ENGL 335-01, milton, Spring 2005

Abstract

This course has one primary goal: to familiarize you with the poetry and prose of John Milton, his ideas, and the tumultuous age he lived in. Because Milton’s prose and poetry are famously difficult, this course will also provide an extended practicum in reading and re-reading closely and carefully. A handful of readings from recent criticism will help to connect the course to wider dialogues on Milton and his writing. The number of topics to discuss in this course is potentially enormous, and would include Milton’s revolutionary politics, his belief in toleration for religious dissenters, his attitudes toward books and authorship, his attachment to and struggle with the literary traditions of the classical world, his passionate celebration of married love, and the criticism of women that marks his portraits of Eve and Dalila. Regardless of the specific topic, however, key words in our discussion will be virtue, trial, temptation, choice, and liberty.