He says that the demons of Hell should not siege war on Heaven for multiple reasons: Heaven is way too fortified for even an attempt to infiltrate. Belial knows the power of God and that is should not be tested, especially so quickly after their recent failure. He continues to say "what is the point?". We are in Hell with some potential opportunities, why go risk angering God so that it can all be taken away. His go to phrase would be "things could be worse". The demons could still be chained to the fiery lake with no where to go or nothing to do. Why go out of their way to take over Heaven when they all know that there is no chance of winning.
Things could be worse
Ultimately, Belial thinks they should stay put. Wait it out. He wants to stay slothful and try to make the best out of the shitty situation that they've all been put in. Even though his words are only wrapped in garments of reason and don't hold any actual meaning, he has a point. If I would be down there with them, his idea would have gotten my vote. I would actually be more comfortable with Belial's and Mammon's ideas combined. The labor/attempt for redemption and keeping to myself sounds like a way better idea than pissing off the most powerful being in the universe.
I actually kind of liked Moloch's speech. I liked his go-get-'em attitude! It was really like "what do we have to lose? At least we won't be in hell anymore." I found the demon's speeches really interesting and a neat perspective on how the fight over man's soul really got started. I'm actually surprised how much I've enjoyed Milton's work.
ReplyDeleteFor some reason I'm relly fascinated with Belial! To the extent that I'm doing my next close reading essay on the description of him where Milton refers to him as the most graceful and humane angel. What's really interesting bout Belial is that that passage has a lot of phrasing which points to him not being what he seems to be. The words "seemed" and "appear" makes it sound like he's putting on a little bit of an act. (But I haven't sat down yet to completely analyze the passage yet so my theory isn't fully formed yet!)
ReplyDelete"No, really guys, this is kinda alright. Why would we want to mess this up? We can just kinda chill out here, have some wine, talk about philosophy and art and make music all day. We already kinda screwed up; maybe if we just chill out for a while, we can at least get a better understanding of where we are now, and if there's any way to improve it. I think a golden castle would be nice."
ReplyDelete"Oh, you want to keep up with the whole 'war against the all-powerful creator of all things' thing? I really think that's a bad idea."
I see Belial's point. I really do. Hell sounds kinda great. Then again, I would "rather laugh with the sinners than cry with the saints; the sinners have much more fun."
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zhjNm20XbXw