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Mammon

Literary Character
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

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The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

A literary personification of greed, materialism, and the corrupting power of wealth, notably in Christian allegory.

Detailed Definition
Mammon appears in the Bible and is dramatized in Milton’s "Paradise Lost" as a fallen angel devoted to earthly riches. In poetry, he symbolizes the corrupting power of wealth, the idolatry of money, and the moral decay of society, often contrasted with spiritual or artistic values.
Example
Example in poetry:
Mammon in Spenser’s "Faerie Queene" is a greedy idol, personifying wealth’s corruption; Milton’s "Paradise Lost" gives Mammon a speech advocating materialism in hell; Romantic poets (e.g., Blake) use Mammon to critique industrial capitalism; Modern poets reference Mammon as symbol of spiritual bankruptcy.
Additional Notes
Mammon, a biblical term for wealth, was personified by Spenser and Milton as a greedy, materialistic demon; his literary character critiques avarice and false worship, essential for studying how economic sin is dramatized through allegorical persona in religious poetry.
Other Meanings of “Mammon”
Also Known As
Mammon the Riches
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