The idea of picking one word that revealed the meaning of Paradise Lost initially seemed incredibly difficult to me, and I continuously found myself feeling drawn to an entire phrase opposed to just a singular word. However, I soon realized that within my phrase, "perdition" was the one word that truly gave the sentence meaning. I remembered what we discussed in class about perdition revealing God's agency, but I struggled to understand how this one word could reveal Milton's entire purpose, and I questioned what exactly this purpose was. I decided to read through Book One again, where I found Milton's opening that explained his goal of justifying God to man. It seemed like the word perdition did this perfectly, but I was still only thinking in terms of perdition meaning hell, and not its original definition. I turned to the dictionary, where I found that the root of perdition is "perdo", which means to destroy, ruin, or lose. Furthermore, I began to recognize words based off of this root across other languages. I began writing with basic intentions of how "perdition" accomplished this goal, but throughout writing I had many revelations from which I was able to draw more conclusions about the power of perdition. I began to get stuck around 500 words, so I took a few days off to think. Throughout that time, I was able to realize how perdition is what allows the story to progress, and that all agency God bestows is a result of perdition and the actions that come from it. After submitting my first draft, I worked to reorder my paper to make it more fluid, and I solidified my thoughts about perdition's progressive nature. Overall, I think that this assignment was incredibly helpful for deepening my own ideas surrounding perdition, and it helped me realize both the power a single word bestows and the power the reader can give it.
One Word Milton: Perdition
Within Paradise Lost, Milton's use of the word "perdition" helps him to fulfill his goal of "assert[ing] Eternal Providence and justify[ing] the ways of God to man" (1.26). While perdition is modernly used to refer to eternal damnation or hell, it was initially derived from the Latin root, perdo, which means to destroy, ruin, or lose. A variety of languages employ verbs based on this root; the French use "perdre", the Italian use "perdere", and both the Spanish and Pourtuguese use "perder." As one would expect, these all translate directly to the verb "to lose" in English. Initially, the "bottomless perdition" that Satan is hurled down to seems to align most closely with perdition's definition of destruction. Satan finds himself lying in a round dungeon full of dark flames, ruin, and chains. His newfound immortality is simply a curse, as it puts him in everlasting pain from experiencing the deadly flames without end. As Milton begins to describe these black flames, the word "perdition" shifts its definition from destruction to loss. Prior to his destruction, Satan was an angel named Lucifer, which means "light giver". The meaning of his name aligned perfectly with heaven, which is described as "empyreal", with its principle quality being light. When Lucifer decided to revolt, he was banished to this "perdition" where his name was changed to Satan, meaning "an adversary, one who resists." Satan has now lost arguably his most important traits: his name and his home. Furthermore, the light that once encompassed his existence has vanished, leaving him with dark flames that only remind him of his losses. This loss is further magnified when he realizes that he has been "as far removed from God and light of heav'n" because he now must forfeit his dream of someday dethroning his creator (1.72). While it's clear that "perdition" inflicts loss and destruction upon Satan, it's also crucial to examine how this loss for Satan fulfills Milton's goal of "assert[ing] Eternal Providence and justify[ing] the ways of God to man" (1.26). Milton explains that this perdition was created by Eternal Justice, or God, in preparation for the rebellious before any beings were created. This revelation about God's foreknowledge proves just how powerful he really is. He was confident that all future revolts would fail at destroying him, so he was able to give his creations the agency to attempt to revolt, knowing that they would be banished to perdition and in turn, solidify his all-mightiness. This would be solidified because upon arriving in perdition, the rebellious would see that this place was prematurely created, causing them to see the falsity within their prior belief that they are equally powerful to God, which they believed warranted his destruction. Furthermore, God would reign powerful because the absence of the rebellious would also prove this to his faithful followers, as they would see his all knowingness and question what else awaits those who betray God. This adverse effect of bolstering God would not be possible without perdition because its existence is the very thing that proves God's foreknowledge and in turn, asserts Eternal Providence. Not only does perdition fulfill its definition of destroying Satan, but it also destroys any suggestion that challenges God's infinite power and forces Satan to live in the misery of knowing that God will forever have the upper hand. As Satan begins to consult with his followers regarding their next steps, it becomes clear that God intended for perdition to not only destroy Satan, but also to inspire him to further destroy, which would in turn strengthen mankind. God undoubtedly knows that allowing Satan to escape perdition will lead to the temptation of Eve, and eventually the sacrifice of God's only son, Jesus; he even watches Satan approach heaven from his throne. This demonstration of God's foreknowledge reveals that his creation of perdition serves to represent a much larger theme: the idea that he allows for the destruction and loss of all of his creations, even those who aren't inherently evil. This theme is the reason God is referred to as "Eternal Justice." In order to serve justice, he must punish those who commit a crime. However, a crime that is not deliberately committed cannot be punished, causing God to make his creations "sufficient to have stood, though free to fall" (3.99). This concept is represented entirely through God's creation of perdition; if Satan had not deliberately attempted to overthrow God, he never would have felt the need to escape perdition and fulfill his goal. This meant that justice was served, and this justice inspired Satan to cause God to lose his son, which is yet a larger example of justice being served on mankind. This justice would not have been possible without both the creation of perdition and God's foreknowledge to know that both loss and destruction would lead to man's eventual strength. While perdition is only used one time throughout Paradise Lost, it is a dominating theme throughout the entire poem through the theme of loss and destruction. This is arguably the most important word because it serves to not only fulfill Milton's goal of justifying God to man, but it also allows God to serve justice and strengthen mankind. Without this idea of perdition—both the physical place and what it reveals about man's freedom to fall—mankind would have never sinned, justice would have never been served, and God's omniscience would have never been revealed. Furthermore, mankind would have never had the agency to question existence, explore it, and solidify their faith in a creator. Milton provided total justification for God and justice for man through only just one word—a word that can be simply defined as loss, destruction, and ruin— proving that these states of being only represent a low point that will soon rise, as mankind demonstrates.
