"But I was enchanted by the appearance of the hut: here the snow and rain could not penetrate ; the ground was dry; and it presented to me then as exquisite and divine a retreat as Pandaemonium appeared to the daemons of hell after their sufferings in the lake of fire." pg 73
Pandaemonium, as the capital of Hell in the poem Paradise Lost, was created more beautifully than any human building ever constructed, over the course of mere hours by the fallen from heaven. Shelley subtly suggests that although the character refers to the sanctuary being similar to that of the capital of Hell, the opposing terms "snow"and "fire" separate them. Regardless of the separation, the idea is implanted enough in the reader's mind, thus associating the character with Hell.
Paradise Lost, John Milton
It feels very close and that the only thing missing is a further explanation of why that separation and those two conflicting words are being used there. It feels one sentence away from that. Watch out for that last line -- we don't need to say "it is implanted in the reader's mind" -- the reader is implied throughout. It runs the risk of moving into reader response --- it's a great concept for an entry.
ReplyDelete"But I was enchanted by the appearance of the hut: here the snow and rain could not penetrate ; the ground was dry; and it presented to me then as exquisite and divine a retreat as Pandaemonium appeared to the daemons of hell after their sufferings in the lake of fire." pg 73
ReplyDeletePandaemonium, as the capital of Hell in the poem Paradise Lost, was created more beautifully than any human building ever constructed, over the course of mere hours by the fallen from heaven. Shelley subtly suggests that although the character refers to the sanctuary being similar to that of the capital of Hell, the opposing terms "snow" and "fire" separate them. The hut is full of cold and winter, while Pandaemonium is brutally hot; they are both places of evil, only they are on opposite ends of the spectrum. Thus, the character is regarded with Hell.
Paradise Lost, John Milton