A Comparison of Civilization in The Oresteia and Miltons Paradise Lost :: comparison compare contrast essays

Civilization in The Oresteia and heaven Lost The continual search for a perfect refining label the history of human progress. From Plato to Locke to Marx, man has sought to order society to set aside justice for himself and his children. In this quest for paradise, myths of primitivity help describe how well-disposed institutions roll in the hay direct humans away from their temptations toward higher goals. In Aeschylus The Oresteia and John Miltons enlightenment Lost, human civilization is viewed as an imperfect balance of opposites which helps combat mans tendencies toward tongue and misogyny. For Aeschylus, successful civilization defines itself not by complete devotion to dowry or the gods instead, society forms the ultimate product of conflict between contend forces in which violence and anti societal behavior are repressed by a hierarchization of values (Zeitlin 1). The social myth of The Oresteia is viewed not as a historical reality but as a useful symbol - a consideration of humans run amok as the social institutions of family and government give way to a cycle of destructive violence. The trilogy sets justice, family, and metropolis against revenge and ambition in a test of whether any social institution can survive in the face of a terror to its supremacy. In contrast, the strongly Puritan John Milton describes the structure of society as a least among evils it forms the scaffolding which, when the building is finished, is only a troublesome disfigurement to mans own ability for good (Milton The Reason of Church-government qtd. in tilt 534). The conflict in Paradise Lost juxtaposes mans submission and faith with his sensuousness and ignorance. The coming of the Son promises the final solution to mans problems and an end to this clash of values (Fish 536). to that extent until the Resurrection, the Fortunate Fall leaves lasting marks on human civilization that are dramatically portrayed as cracks in the ven eered perfection of fabulous Eden. The gorgeous garden belies the theological chasm that separates man from his Creator. Humans cannot accept the predominate to be lowly wise (PL VIII.173). When Adam promises to avoid obscure and shrewd (PL VIII.192) thought, he acknowledges that apt the mind or fancy is to rove/ undisciplined (PL VIII.