Influence: Scott and Greenblatt
Cover Letter
I was initially nervous when given this assignment because I couldn’t identify what I thought was the single-most important intersection between the texts. While I generally liked my draft from earlier this year, I thought that the concept of influence was too broad as a whole, and I wanted to express my furthered understanding of the texts. I flipped through my CPBs multiple times when brainstorming and came across the fill in the blanks exercise that we did for Scott and Greenblatt. This made it clear to me that both writings were telling the reader to do something, such as submit or criticize, in order to have their identity shaped. I found many parallels between both processes, such as the idea that these actions allow the reader to maintain agency and that they prescribe the reader with instructions on how to continue these processes throughout their lives. I feel that this assignment helped me further understand the texts and certainly dive deeper into the broad theme of influence.
Formal Writing Assignment
Both A.O. Scott’s Better Living Through Criticism and Stephen Greenblatt’s Renaissance Self-Fashioning present the claim that humans are constantly under the influence of social and cultural forces that determine their likes, dislikes, and overall identity. While we lack autonomy, Scott and Greenblatt explain that we exercise agency by actively engaging in the recursive cycle of influence; Scott believes that this is done through the practice of criticism, while Greenblatt views it as submission.
A.O. Scott begins Better Living Through Criticism by explaining that criticism directly results in the shaping of identity. While the word criticism is known to have a negative connotation, Scott redefines it as the human response to something that evokes emotion, with this something typically being art. Similarly, Stephen Greenblatt makes the claim that submission to an authority figure is what results in the shaping of identity at the beginning of Renaissance Self-Fashioning. He explains that this submission does not need to be perceived as negative, explaining that “it enable[s] us to escape what we detest and embrace whatever brings us wonder, hope, and pleasure” (17). Now that the reader grasps that these seemingly overwhelming actions actually provide them with agency, the authors dive into explaining exactly how criticism and submission lead to the shaping of identity. Scott proves the effects of criticism by comparing Rilke’s “Archaic Torso” and Marina Abramovic’s “The Artist is Present.” While these were incredibly different art forms- Abramovic’s was her sitting in a chair while Rilke’s being a short poem- they both solicited the same “uncanny experience of being seen, of feeling as if the vector of perception had been reversed,” causing the reader to feel “opened up, exposed to the universe, which sends [them] a message, through a ventriloquism of ancient marble and modern literature. You must change your life” (70-71). This last sentence is the essence of criticism; it brings the viewer into an aesthetic experience that causes one to change not only change themselves, but also the course of their life. Meanwhile, Greenblatt introduces the power of submission by walking the reader through a time in which he came to the realization that he lacked autonomy. He attended a seminar given by Foucalt where he learned that “[humans] were not a kind of raw material subsequently worked on by social forces. Rather, they were called into being and shaped by the institution that claimed only to police them” (XV). As “Foucalt was changing [his] intellectual horizons,” Greenblatt was elevated into an aesthetic experience of his own in which he identified the process of self-fashioning, which is done by conforming to an authority while rejecting an alien. While it may seem that only the authority has influence, the rejection of the alien has an equal impact by making the individual reevaluate their position and identify not only what they want their identity to conform to, but also what they want to stray away from. This theory relates to criticism too; no matter how you react to an aesthetic experience, your life will be changing whether that’s towards or away from the experience.
