The Act of Temptation in Milton's Poems

The act of temptation is used in various ways by Milton in two epic poems: "Paradise Lost," "Paradise Regained," and in the dramatic poem "Samson Agostines." Milton uses temptation in an unfavorable sense, such as Satan enticing Eve to commit an evil act, Eve tempting Adam as an act of love and fear, Satan testing Jesus by subjecting him to various kinds of temptations, and Samson's temptation based on his lust for revenge and women. All three poems under consideration have Biblical sources.

In "Paradise Lost," the temptation is simple compared with "Paradise Regained" and "Samson Agostines" that present a more complex aspect of temptation. Satan's successful temptation of Eve is based on his skill as a flatterer, and her vanity. He cleverly uses her vanity to entice her into what seems a higher state of being than humanity. He tells Eve that she and Adam can become as God, by becoming themselves gods of a kind. When Satan refers to the lower gods, he suggests that they have specific functions in the running of the universe, and suggests that Eve may attain some connection with the workings of the universe if she eats the fruit of the tree of knowledge. In so doing, however, she will break the only commandment given by God.

Satan in the guise of a snake approaches Eve and refers to her as the "Empress of this fair World" (IX. 568). Over the course of his seduction of Eve, he calls her "Queen of this Universe" (IX. 685). Satan's flattery tempts Eve into a sense of beli

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on if it is acceded to by faith in the intercession of Jesus. "Paradise Regained" deals with Jesus' intercession, and the many temptations Satan offers Jesus in an attempt to prevent his successful mediation. The temptations described by Milton are essentially the same as described in the bible, and represent the struggle between good and evil. The first temptation encountered by Jesus is distrust of God. Jesus is led by the Spirit into the desert to be tempted by Satan, and for 40 days and nights, living with wild beasts, he eats nothing. At the end of the 40 days, he is hungry, and Satan tries to tempt Jesus into "testing" God by telling him, "If thou be the Son of God, Command/That out of these hard stones be made thee bread" (I. 342-343), thereby saving himself with food. But Jesus resists the temptation replying, "Think thou such force in Bread? Is it not written�Man lives not by Bread only, but each Word/Proceeding from the mouth of God" (I. 348-350). The second temptation centers on hunger of the intellect, rather than hunger of the body. Satan tries to tempt Jesus with the kingdom of the world and all its glory. Again, Jesus resists temptation, leading Satan to the realization that the successful temptation of Jesus w

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