The Earth that is depicted in Paradise Lost is different from the Earth we know today. Milton describes Earth as a creation by God after the rebellion of Satan and his followers. Raphael tells Adam that God created Earth through the Son to keep Satan from feeling pride that he had "dispeopl'd Heav'n" (151). Earth and Man were created so that Man, through trial, could reach the state of the angels, and Earth could become a part of Heaven. To that end, the Son creates not only Earth but also the heavens surrounding Earth, and all that lives on Earth. All of these, he suspends from Heaven on a golden chain. The great image in Paradise Lost is of the Son, a celestial architect with a golden compass, plotting out the universe in which Earth will exist.
After its creation, Earth, like Heaven and Hell, has a hierarchical arrangement. Also like Heaven and Hell, this arrangement is understated and vague. On Earth, Paradise — the Garden of Eden — is the paramount place. The hill from which Adam receives his vision of the future from Michael is apparently, though this is not stated, the highest place on Earth. So when Adam and Eve are banished from the Garden, they leave the perfect place on Earth and enter a world that is both flawed and unknown.
On Earth, Adam is the superior being. He was created first, and Eve was created from his rib. Adam is also the paradigmatic Man, the pattern for all who will come later; likewise Eve is the pattern for all women. But, in relation to each other, Adam is superior both in intellect and ability. Eve is more beautiful, but she has been created as a slightly inferior helpmeet to Adam.
