given / Of true allegiance, of steadfast faith and love" (3.103-106) . Rather than obeying a simple command, God desires “true allegiance” that looks more like loyalty than obedience. Obedience does not have the connotations of deliberate action and free choice that loyalty implies. Loyalty is “giving or showing strong and consistent support or allegiance to a person or institution” (“loyal”). The distinction between obedience and loyalty is based more on modern connotations than on Milton's own use of these words in Paradise Lost. Semantics aside, this distinction is vital in tracing the morality and culpability of each character's actions. As we will see, Milton values ​​the voluntary, principled loyalty that God also desires over unconditional, unquestioned obedience. Satan is the most reprehensible sinner in Paradise Lost for his unprecedented betrayal, but Milton values ​​the loyalty of the millions of demons who follow Satan. Satan disobeyed God before all creations, without being tempted by other characters or loyalties. Although he cites seemingly rational reasons for rebelling among his disciples, Raphael says that "envy against the Son of God" spurred Satan's rebellion (5.662). On the way to Eden, Satan laments how his own “pride and worst ambition have cast me to the earth / At war in heaven” (4.40-41). Devoid of loyalty to anyone but himself – not even faithful to the democratic ideals he espouses before his followers – Satan receives no mercy from God: “The first [all fallen angels], by their own suggestion, fell/ have been tempted, depraved: man falls deceived/ By the other first: man will therefore find grace,/ The other will find none” (3.129-132). Unlike the character of God, Milton has sympathy for Satan's followers. Constrained by Satan's prominent rolein Heaven and by his persuasive speeches, millions of angels were tempted to fall like man. Milton describes them thus: "The accomplices of his crime, rather the partisans/... For ever to have their fate in pain,/... For his revolt, yet faithful to their position,/ Their glory has faded... » (1.607 -612). Milton diminishes the responsibility of millions of rebels by calling them "partisans" rather than "comrades" and "his revolt" rather than "their revolt." The turn of phrase “again” indicates a more optimistic or applauding tone as Milton admires the demons’ loyalty to Satan. Their loyalty does not prevent them from turning into tortured serpents in book 10, but only Satan receives individual punishment: Eve's seed through Christ "will crush Satan's head, crush his strength/conquer sin and dead, his two main arms” (12.430-431). ). Thus, Satan faces the harshest punishment as the most guilty and least loyal sinner in Paradise Lost. His followers are less objectionable because of their faith in Satan's position and reason before the fall and their loyalty to Satan even after the fall. In contrast, Abdiel represents ideal moral character in his loyalty and obedience to God. His shining moment occurs at the end of book 5, surrounded by millions of angels about to follow Satan: “Among the unbelievers, he alone is faithful; / Among countless false ones, steadfast, / Unwavering, undeceived, unterrified, / He kept his loyalty. , his love, his zeal; » (5.897-900). These include the singular use of the word "loyalty" in Paradise Lost. (The man is twice described as "disloyal" (3.204, 9.7) and "loyal" once describes marital love in Eden (4.755).) Returning to the definition of loyalty, Abdiel maintains his faith in extreme circumstances, its firmness being accentuated by Milton's definition. numerous repetitions of the prefix “un-”. Abdiel has the option to disobey, but he maintains his faith based on reason. Satan argues that angels were not created by God and therefore owe him no loyalty, a "'blasphemous, false, and proud argument!' » to which Abdiel promptly retorts (5.809). At no point does Abdiel seem inclined to disobey God, such is his level of obedience. The combination of deliberate, reason-based loyalty and unwavering obedience culminates in Abdiel's ardent "zeal." Adam embodies the median between Abdiel's loyalty and Satan's lack of loyalty: Milton expands on the fall of man as recounted in Genesis, such that Adam's primary motivation for disobeying God is his loyalty to Eve. Adam's loyalty to Eve makes him less guilty of committing the same sin as her. The ramifications of this gender disparity extend far beyond the text of Paradise Lost and even Milton's time. Eve does not eat from the Tree out of any loyalty and therefore receives a harsher punishment than Adam. A counterargument is that Adam follows Eve through a mistaken obedience based on pleasure or “nature” rather than deliberative loyalty. At the end of Paradise Lost, the fall of man can be seen as "infinite goodness, immense goodness" for allowing humans to have loyalty to God rather than simply obedience (12.469). Before the fall, Adam and Eve obeyed, worshiped and loved God. They do it instinctively, without ever considering an alternative. From the first moments of Adam's life, he deduces that a "great Creator" exists and asks himself "how can I know him, how can I adore him" (8.278-280). Adam and Eve's original naivety, or blind faith, contrasts sharply with Abdiel's deliberate and reasoned loyalty in the face of the rebellious angels. Adam addresses his lack.