Abstract
This textual analysis questions heroism in Shakespeare's Richard II (Les Belles Lettres edition) and John Milton's Paradise Lost (Penguin Classics edition).
Richard II by William Shakespeare is essentially based on the plot and the consequences of the decisions taken by King Richard II, who is very attached to his crown. He attributes to himself divine charisma. In reality, he is an incompetent, a stupid and an arrogant king. He believes he is protected thanks to his position as a substitute for God.
In Paradise Lost, John Milton uses very well epic conventions. In this religious epic poem, Milton creates human characters and thus does not conform to the literary traditions of the Middle Ages and the Renaissance.
Extract
[...] Milton depicts the rebellion of Satan, fallen angel, and the original sin of Adam and Eve tempted by the serpent. Milton questions the origin of evil in the world. The metamorphosis of Satan into a snake is memorable. In a sentence, Milton precisely evokes the transformation of Satan's body. "His visage drawn he felt to sharp and spare, His arms clung to his ribs, his legs entwining Each other, till supplanted on his belly prône, A monstrous serpent on his belly prône," (Book 511-514) Satan is unable to control it. [...]
[...] The literary form is very important to study the heroism in these books. Shakespeare moves away from epic in favor of tragedy. Richard II is a tragic hero without exploits. As for Satan, he is an epic hero because Milton highlights his courage in the face of the enemy, even if it is a personal battle for the hero. These two books, with their different style, can thus bear witness to a crisis of a heroism which is seeking itself because the heroes often represent fascinating, exceptional characters. [...]
[...] What is the place of the epic and the divine in their heroism? Can a king as Richard II have divine charisma? Can Satan, from the Bible, be considered a hero? In this perspective, based on examples from the two selected books, in a first part, we will study the heroism in function the divine in the two heroes and in a second part, in the particularity of its conception according to the literary form. I. The Divine in the Two Heroes 1. [...]
[...] Richard II (Les Belles Lettres) - William Shakespeare (2005); Paradise Lost (Penguin Classics) - John Milton (2003) - What is the place of the epic and the divine in their heroism? Heroism in Richard II and Paradise Lost. Introduction In literature, the hero is part of the epic register. He comes from myth or History. The heroes, at the origin of exploits, defend the values of their community and are close to the absolute divine model. To conduct our reflection, we will analyze the heroism in Richard II by William Shakespeare, English poet and playwright (1564-1616) and in Paradise Lost by John Milton, English poet (1608-1674). [...]
[...] The Divine, the Enemy In the 17th century, a century after the emergence of the Reformation, the border lines between Catholics and Protestants were firmly drawn. After the theologians, a secular Protestant literature began to appear. Austere Puritans fiercely rejected the frivolity of the Catholic courts, and even more so the theater, considered a place of debauchery and impiety. It is therefore from the Bible that draw their inspiration. In Paradise Lost, Satan considers divine authority to be tyranny and not an infallible power like Richard II. His act of disobedience is a political and spiritual rebellion. [...]
