Paradise Lost (Penguin Classics) by
John Milton
In Breathless Wonder
Edited with an introduction and notes by John Leonard.
Personal Review: Paradise Lost (Penguin Classics) by John
Milton
"Paradise Lost" by John Milton is the definitive English epic poem (even if
it does not always read like one). Much more a dramatic tragedy, Milton's
extension of the biblical story of the Fall of both Satan and mankind is
timeless. For while Milton may have woven the politics of his own time in
regards to tyrannical kings and their heroic counterparts into the battle
between heaven and hell, it is a situation that lends itself to any century.
Many critics have often thought the 'problem' with "Paradise Lost" was the
fact that Satan seems like the epic hero - the reader immediately begins
identifying himself with Satan and rooting for him in his fight against God,
an uneasy feeling to be sure. However, as the course of the poem
unfolds, Satan's true tragic nature reveals itself and the reader can marvel

in Milton's keen ability to bring to life Heaven, Hell, and Paradise (the
Garden of Eden). The epic begins in Hell with the fallen angel now known
as Satan rousing his troops into further rebellion against God, but the only
action they can take is to pollute his newfound paradise and its brand new
inhabitants, Adam and Eve. Satan undertakes the journey to spy out the
land and learn how to tempt these two to sin. And while he is successful in
his attempt to do so, it is a victory that gains Satan no glory, since he does
not understand that he can never truly win against God.
Milton set out to answer the question of what (or who) caused Adam and
Eve to sin, tracing some of the blame away from Satan and examining the
relationship between Adam and Eve in the garden. Milton perhaps raises
more questions than he does offer any answers, but that is partly what
makes "Paradise Lost" a mirror that still reflects today. Milton includes
numerous classical allusions that readers of his day would be familiar with,
as well as biblical accounts (including apocryphal works) to flesh out the
barebones structure of the biblical account in Genesis. While parts of the
poem can be tedious (especially the seemingly somewhat unnecessary
books 11 and 12), "Paradise Lost" is a true masterpiece of literature that
should be required reading for everyone, regardless of any religious
preferences, for at its heart it is an examination of what it means to be.
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