The Fortunate Fall

I was intrigued during the class discussion today by the mentioning of the idea of "the fortunate fall" and its connection to the text. As many know, the idea of the fortunate fall pertains to the idea that the fall of man was a positive occurrence: if Satan had not gone against God then Eve would have never been tempted to eat the apple from the Tree of Life, man would not have fallen, the world would never have known Jesus, and therefore the world would never know the extent of God's love. It's all a bit of a catch-22 when you think about it. I also found it interesting that Milton suggests that the only reason Satan is allowed to rule in Hell is because God willed it to be so, "And high permission of all-ruling Heaven left him at large to his own dark designs..." This proves that God is much greater and more powerful and shrinks Satan's character substantially. It is for this reason and others that I disagree with the theory that Milton was "in league with the devil" while dictating his great epic.