In both John Milton's Samson Agonistes and in the Bible, Samson is tricked by Delilah, who then cuts his hair, the source of his strength. Without his strength, Samson is then imprisoned by the Philistines until he regains his hair and strength and is able to break free, though he dies doing so.
Milton's interpretation of the Samson and Delilah story is that Samson betrayed God. By his physical desire for Delilah, he ignored the purpose for which God gave him his strength: to defeat enemies of Israel. By his pride in his strength, he allowed Delilah to get close to him and cut his hair. The final part of the play and poem show Samson being granted his strength again to regain his freedom. But because of Samson's earlier betrayal, his freedom is cut short by what Milton saw as his cathartic death.
Friday, July 3, 2015
How was Samson made captive in Samon Agonistes?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
What is the theme of the chapter Lead?
Primo Levi's complex probing of the Holocaust, including his survival of Auschwitz and pre- and post-war life, is organized around indiv...
-
The statement "Development policy needs to be about poor people, not just poor countries," carries a lot of baggage. Let's dis...
-
"Mistaken Identity" is an amusing anecdote recounted by the famous author Mark Twain about an experience he once had while traveli...
-
Primo Levi's complex probing of the Holocaust, including his survival of Auschwitz and pre- and post-war life, is organized around indiv...
-
De Gouges's Declaration of the Rights of Woman was enormously influential. We can see its influences on early English feminist Mary Woll...
-
As if Hamlet were not obsessed enough with death, his uncovering of the skull of Yorick, the court jester from his youth, really sets him of...
-
In both "Volar" and "A Wall of Fire Rising," the characters are impacted by their environments, and this is indeed refle...
No comments:
Post a Comment