Paradise Lost

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Paradise Lost is the great epic poem of the English language, a tale of immense drama and excitement, of rebellion and treachery, of innocence pitted against corruption, in which God and Satan fight a bitter battle for control of mankind's destiny. The struggle ranges across heaven, hell, and
earth, as Satan and his band of rebel angels conspire against God. At the center of the conflict are Adam and Eve, motivated by all too human temptations, but whose ultimate downfall is unyielding love.
This marvelous edition boasts an introduction by one of Milton's most famous modern admirers, the best-selling novelist Philip Pullman. Indeed, Pullman not only provides a general introduction, but also introduces each of the twelve books of the poem. In these commentaries, Pullman illuminates
the power of the poem and its achievement as a story, suggests how we should read it today, and describes its influence on him and his acclaimed trilogy His Dark Materials , which takes its title from a line in the poem. His observations offer a tribute that is both personal and insightful, and his
enthusiasm for Milton's language, skill, and supreme gifts as a storyteller is infectious. He encourages readers above all to experience the poem for themselves, and surrender to its enchantment.
Pullman's tremendous admiration and passion for Paradise Lost will attract a whole new generation of readers to this classic of English literature. An ideal gift, the book is beautifully produced, printed in two colors throughout, illustrated with the twelve engravings from the first
illustrated edition published in 1688, with ribbon marker.

384 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1,1667

Places

This edition

Format
384 pages, Hardcover
Published
September 15, 2005 by Oxford University Press
ISBN
9780192806192
ASIN
019280619X
Language
English
Characters More characters
  • Michael (angel)
  • Belial

    Belial

    ...

  • Belzebub

    Belzebub

    ...

  • Eve

    Eve

    Eve is a figure in the Book of Genesis in the Hebrew Bible. According to the creation account of the Abrahamic religions, she was the first woman. In Islamic tradition, Eve is known as Adams wife and the first woman although she is not specifically ...

  • Jesus

    Jesus

    Jesus[e] (c. 4 BC – c. AD 30 / 33) was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the central figure of Christianity. Jesus Christ is the designation of Jesus of Nazareth (d. c. 30 CE), who was an itinerant Jewish prophet from the Galilee...

  • Raphael (angel)

About the author

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John Milton was an English poet, polemicist, man of letters, and a civil servant for the Commonwealth of England under Oliver Cromwell. He wrote at a time of religious flux and political upheaval, and is best known for his epic poem Paradise Lost (1667), written in blank verse.

Milton's poetry and prose reflect deep personal convictions, a passion for freedom and self-determination, and the urgent issues and political turbulence of his day. Writing in English, Latin, Greek, and Italian, he achieved international renown within his lifetime, and his celebrated Areopagitica (1644)—written in condemnation of pre-publication censorship—is among history's most influential and impassioned defenses of free speech and freedom of the press.

William Hayley's 1796 biography called him the "greatest English author," and he remains generally regarded "as one of the preeminent writers in the English language," though critical reception has oscillated in the centuries since his death (often on account of his republicanism). Samuel Johnson praised Paradise Lost as "a poem which...with respect to design may claim the first place, and with respect to performance, the second, among the productions of the human mind," though he (a Tory and recipient of royal patronage) described Milton's politics as those of an "acrimonious and surly republican".

Because of his republicanism, Milton has been the subject of centuries of British partisanship.

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