Synopses & Reviews
In Paradise Lost, Milton produced a poem of epic scale, conjuring up a vast, awe-inspiring cosmos and ranging across huge tracts of space and time. And yet, in putting a charismatic Satan and naked Adam and Eve at the centre of this story, he also created an intensely human tragedy on the Fall of Man. Written when Milton was in his fifties - blind, bitterly disappointed by the Restoration and briefly in danger of executionParadise Lost has an apparent ambivalence towards authority which has led to intense debate about whether it manages to "justify the ways of God to men", or exposes the cruelty of Christianity.
Synopsis
Retelling the Judeo-Christian story of creation, Milton provides an otherworldly look into the dialogue of God, Satan, and human beings. His subject is Adam's first disobedience to God and the loss of Eden. This dense classic has permeated and influenced thought for centuries.
Synopsis
John Milton's celebrated epic poem exploring the cosmological, moral and spiritual origins of man's existence A Penguin Classic
In Paradise Lost Milton produced poem of epic scale, conjuring up a vast, awe-inspiring cosmos and ranging across huge tracts of space and time, populated by a memorable gallery of grotesques. And yet, in putting a charismatic Satan and naked, innocent Adam and Eve at the centre of this story, he also created an intensely human tragedy on the Fall of Man. Written when Milton was in his fifties - blind, bitterly disappointed by the Restoration and in danger of execution - Paradise Lost's apparent ambivalence towards authority has led to intense debate about whether it manages to 'justify the ways of God to men', or exposes the cruelty of Christianity.
For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.
Synopsis
'An endless moral maze, introducing literature's first Romantic, Satan' John Carey
In his epic poem Paradise Lost Milton conjured up a vast, awe-inspiring cosmos ranging across huge tracts of space and time. And yet, in putting a charismatic Satan and naked Adam and Eve at the centre of this story, he also created an intensely human tragedy on the Fall of Man. Written when Milton was in his fifties - blind, bitter and briefly in danger of execution - Paradise Lost's apparent ambivalence has led to intense debate about whether it manages to 'justify the ways of God to men' or exposes the cruelty of authority.
Edited with an introduction and notes by JOHN LEONARD
Synopsis
Long regarded as one of the most powerful and influential poems in the English language, Paradise Lost still inspires intense debate about whether it manages "to justify the ways of God to men" or exposes the cruelty of Christianity or the Christian God. John Leonard's illuminating introduction is fully alive to such controversies; it also contains full notes on language and many allusions to other works.
Paradise Lost conjures up a vast, awe-inspiring cosmos and puts a naked Adam and Eve at the very center of its story.
Synopsis
Edited with an introduction and notes by John Leonard.
Synopsis
Reprinted with corrections and updated bibliography
Includes bibliographical references (p. [xlvii]-lii).
About the Author
John Milton was born in London on December 9, 1608, and studied at the University of Cambridge. He originally planned to become a clergyman, but abandoned those ambitions to become a poet. Political in his writings, he served a government post during the time of the Commonwealth. In 1651, he went completely blind but he continued to write, finishing Paradise Lost in 1667, and Paradise Regained in 1671. He died in 1674.