“ So spake the Fiend, and with necessity, the tyrant's plea, excused his devilish deeds. ”
John Milton, Paradise Lost (1667). copy citation
| Author | John Milton |
|---|---|
| Source | Paradise Lost |
| Topic | evil necessity tyrant |
| Date | 1667 |
| Language | English |
| Reference | |
| Note | |
| Weblink | http://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/26/pg26-images.html |
Context
“And should I at your harmless innocence Melt, as I do, yet publick reason just, Honour and empire with revenge enlarged, By conquering this new world, compels me now To do what else, though damned, I should abhor. So spake the Fiend, and with necessity, The tyrant's plea, excused his devilish deeds. Then from his lofty stand on that high tree Down he alights among the sportful herd Of those four-footed kinds, himself now one, Now other, as their shape served best his end Nearer to view his prey, and, unespied,”
source
Meaning and analysis
