Zusammenfassung der Ressource
Prelapsarian v. Postlapsarian. Milton's
Impressionistic Grammar
- It is our knowledge, as POSTLAPSARIAN
beings, that distorts and colours the meaning of some
phrases.
- river described as meandering with "mazy
error"
- "mazy" represents Milton's human confused interpretation of
perfection.
- "error" argues for the order to irregularity, the rightness in
wandering.Descriptions of before error was introduced.
- perhaps suggests that to err is natural..
- Milton's semantic use of "unblessed", "unfallen"
- Connotations of these words are instantly compared to their original
forms, "blessed", "fallen"
- Milton, through his syntax of "innocent"
in reference to the snake before Satan
enters him, stresses the fallen root of
"innocent" to "nocent"- [harmful].
- So the snake is ominously "nor
nocent yet" Book 1
- First description, book 1, the "luxurious", "wanton"
growth of the plants in paradise.
- Suggests A+E's failure to tame the natural,
like God in taming A+E
- Christopher Ricks, "before the fall
'luxurious' is a harmless horticultural
word; but its fallen meaning jostles
against it here.
- "from her husband's hand her hand soft she withdrew"
- prelapsarian interpretation - delicate hand incapable of guile.
- postlapsarian interpretation - mixed suggestions of frailty and deceit.
- Prelapsarian in book 8 - "wound" is a creative word.
- "wide was the wound" of Adam's rib in the creation of
Eve. This is positive.
- However, postlapsarian book 9 - "the earth felt the
wound". Negative.
- My "wound" produced by the original sin never heals