Paradise Lost's Derivation as well as Departure from the Classical Epic Tradition

John Milton’s Paradise Lost derives from classical epic tradition in many ways, some of which are described below:

• The poem opens with the invocation of the muse, where the poet asks a divine muse – ancient deities – to inspire him in narrating an ambitious take and relaying God’s plan for mankind.
• The beginning of the poem also contains a declaration of the central theme (man’s first disobedience by the partaking of Forbidden Fruit, man’s exile from Eden, his final redemption and salvation through Christ, the savior, etc.). 
• The story begins in media res (in the middle of things), with Satan and his fellow rebel angels chained to a lake of fire in Hell. This allows the poet to narrate an exciting part of the tale first and then provide the backstory in flashback.
• The story’s setting is vast, expansive, and includes many worlds.
• The story contains main heroes and antiheroes: Adam, Son of God, and Satan.
• Turmoil in otherworldly realms – Celestial beings (Satan’s forces against God’s forces) scheme and do battle with one another.
• Liberal use of dramatic irony – The story’s characters fail to see what is clear as daylight to readers. For example, Adam and Eve go about their everyday life oblivious to their impending banishment from Paradise.
• The story’s characters are archetypal in nature, and combine the characteristics of many epic characters. For example:
• Adam, at various points, is:
• Rational man
• Great leader
• Irrational man
• Eve, at once, is:
• Faithful wife
• Femme fatale
• Satan, at once, is:
• Devious plotter and schemer
• Great leader
• Worthy adversary

Although Milton conforms to principles of epic structure, he does make occasional and very important departures from the epic tradition. Some of these departures are as follows:

• Milton invests Satan, the villain, with many of the conventional qualities of an epic hero, and yet, the mantle of hero does not fall on Satan. Thus, Milton scolds the epic tradition for exalting vice as virtue.
• Milton dwells on the protagonist’s suffering and defeat, rather than his triumphs.
• Milton rejected an overtly martial theme.
• The storyline included both divine and mortal forces that were locked in combat. This is a departure from the Homerian epic format, where mortals engaged in battle, while celestial beings watched over and, on occasion, manipulated the action.
• John Milton, in addition to creating epic personifications and types, also wrote about “real” people.