Milton makes no secret of the discrepancy between the two councils. In the beginning of book three, the poet makes his second invo

The proceedings in the kingdom of Heaven are, not surprisingly, almost completely opposite to those in Hell. There is no universal discussion of possible action; the only opinions that matter are those of God and his Son. The system is monarchial, but it is a deserved endowment of power. Whereas Satan masques his aspirations of monarchy in shrouds of republicanism and attempts to deviously control his followers, God makes no secret of his authority. His rule is rooted in His divinity and His obvious superiority over all other beings. The angels, in turn, recognize God’s total supremity, and when the Lord speaks, “ambrosial fragrance filled / All heav’n, and in the blessed Spirits elect / Sense of new joy ineffable diffused” (PL, III). God’s jurisdiction is unquestioned in Heaven, and the angels are content to simply bask in His presence. When God, through the dialogue with His Son, reaches a conclusion on the fate of man, He calls for a volunteer to save the human race, much like Beelzebub had called for someone to set about its destruction. “Which of ye will be mortal to redeem / Man’s mortal crime, and just th’ unjust to save, / Dwells in heaven charity so dear?” God inquires of the angels (PL, III). The “charity so dear”, of course, is found in the Son, who offers to undertake this enterprise of mammoth importance. However, unlike Satan, the Son does not volunteer for the endeavor in order to maintain power, as his power is and always will be indisputable. The Son pledges himself to the task at hand because of his never-ending love and unparalleled holiness. The council of heaven – really nothing more than a dialogue between God and His Son – differs from the council of Hell in that it is centered on the utter perfection of the two highest deities.

Upon first inspection, the governing bodies of Heaven and Hell may seem somewhat out of place, with the ‘democracy’ in Hell and the ‘monarchy’ in Heaven. But when the two bodies are examined more closely, one finds that the fallen cherubim are filled with hate, deception, and hypocrisy, while the true path to righteousness lies in Heaven. The fact that it is somewhat difficult to distinguish right from wrong with regard to these two entities is extremely important. Letting the reader see the complications in choosing the correct path allows the reader to more fully understand just how Eve is able to be seduced into eating from the Tree of Knowledge by Satan. Milton shows that oftentimes making the right decisions between good and evil approaches a Herculean task. For if the reader of the poem cannot tell the difference between a positive and negative entity, how arduous must it be for him or her to discern between the two in reality?

The physical descriptions of the thrones in the respective strongholds also show a disparity. Satan’s throne in the fortress Pandemonium “far outshone the wealth of Ormus and of Ind, / Or where the gorgeous East with richest hand / Show’rs on he

Some topics in this essay:
God Son, PL II, II Satanic, II III, PL III, Lost Milton, Christ God’s, III God’s, Heaven Hell, Whereas Satan, pl ii, pl iii, god son, filled /, authority god, fallen angels, paradise lost, filled / th’, council heaven, heaven hell, / th’,