INK: Gustav Dore Analysis

Title: Illustration for "Paradise Lost"

Arist: Gustav Dore (London and New York. Cassell, Petter and Galpin, 1866)

Wood engraving

Description 

This illustration is one of 50 that Gustav Dore created for John Milton's book Paradise Lost. The engraving has been made to fit the dimensions of a book, which has influenced the shape of the piece. In this image the most immediately apparent thing is the relationship between a black, winged figure in flight and the patch of white parallel to its wings, which highlights a point of a cloud-covered sphere below. They reflect each other inversely on either side of the engraving's central point. The scene is set at night, which we can tell from the stars around the top of the page and the way that the clouds are barely highlighted as if the lightsource is not strong.  A spotlight shines on the globe from an unknown source, represented by more lightly engraved bars which disappear into darkness at the top right of the engraving. The viewer looks down on everything from a celestial position, as if falling with the winged figure.

Analysis 

This illustration is richly textured by the many lines that comprise it, giving it the appearance of woven fabric. Emphasis is placed more on effect than on realism, for example with the placement of the stars below the clouds and with the mystical elements such as the beam of light and the winged character. The effect of an ocean shimmering with reflection has been achieved on the globe through many dashes of bright wight. The figure is the most deeply engraved, most detailed element, making it seem closer to us, and thus making the background seem further away and vast. Darkness is also associated with evil, so this as well as the sharp, batlike wings makes the character seem malevolent, and the sphere bathed in light seem blessed.

Interpretation
The choice of night time for the scene makes it look like a dreamscape; the clouds caress and blanket the globe and the stars twinkle magically. In this way Dore makes promotes an association between the innocence of the globe floating in sleep and the malicious intentions of the character who approaches in the night. Because the character takes up such a small portion of the page, the impression is that he is fairly powerless in comparison to whatever power governs the beauty of the scene in the background, though his eager gaze directed on the sphere foretells nothing good.

Evaluation
This illustration is meant to portray the flight to earth of the character Satan in Milton's book Paradise Lost. Dore has used darkness and light, achieved through the depth of his etching, to illustrate the good and evil forces in an immediately recognisable way.

image: public domain image from Wikipedia.