ARGUMENT. Satan, having compassed the Earth, with meditated guile returns, as a mist, by night, into Paradise; enters into the serpent sleeping. Adam and Eve in the morning go forth to their labours, which Eve proposes to divide in several places, each labouring apart. Adam consents not, alleging the danger, lest that enemy, of whom they were forewarned, should attempt her found alone. Eve, loth to be thought not circumspect or firm enough, urges her going apart, the rather desirous to make trial of her strength: Adam at last yields. The serpent finds her alone; his subtle approach, first gazing, then speaking, with much flattery extolling Eve above all other creatures. Eve, wondering to hear the Serpent speak, asks how he attained to human speech and such understanding not till now: the Serpent answers, that by tasting of a certain tree in the garden he attained both to speech and reason, till then void of both. Eve, requires him to bring her to that tree, and finds it to be the tree of knowledge forbidden. The Serpent, now grown bolder, with many wiles and arguments induces her at length to eat: she, pleased with the taste, deliberates a while whether to impart thereof to Adam or not; at last brings him of the fruit, relates what persuaded her to eat thereof. Adam, at first, amazed, but perceiving her lost, resolves, through vehemence of love, to perish with her; and, extenuating the trespass, eats also of the fruit. The effects thereof in them both they seek to cover their nakedness; then fall to variance and accusation of one another. DOM NU ODL Paradise Lost. BOOK IX. No more of talk, where God or Angel guest With Man, as with his friend, familiar us'd To sit indulgent, and with him partake Rural repast, permitting him the while. Venial discourse unblam'd: I now must change 5 Those notes to tragic; foul distrust, and breach Disloyal, on the part of Man, revolt, And disobedience; on the part of Heaven, Anger and just rebuke, and judgment giv'n, And dictates to me slumb'ring, or inspires Since first this subject for heroic song Easy my unpremeditated verse: 10 15 Pleas'd me, long choosing, and beginning late; Not sedulous by nature to indite 25 Wars, hitherto the only argument Heroic deem'd, chief mast'ry to dissect, With long and tedious havock, fabled knights 30 Not that which justly gives heroic name That name, unless an age too late, or cold 35 40 45 'Twixt day and night; and now from end to end In meditated fraud and malice, bent 50 55 On Man's destruction, maugre what might hap With darkness, thrice the equinoctial line 60 He circled, four times cross'd the car of night 65 From pole to pole, travérsing each colúre; On th' eighth return'd, and on the coast, averse From entrance or Cherubic watch, by stealth Found unsuspected way. There was a place, Now not, tho' sin, not time, first wrought the change, Where Tigris at the foot of Paradise 71 Into a gulf shot under ground, till part Rose up a fountain by the tree of life: In with the river sunk, and with it rose Satan involv'd in rising mist, then sought At Darien, thence to the land where flows Most opportune might serve his wiles, and found 75 80 86 Him, after long debate, irresolute Of thoughts revolv'd, his final sentence chose Fit vessel, fittest imp of fraud, in whom To enter, and his dark suggestions hide 90 From sharpest sight: for in the wily snake, Whatever sleights, none would suspicious mark, As from his wit and native subtlety 95 Proceeding, which in other beasts observ'd, 100 105 Of sacred influence! As God in Heaven Is centre, yet extends to all, so thou Centring receiv'st from all those orbs; in thee, 111 115 Of growth, sense, reason, all summ'd up in Man. 120 Bane, and in Heav'n much worse would be my state. But neither here seek I, no nor in Heav'n, To dwell, unless by mast'ring Heav'n's Supreme; By what I seek, but others to make such 126 To my relentless thoughts; and him destroy'd, 130 For whom all this was made, all this will soon In woe then; that destruction wide may range. Th' infernal Pow'rs, in one day to have marr'd 135 140 And to repair his numbers thus impair'd, Whether such virtue spent of old now fail'd 145 |