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Jack Ramler
Dr. Caren Silvester
En 504
16 October 2015
Stone Walls Do Not aPrison Make:i Milton’s Qualification of Freedom
Within the essence of every human burns an insatiable conflagration for liberty—a fire not to be
changed by place or time. In the time of John Milton, freedom was an ever-elusive spark that promised
peace, comfort, and warmth. England, however, could be a very cold place. Royalists espoused a
freedom falsely so-called, blinding the populace and prompting Milton to unveil the hidden light of true
freedom to illuminate the soul of England. How did Milton classify his idea of freedom? Milton
qualifies freedom as the rejection of conventional views and the adoption of a virtuous mindset.
Because freedom is a narrow path—and few there be that find it—Milton attempts to warn
unwary travelers of the crooked roads not to be taken. By using nefarious characters as signposts, Milton
illustrates the false ways to freedom and highlights his paragons, who exemplify true freedom. The first
false way of freedom winds through the land of license—a way best illustrated by Comus, who attempts
to persuade the Lady to indulge herself. The tempter argues that law is on the side of indulgence, for
Nature seems to have blessed the Lady with vast physical gifts, and if Nature’s coin were not invested,
then the Lady would accrue no interest in the bank of satisfaction.
The second false way of freedom depends on external circumstances. Thus, Comus would be
free while his shackled companion would be captive, and Samson would have liberty in Dalila’s house
but have bondage in the Gazan jail. The freedom of the protagonists, however, does not change with
surroundings—to the astonishment of observers, who subscribe to a false view of freedom. One such
observer, Manoa, laments Samson’s state, declaring, “Thy Foes’ derision, Captive, Poor, and Blind, Into
a Dungeon thrust, to work with Slaves?” (560; ll. 366-67). In addition, Samson himself bewails his state

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of captivity, finding himself in unbreakable chains and believing that he has failed to accomplish God’s
purpose (552; ll. 35-42). Moreover, Comus enjoys his smug position of dominance over his captive
Lady, playing arbiter of freedom by waving his wand in the air. The Lady is undaunted; not even angels
that soar above enjoy such liberty.
True freedom lies not in authorizing license or in loosening physical shackles—Milton qualifies
freedom differently. In opposition to indulgence, true freedom requires virtue. Thus, the Lady could be
invincible through her virtuous chastity, and Samson could languish more abjectly in the lap of Dalila
than in the bitterest stockade. Milton’s homily to England is clear: “Love virtue, she alone is free” (114:
l. 1019).
Furthermore, true freedom exists not in circumstance but in the mind. As a result, the Lady could
lift her chin to mighty Comus and say, “Thou canst not touch the freedom of my mind” (105; l. 663).
Additionally, a penitent Samson recognizes his former bondage of the mind. “The base degree to which
I now am fall'n, these rags, this grinding, is not yet so base as was my former servitude, ignoble,
unmanly, ignominious, infamous. True slavery, and that blindness worse than this that saw not how
degenerately I serv'd” (561-562; ll. 414-419). Thus, after his purification, Samson counts his prison as a
“house of liberty” (574; l. 949). By recognizing the freedom in in his mind, wrought through
introspection in his cathartic hermitage, Samson frees himself from spiritual shackles and delivers Israel
from despotic domination.
Dull imitations of true freedom radiate more darkness. Only through the spectacles of a virtuous
mind can one see the light of true virtue—even if one is blind. Only through passing through cathartic
fire can one feel freedom’s warmth. False understandings of freedom shroud truth from the public eye,
but a blind poet sees freedom in its glorious element. Milton views freedom as a purifying and
consuming fire—unfit for the unholy but vital for the virtuous.

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Works Cited
Milton, John. John Milton: Complete Poems and Major Prose. Ed. Merritt Y. Hughes. New York:
Odyssey, 1957. Print.
i Several phrases echo Richard Lovelace’s “To Althea from Prison,” written during the life of Milton.