895
Mankind? This mischief had not been befallen,5664
896
And more that shall befall, innumerable
897
Disturbances on earth through female snares,
898
And strait conjunction5665 with this sex. For either
899
He never shall find out fit 5666 mate, but such
900
As some misfortune brings him, or mistake,
901
Or whom5667 he wishes most shall seldom gain,
902
Through her perverseness,5668 but shall see her gained
903
By a far worse, 5669 or if she love, 5670 withheld
904
By parents, or his happiest choice too late
905
Shall meet, already linked and wedlock-bound
906
To a fell 5671 adversary, 5672 his hate or shame.
907
Which infinite calamity shall cause
908
To human life, and household peace confound.”5673
909
He added not, and from her turned, but Eve,
910
Not so5674 repulsed, with tears that ceased not flowing
911
And tresses all disordered, at his feet
912
Fell humble and, embracing them, besought5675
913
His peace, 5676 and thus proceeded in her plaint:
914
“Forsake5677 me not thus, Adam! Witness Heav’n
915
What love sincere, and reverence in my heart
916
I bear thee, and unweeting5678 have offended,
917
Unhappily deceived! Thy suppliant
918
I beg, and clasp thy knees. Bereave5679 me not
919
Whereon I live, 5680 thy gentle 5681 looks, thy aid,
920
Thy counsel, in this uttermost 5682 distress,
921
My only strength and stay. 5683 Forlorn5684 of thee,
922
Whither shall I betake 5685 me, where subsist?5686
923
While yet we live, scarce one short hour perhaps,
924
Between us two let there be peace, both joining,
925
As joined in injuries, one enmity
926
Against a foe by doom express5687 assigned us,
927
That cruel serpent. On me exercise not
928
Thy hatred for this misery befall’n,
929
On me already lost, me than thyself
930
More miserable! Both have sinned, but thou
931
Against God only, I against God and thee,
932
And to the place of judgment will return,
933
There with my cries importune Heav’n that all
934
The sentence, from thy head removed, may light5688
935
On me, sole cause to thee of all this woe
936
Me, me only, just object of His ire!
937
She ended weeping, and her lowly 5689 plight,5690
938
Immoveable, 5691 till peace obtained from fault
939
Acknowledged and deplored,5692 in Adam wrought 5693
940
Commiseration.5694 Soon his heart relented
941
Towards her, his life so late, 5695 and sole delight,
942
Now at his feet submissive in distress,
943
Creature so fair his reconcilement seeking,
944
His counsel, whom she had displeased, his aid.
945
As one disarmed, his anger all he lost,
946
And thus with peaceful words upraised her soon:5696
947
“Unwary, and too desirous, as before,
948
So now of what thou know’st not, who desir’st
949
The punishment all on thyself! Alas!
950
Bear thine own first, ill able to sustain
951
His full wrath, whose thou feel’st as yet least part,
952
And my displeasure bear’st so ill. If prayers
953
Could alter high decrees, I to that place
954
Would speed before thee, and be louder heard,
955
That on my head all might be visited,
956
Thy frailty 5697 and infirmer 5698 sex forgiv’n,
957
To me committed 5699 and by me exposed.5700
958
But rise, let us no more contend,5701 nor blame
959
Each other, blamed enough elsewhere, but strive
960
In offices5702 of love, how we may lighten
961
Each other’s burden in our share of woe,
962
Since this day’s death denounced,5703 if aught I see,5704
963
Will prove no sudden but a slow-paced evil,
964
A long day’s dying, to augment our pain,
965
And to our seed (O hapless Seed!) derived.”5705
966
To whom thus Eve, recovering heart, replied:
967
“Adam, by sad experiment I know
968
How little weight my words with thee can find,
969
Found so erroneous, thence by just event 5706
970
Found so unfortunate. Nevertheless,
971
Restored by thee, vile as I am, to place
972
Of new acceptance, hopeful to regain
973
Thy love, the sole contentment of my heart
974
Living or dying, from thee I will not hide
975
What thoughts in my unquiet breast are ris’n,
976
Tending to some relief of our extremes,
977
Or end, though sharp and sad, yet tolerable,
978
As in our evils, and of easier choice.
979
If care of our descent perplex us most,
980
Which must be born to certain woe, devoured
981
By Death at last (and miserable it is
982
To be to others cause of misery,
983
Our own begotten, and of our loins to bring
984
Into this cursèd world a woeful race,
985
That after wretched life must be at last
986
Food for so foul a monster), in thy power
987
It lies, yet ere conception, to prevent
988
The race unblest, to being yet unbegot.
989
Childless thou art: childless remain. So Death
990
Shall be deceived 5707 his glut, and with us two
991
Be forced to satisfy his ravenous maw.
992
But if thou judge it hard and difficult,
993
Conversing, looking, loving, to abstain
994
From love’s due5708 rites, nuptial embraces sweet,
995
And with desire to languish5709 without hope,
996
Before the present object 5710 languishing
997
With like desire, which would be misery
998
And torment less than none
of what we dread,
999
Then both ourselves and seed at once to free
1000
From what we fear for both, let us make short 5711 —
1001
Let us seek Death, or he not found, supply
1002
With our own hands his office5712 on ourselves.
