Dante provides an interesting prism on how christian thought had changed in the 1000 or so years since it's inception, how it differed from the hebrew concept of the same (in which the world needed to be repaired, no happy accident as far as they were concerned), but also how christian thought has since changed. Milton sits alongside Dante providing literary representation of that cultural shift, in the character of Michael consoling a fallen adam by reference to what wonders will come. The world, one day, he contends through the archangel...will be even better than eden was.
I am the Infantry. I am my country’s strength in war, her deterrent in peace. I am the heart of the fight… wherever, whenever. I carry America’s faith and honor against her enemies. I am the Queen of Battle. I am what my country expects me to be, the best trained Soldier in the world. In the race for victory, I am swift, determined, and courageous, armed with a fierce will to win. Never will I fail my country’s trust. Always I fight on…through the foe, to the objective, to triumph overall. If necessary, I will fight to my death. By my steadfast courage, I have won more than 200 years of freedom. I yield not to weakness, to hunger, to cowardice, to fatigue, to superior odds, For I am mentally tough, physically strong, and morally straight. I forsake not, my country, my mission, my comrades, my sacred duty. I am relentless. I am always there, now and forever. I AM THE INFANTRY! FOLLOW ME!
