Milton's Satan in Paradise Lost is a complex character thought to be the evil figure of the epic poem. Whenever possible, Satan attempts to undermine God and the Son of God who is the true hero of the story. Throughout the story Milton tells readers that Satan is an evil character, is destined to have no redeeming qualities, and to be shown as a completely unsympathetic figure. Satan's greatest sins are pride and vanity in thinking that he can overthrow God, and in the first part of the poem he is described as selfish while in Heaven where all of God's angels are loved and happy. Satan's journey begins as a fallen angel of great stature, he has the ability to reason and argue, but in Book X the anguish and pain he goes through is all the more reason for him to follow an evil path instead. Even so, Milton uses literal and figurative imagery in describing Satan's character to manipulate the reader's response to the possibility that Satan may actually be a heroic figure. As the plot of the story unfolds, there are moments when the reader can identify with Satan's desires and relate to his delusions. Considering Aristotle's idea of ​​hamartia, someone who is a good person, but fallen from grace, and applying it to Satan, then it seems reasonable to interpret Satan as having hero-like characteristics. Aristotle would say that a courageous person is inspired by confidence, faces danger, and acts in a manner appropriate to this courage (Nicomachean Ethics). Not only is Satan a brave figure, but he starts out as a good character even if he makes mistakes along the way. In the first two books Milton does just this, portraying Satan as a hero to draw readers in so they can identify with his character... at the center of the paper... creating Milton's Satan. a heroic figure.Works CitedAristotle. “Nicomachean Ethics”. and. gen. Cahn, Steven M., and Peter J. Markie. Ethics: history, theory and contemporary issues. 4th ed. New York: Oxford UP, 2009. Print.Forsyth, Neil. "Paradise Lost and the Origin of 'Evil': Classical or Judeo-Christian?" International journal of the classical tradition. Literary Reference Center.NC Live. 2000. Network. December 5, 2011.Henthorne, Susan. "Paradise Lost". Main Plots, 4th ed. Literary reference center. 2010. EBSCOguest. Network. December 5, 2011.Milton, John. Paradise lost. The Norton Anthology of English Literature. 8th ed. vol. A. gen ed. Stephen Greenblatt. 8th edition. New York: Norton, 2006. 1831-2055. Print.Nienhuis, Terry. "Paradise Lost." Magill's Survey of World Literature, revised edition. Literary reference center. 2009. EBSCOguest. Network. December 5. 2011.