Paradise LostLight Association, Shaping Our Understanding Altering the public's opinion is a struggle that many writers face; it is always possible, however, to unite the reader with the speaker's position. In Paradise Lost by John Milton, the author attempted to persuade his readers to think that the theme of obedience to God will keep you in a blissful state and disobedience will keep you in a miserable state through the use of light in his books. God is associated with a radiant white light; while on the other hand, Satan is affiliated with a dark and shadowy black. With this contrasting use of light and dark symbolism, there is a clear distinction that light is righteousness and is more desired than darkness, which is wickedness and evil. John Milton tries to connect everything religious with light. It is a sign of pleasantness and joy. For example, Milton said, "How far from God and the light of Heaven" [1.73]. This light is expressed similarly in Judeo-Christian traditions. In Genesis we read: "God separated the light from the darkness" [1,4]. This light is powerful and better than darkness and comes directly from God. The origin of light comes from God and is an important fictional symbol in religious concepts of goodness. This quote from Milton says that without God there is no light. The absence of light is a place that no one in society wants to be in because it is what makes them see and enjoy the things around them. The absence of this light is also a symbol of the removal of God's grace. Milton took the words directly from the source, the Bible. Furthermore, Milton also said: "Dwell not without the visit of the fair light of heaven, safe and near the bright beam of the East" [2.299]. He raises... middle of the paper... the night to give his readers vivid images of what is happening so that they too can hate Satan and he deserves to be punished for the evil he has done. In conclusion, despite Milton's prejudicial thoughts, the subliminal messages of the society he lived in, and the choice of words he chose to use, he was able to successfully persuade his audience. He elevated the use of light when referring to God and lowered the status of Satan by associating darkness with him. The idea of ​​light and darkness tells the reader what side Milton was on and what he was trying to portray to his audience. Additionally, he used symbols to represent light as day or positive and used darkness as night, or something negative. Citations: Hewitt, Raymond "Light Versus Dark" The Unspoken Bible. 2004http://www.usbible.com/Satan/light_versus_dark.htmMilton, John. Paradise lost. New York: Norton and Company, 2005.