Both authors end by explaining that this criticism and submission is never-ceasing. Scott prescribes his readers to live lives in which they are actively seeking aesthetic experiences and are willing to change the course of their lives due to this enlightenment. Similarly, Greenblatt highlights the recursive nature of self-fashioning by explaining that “when one authority or alien is destroyed, another takes its place,” meaning that individuals navigate several authorities and aliens as they fashion their identity throughout their lives (9). Finally, Greenblatt ends with his epilogue, which prescribes his readers to keep a constant eye out for the dream of autonomous agency and accept the fact that they lack autonomy when it comes to their control over identity. While their verb choice differs slightly, Scott and Grenblatt both claim that human actions lead directly to outside forces influencing identity. However, this submission and criticism does not need to be viewed as a loss; instead these actions invite humans to experience the lifelong, recursive process that shapes identity. Both authors prescribe their readers to engage in this process by actively seeking aesthetic experiences, being willing to change the course of their lives, and constantly rejecting the dream of autonomous agency. If this is done, humans will find a new meaning in life that's filled with elevating experiences that invite others to submit and criticize as well.
Modified Concept Map
Full Concept Map
Cover Letter
I initially wrote a piece that emulated the style of Maria Popova's Brainpickings and discussed the ways in which social norms influence humans. While this was not exactly what the assignment was asking for, it was a useful opportunity to identify various themes throughout the summer reading and think deeply about them. When I was tasked with the new assignment, I was worried that I would have to disregard the prior thinking I had done, but this was not the case. Instead, I was able to adopt some of the same points from my previous draft, such as connections between Scott and Greenblatt's work, while still finding new connections in my commonplace book relating to Berger. While my original concept map presents multiple themes, I decided to create an alternate version that dealt solely with the theme of influence. I chose this theme because I found it to be the most interesting concept, and it also connected to all three of the texts. While it would have been interesting to discuss my full concept map, I thought that it would be more beneficial to the reader to focus on one theme in detail instead of skimming over multiple themes. I also adapted the piece by putting it in the first person instead of the third person. While I can see the value in Popova's third person, I believe that complex topics like this are sometimes frustrating to the reader and that they are more receptive to the first person because the writer seems like more of an equal and less authoritative.
Persuasive Descriptive Piece
After creating my concept map, it became clear to me that influence was one of the most prevalent themes throughout the summer reading. The excerpts posed valuable questions regarding what influences humans are most susceptible to, how our influences manifest themselves, and whether or not we have the ability to overpower these outside forces, as well as the overall impact they have on our tastes, identity, and knowledge. Upon reflecting on the readings, it became evident that the three readings including Better Living Through Criticismby A.O. Scott, Renaissance Self-Fashioning by Stephen Greenblatt, and A More Beautiful Question by Warren Berger are all connected and make powerful contributions to the conversation surrounding influence. Scott firmly states his opinion early on that "nobody floats above the common rule of tastes, plucking only the most exquisite posies on the basis of pure intuition," meaning that our likes and dislikes are not purely our own. Our tastes are influenced by countless factors including our finances, family, friends, geographical location, gender, and race among others. However, these societal forces don't only influence what we like and dislike; Stephen Greenblatt brings to light the idea that our identities themselves are also heavily influenced by outside forces. He says that humans have "the power to impose a shape upon [themselves]" and explains that this is "an aspect of the more general power to control identity- that of others at least as often as one’s own.” Typically, we exercise this power, also known as autonomy, by crafting our personas to reflect a set of socially accepted norms and standards, but these differ for everyone. As Greenblatt puts it, "one man’s authority is another man's alien," meaning that while one person may try to imitate a celebrity, others might view the same idol as a perfect example of how they don't want to be. There simply isn't just one ideal person who we should fashion ourselves to. Outside factors don't only affect our identity and tastes, for they also can influence our educational success. In A More Beautiful Question, Berger discusses the importance of questioning and analyzes the dwindling ability of children to pose questions. While people assume that factors like class size and confidence are the sole influences on children's' ability to question, Berger quickly concludes that "other, more subtle forces may be conspiring against student questioning." He references Joshua Aronson from NYU's study that introduces "the stereotype threat," which focuses on the psychology of stigma and "the way human beings respond to negative stereotypes about their racial or gender group." For example, if a student believes that they are a target of a well-known stereotype, such as girls not being good at STEM, they might stop asking questions and trying to improve their skills because doing these things would alert other kids of their confusion and only reinforce the stereotype. Because uncontrollable factors such as race and gender lead to stereotypes and stereotypes lead to a lack of questioning and learning, it's safe to say that outside forces can also be detrimental to a child's education. While each piece discussed influence in a different manner, they all concluded that influence has a hold on nearly every aspect of our lives. In order to gain self-awareness, it's important to determine what your dominant influences are and consistently question how exactly they are manifesting themselves in your life.