『복낙원』에 나타난 언어의 회복

Abstract

In his brief epic, Paradise Regained Milton traces Christ's recovery of the fallen language. The epic battle between Christ and Satan is fought almost exclusively with words, which at last ends with Christ's victory over Satan's various strong wiles. When Adam falls in Paradise Lost, so does his language. As a result of the fall, human language acquires what might be called Satanic features. However, Christ recovers what Adam lost through his firm obedience to God's words. His attitude and use of language show that how he is able to restore and renew the fallen language. Most of all, Christ's use of language reflects how much his thought is focused on God's words. When being confronted with Satan's various assaults of words he always responds and rejects them by telling God's words only. He discerns quite well what is the differences between what Satan tells and what Satan means. He also has spiritual insight and wisdom which can distinguish clearly the surface meaning of Satan's language and the deep intention of the devil's wiles. He brings back the intrinsic purpose of language which was undone by Satan's abuse of language. In particular, his absolute obedience to God's words and his waiting for God's time show that he has the excellent inner virtues enough to make him a good model for the recovery of man's fallen language.