Lord Byron, Cain, Acts 2 & 3

Act 2 of Byron's Cain is fascinating for the voyage that Cain takes with Lucifer first into space, looking upon the earth from almost infinite distance, and time. The Manichaean view of good and evil that Byron presents is therein combined with popular scientific theories of the day, most notably that of the paleontologist Georges Cuvier.
I will argue that the universal perspective that Byron takes is one that is characteristic of the spirit of the Enlightenment as a whole, which philosopher Thomas Nagel has described as the 'view from nowhere'. From from being progressive or humanitarian, the tendency of this view is to promote what C.S. Lewis comes to describe as 'The Abolition of Man'. With the view from nowhere, all knowledge is relativized (or historicized), making truth claims about beauty and goodness little better than prejudices that the Enlightenment seeks in the name of truth to eradicate.
It isn't only Milton's Christianity that is being disputed in the approach taken by Byron, it is the very lived conditions of finite human nature. In Byron's play, Cain rails against his mortality. But the real objection is that he is not a god. In this, he anticipates some of the nihilist objections of Sartre a century and a half later.
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[@davidcurry6422]

Excellent breakdown and reading! Thank you, came here searching for references from Lady Babylon.. thank you sir

[@froggleggers1805]

Found you on Caravan w/ John B. Wells, was a excellent discussion, looking forward to listening to your videos!

[@LitProf]

Awesome, thank you!