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Although initially perceived as obvious antagonists when they oppose God's holy reign, Satan of Milton's Paradise Lostand Dostoyevsky's Grand Inquisitor both have qualities that allow the readers to see their possible role of a tragic hero. Satan, though warring with God, uses his persistence and perseverance to fight his way through obstacles and hopelessness while the Grand Inquisitor justifies himself for his actions against Jesus by speaking of the misery of those who waited for heavenly bread and the Inquistor's own provisions of earthly bread that alleviated the people's starvation. Throughout the two tales, the authors subtly allow the notion that these notorious characters might not be so terrible. Perhaps, the readers theorize, perhaps they are misunderstood protagonists." Either the endured sufferings depicted or the determination despite these hindrances-- or both-- change these seemingly brutal revolutionaries into sorrowful pursuers.