“Long is the way and hard, that out of hell leads up to light”

“Long is the way and hard, that out of hell leads up to light” is the epigraph to “THE ABYSS,” attributed to John Milton’s Paradise Lost. Its image of a painful ascent gives the section a governing tension: hardship is not denied, and the way out is presented as long, but light remains a possible destination.

Source and Placement

The passage appears beneath the heading “THE ABYSS” and the date range “1904—5,” before the chapter marker “FIVE.” Its attribution identifies the lines as Milton’s; the excerpt does not specify a book or line number within Paradise Lost.

Image and Emphasis

The epigraph turns on a contrast between “hell” and “light,” joined by the insistence that the route between them is both “long” and “hard.” The wording makes hardship part of the ascent rather than a brief obstacle that can simply be passed over. At the same time, the upward movement gives the image a direction: darkness is a condition to emerge from, not the stated endpoint.

Relation to the Opening Scene

Immediately after the chapter marker, Emma Harte calls softly from a doorway to her mother, asking whether she is awake; there is no answer. The quiet, unanswered call sets an intimate scene beside the epigraph’s large spiritual image. In that placement, the promise of light is not yet a resolution: the chapter opens with uncertainty and silence, while the quoted lines hold out an arduous movement beyond them.