Satan as “Some Orator Renowned”: An Analysis of Corrupted Eloquence in John Milton’s Corpus

This thesis argues that John Milton writes Satan as a perversion of the classical orator in order to cultivate readers' rhetorical discernment. Drawing on the theories of Plato, Aristotle, Quintilian, Longinus, Hermogenes, and Demetrius, I argue Milton inherited a contradictory rhetorical tradition that his literary works test. In Of Education and Areopagitica, Milton champions rhetoric as a liberating force. In A Masque at Ludlow Castle, Paradise Lost, and Paradise Regained, he exposes its susceptibility to corruption. Satan's sophistical eloquence proves that in a fallen world, rhetorical skill and moral virtue can be divorced, serving to educate readers in distinguishing between corrupted eloquence and truth.