1003
Why stand we longer shivering under fears
1004
That show no end but death, and have the power
1005
Of many ways to die the shortest choosing,
1006
Destruction with destruction to destroy?
1007
She ended here, or vehement 5713 despair
1008
Broke off the rest: so much of death her thoughts
1009
Had entertained 5714 as dyed her cheeks with pale.
1010
But Adam, with such counsel nothing swayed,5715
1011
To better hopes his more attentive5716 mind
1012
Laboring had raised, and thus to Eve replied:
1013
“Eve, thy contempt of life and pleasure seems
1014
To argue in thee something more sublime
1015
And excellent than what thy mind contemns.5717
1016
But self-destruction therefore sought refutes
1017
That excellence thought in thee, and implies,
1018
Not thy contempt, but anguish and regret
1019
For loss of life and pleasure overloved.
1020
Or if thou covet death, as utmost end
1021
Of misery, so thinking to evade
1022
The penalty pronounced, doubt not but God
1023
Hath wiselier armed His vengeful ire, than so
1024
To be forestalled. Much more I fear lest death,
1025
So snatched, will not exempt us from the pain
1026
We are by doom5718 to pay. Rather, such acts
1027
Of contumacy5719 will provoke the Highest
1028
To make death in us live. Then let us seek
1029
Some safer resolution, which methinks
1030
I have in view, calling to mind with heed
1031
Part of our sentence, that thy seed shall bruise5720
1032
The serpent’s head. Piteous amends! unless
1033
Be meant, whom I conjecture, our grand foe,
1034
Satan, who in the serpent hath contrived
1035
Against us this deceit. To crush his head
1036
Would be revenge indeed! Which will be lost
1037
By death brought on ourselves, or childless days
1038
Resolved,5721 as thou proposest. So5722 our foe
1039
Shall ’scape his punishment ordained, and we
1040
Instead shall double ours upon our heads.
1041
No more be mentioned then of violence
1042
Against ourselves, and wilful barrenness,
1043
That cuts us off from hope, and savors5723 only
1044
Rancor5724 and pride, impatience and despite,5725
1045
Reluctance5726 against God and His just yoke
1046
Laid on our necks. Remember with what mild
1047
And gracious temper He both heard and judged,
1048
Without wrath or reviling. We expected
1049
Immediate dissolution,5727 which we thought
1050
Was meant by death that day, when lo, to thee
1051
Pains only in child-bearing were foretold,
1052
And bringing forth, soon recompensed with joy,
1053
Fruit of thy womb. On me the curse aslope5728
1054
Glanced5729 on the ground: with labor I must earn
1055
My bread. What harm? Idleness had been worse.
1056
My labor will sustain me and, lest cold
1057
Or heat should injure us, His timely5730 care
1058
Hath, unbesought, provided, and His hands
1059
Clothed us unworthy, pitying while He judged.
1060
How much more, if we pray Him, will His ear
1061
Be open, and His heart to pity incline,
1062
And teach us further by what means to shun
1063
Th’ inclement5731 seasons, rain, ice, hail, and snow,
1064
Which now the sky, with various5732 face, begins
1065
To show us in this mountain, while the winds
1066
Blow moist and keen, shattering the graceful locks
1067
Of these fair spreading trees—which bids us seek
1068
Some better shroud,5733 some better warmth to cherish
1069
Our limbs benumbed, ere this diurnal 5734 star5735
1070
Leave cold the night, how we his gathered beams
1071
Reflected may with matter sere5736 foment5737
1072
Or, by collision of two bodies, grind 5738
1073
The air attrite5739 to fire; as late5740 the clouds
1074
Jostling,5741 or pushed with winds, rude5742 in their shock,
1075
Tine5743 the slant lightning, whose thwart 5744 flame, driv’n down,
1076
Kindles the gummy bark of fir or pine
1077
And sends a comfortable heat from far,
1078
Which might supply the sun. Such fire to use,
1079
And what may else be remedy or cure
1080
To evils which our own misdeeds have wrought,
1081
He will instruct us, praying,5745 and of grace
1082
Beseeching Him, so as we need not fear
1083
To pass commodiously5746 this life, sustained
1084
By Him with many comforts, till we end
1085
In dust, our final rest and native home.
1086
What better can we do than, to the place
1087
Repairing5747 where He judged us, prostrate fall
1088
Before Him reverent, and there confess
1089
Humbly our faults, and pardon beg, with tears
1090
Watering the ground, and with our sighs the air
1091
Frequenting,5748 sent from hearts contrite, in sign
1092
Of sorrow unfeigned and humiliation5749 meek?
1093
Undoubtedly He will relent and turn
1094
From His displeasure, in whose look serene,
1095
When angry most He seemed, and most severe,
1096
What else but favor, grace, and mercy shone?”
1097
So spoke our father penitent, nor Eve
1098
Felt less remorse. They forthwith to the place
1099
Repairing where He judged them, prostrate fell
1100
Before Him reverent, and both con
fessed
1101
Humbly their faults, and pardon begged, with tears
1102
Watering the ground, and with their sighs the air
1103
Frequenting, sent from hearts contrite, in sign
1104
The Annotated Milton: Complete English Poems Page 55
