Fallen angel
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- | :''[[17th century literature]]'' | ||
- | I can't believe I missed [[English poet]] [[John Milton]]'s 40th birthday, luckily [[John Coulthart]] reminded me of it. | ||
- | '''John Milton''' ([[1608]] – [[1674]]) is best known for his [[Epic poetry|epic poem]] ''[[Paradise Lost]]'', and for his treatise condemning censorship, ''[[Areopagitica]]''. | + | '''Fallen angel''' is a concept developed in [[Jewish mythology]] from interpretation of the [[Book of Enoch]]. The actual term ''fallen angel'' is not found in either the [[Hebrew Bible]] or the [[New Testament]]. Christians adopted the concept of fallen angels mainly based on their interpretations of the [[Book of Revelation]] Chapter 12. Fallen angels are identified with ''[[Watcher (angel)|the Watchers]]'', as well as the angels who are cast down to the earth from the [[War in Heaven]], and ''[[HaSatan|ha-satan]]''. |
- | John, in his post used, like I would have used, a [[Gustave Doré]] as illustrations to ''[[Paradise Lost]]'', but also has a [[John Martin]] that I did not know. | + | ==Influence== |
- | + | In literature, [[John Milton]]'s ''[[Paradise Lost]]'' (7.131-134, etc.), refers to Satan as being "brighter once amidst the host of Angels, than the sun amidst the stars." | |
- | On the significance of ''Paradise Lost'', it's safe to say that it is one of ''the'' [[cult fiction]] items of [[17th century literature]], along with ''[[Don Quixote]]'' (1605), ''[[Simplicissimus]]'' (1668), ''[[Letters of a Portuguese Nun]]'' (1669) and ''[[La Princesse de Clèves]]'' (1678). | + | ==See also== |
- | + | *[[War in Heaven]] | |
- | ''Paradise Lost'' introduces the [[antihero]] in Western literature, by not portraying him as stupid and indulgent, but - as in ''Paradise Lost'''s case - downright [[evil]]; a [[precursor]] to 20th century [[psychopath]]s (see [[Fictional portrayals of psychopaths in literature]]). | + | *Fallen angels in art[http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Fallen_angels] |
- | + | ** [[The Fall of the Rebellious Angels (Frans Floris)]] | |
- | As I said, the protagonist of this epic is an antihero, in this case the [[fallen angel]], [[Satan]]. Milton presents Satan as an [[ambitious]] and [[proud]] being who [[defies his creator]], [[omnipotent]] [[God]], and wages [[war]] on [[Heaven]], only to be defeated and cast down. Indeed, [[William Blake]], a great admirer of Milton and illustrator of the epic poem, said of Milton that "he was a true Poet, and of the Devil's party without knowing it." | + | **[[The Fall of the Rebel Angels (Pieter Bruegel the Elder)]] |
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- | On the psychoanalytical side, Sholem Stein has remarked: "Milton worked for [[Oliver Cromwell]] and the [[Parliament of England]] and thus wrote first-hand for the [[Commonwealth of England]]. Arguably, the failed rebellion and reinstallation of the monarchy left him to explore his losses within ''Paradise Lost''" and adds that "Milton sympathized with the Satan in this work, in that both he and Satan had experienced a failed cause." | + | |
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- | ==Iconography== | + | |
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- | The first illustrations were to the fourth edition of 1688, with one engraving prefacing each book, of which up to eight of the twelve were by Sir [[John Baptist Medina]], one by [[Bernard Lens]], and perhaps up to four (including Books I and XII, perhaps the most memorable) by another hand. The most notable and popular illustrators of ''Paradise Lost'' are [[William Blake]], [[Gustave Doré]] and [[Henry Fuseli]]; however, the epic's illustrators also include, among others, [[John Martin (painter)|John Martin]], [[Edward Burney]], [[Richard Westall]], [[Francis Hayman]]. [[Salvador Dalí]] executed a set of ten colour [[lithograph]]s in 1974. Strangely, two ''capriccios'' by [[Gian Battista Tiepolo]] were used to illustrate an Italian 18th century edition. Surreal-visionary artist [[Terrance Lindall]]'s rendition was published in [[1982]]. | + | |
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- | ''[[Der Meister zeigt sich in der Beschränkung]]'' | + | |
- | <hr> | + | |
- | "[[The Constipation Blues]]" | + | |
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- | [[badiner]] | + | |
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Fallen angel is a concept developed in Jewish mythology from interpretation of the Book of Enoch. The actual term fallen angel is not found in either the Hebrew Bible or the New Testament. Christians adopted the concept of fallen angels mainly based on their interpretations of the Book of Revelation Chapter 12. Fallen angels are identified with the Watchers, as well as the angels who are cast down to the earth from the War in Heaven, and ha-satan.
[edit]
Influence
In literature, John Milton's Paradise Lost (7.131-134, etc.), refers to Satan as being "brighter once amidst the host of Angels, than the sun amidst the stars."
[edit]
See also
- War in Heaven
- Fallen angels in art[1]
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