Comparison of the Characters of Samson and Dalila in John Milton's Samson Agonistes and King James Bible

The aim of this thesis is to explore John Milton's poetic work Samson Agonistes through a thorough comparison between the characters of Samson and Dalila, while also contrasting them with the original, biblical, Samson and Delilah, in the Old Testament, the Book of Judges, chapters 13-16. The thesis does not explore only differences but also similarities of these seemingly contrasting characters. The main tools used to conduct this analysis are juxtaposition and close reading of John Milton!s Samson Agonistes and biblical texts, using the Authorized King James Bible. The first part of this thesis is discussing the heroic character of Samson possessing divine powers as depicted in the Bible and John Milton's Samson who is blind, distraught and held captive by the Philistines. Milton is reflecting his own innermost feelings in Samson Agonistes making this poetic work autobiographical. The next part focuses on the deceitful biblical Delilah and John Milton's Dalila who seems to contradict herself in her manner of speaking. The last part of the thesis examines Samson and Dalila's similarities. KEYWORDS Samson Agonistes, John Milton, Character comparison, King James Bible, Dalil