“Vaunting aloud but racked with deep despair.” How does Milton convey these two sides to Satan’s character?

“Vaunting aloud but racked with deep despair.” How does Milton convey these two sides to Satan’s character?

In common belief Satan is characterised historically as one sided, evil and unrelenting. In the context of Paradise Lost, Milton portrays Satan differently. This is not to say that Milton’s ambiguous portrayal of Satan stems from his lack of Christian faith. I would say that it comes more from his reformed view of Oliver Cromwell, as he became a ruling despot, possibly comparable to a demon. Therefore Cromwell’s open and hidden sides are expressed through the character of Satan.

From the outset Satan appears to be “vaunting aloud”, describing god as a “potent victor”. However, it is not possible to look deeply into the character of Satan on the strength of his words alone. He has been shown to lie and manipulate in order to achieve his own ends. He describes his lower ranking angels as “joined in equal ruins”, clearly denying the hierarchy that he has ...