Paradise Lost

Milton consciously drew upon classical epic traditions, including Homer's Odyssey, to craft a narrative of immense scope involving a journey (Satan's fall and subsequent journey through Chaos) and a struggle against divine power.

Milton, a classical scholar, was deeply familiar with Homeric epics, and "Paradise Lost" consciously emulates the grand scale, epic conventions, and the portrayal of larger-than-life figures engaged in archetypal conflict found in "The Iliad".

Milton, a scholar of epic poetry, was undoubtedly familiar with Tasso's "Gerusalemme Liberata," which served as a significant model for Christian epic, demonstrating how to weave theological themes and grand-scale conflict into a heroic narrative, directly influencing "Paradise Lost"'s form and ambition.

William Blake was a profound reader of Milton, and "The Marriage of Heaven and Hell" is a direct response to "Paradise Lost," re-evaluating the nature of good and evil and the role of the rebel figure, showing a clear conceptual inheritance and reinterpretation of the archetypal struggle.

Goethe's "Faust" shares with "Paradise Lost" a vast scope, a central figure engaged in an epic spiritual battle against a powerful demonic entity, and a deep exploration of theological and moral questions, reflecting Milton's influence on the grand narrative of human temptation and redemption.

Byron explicitly admired Milton's Satan and, in "Cain," he directly engages with the biblical narrative and the themes of rebellion and questioning divine power, presenting an archetypal struggle for understanding and freedom that clearly inherits from "Paradise Lost."