Milton Unbound: Controversy and Reinterpretation [Hardcover]

John P. Rumrich (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0521551730 | ISBN-13: 978-0521551731 | Publication Date: March 29, 1996

John Milton holds a crucial strategic position on the intellectual and ideological map of literary studies. In this provocative and liberating study, John P. Rumrich contends that contemporary critics have contributed to the invention of a monolithic or institutional Milton: censorious preacher, aggressive misogynist, and champion of the emerging bourgeoisie. Rumrich exposes the historical inaccuracies and logical inconsistencies that sustain this orthodoxy, and argues instead for a more complex Milton who was able to accommodate uncertainty and doubt.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"...consistently engaging. His discussions of Chaos, of the distinctions between human beings and angels, and of the `excessiveness' of Eve are important contributions to Milton scholarship....this book is a book that all Milton scholars will want to read." Sewanee Review

"In demonstrating the limitations of criticism, the author brings to bear close reading and a startling amount of learning....Rumrich has produced a learned and valuable study of the limitiations of critical analysis." Choice

"This is one of the most interesting books to have been written on Milton for some time. It is intelligent, perceptive, and thought-provoking. John Rumrich's writing is full of splendid insights..." The Sixteenth Century Journal

"Rumrich's insights on gender and generation, on maternal influence and indeterminacy in Milton's works are astute and illuminating." Laura Lunger Knoppers, Clio

Book Description

John Milton holds a crucial strategic position on the intellectual and ideological map of literary studies. In this provocative and liberating study, John P. Rumrich contends that contemporary critics have contributed to the invention of a monolithic or institutional Milton: censorious preacher, aggressive mysogynist, and champion of the emerging bourgeoisie. Rumrich exposes the historical inaccuracies and logical inconsistencies that sustain this orthodoxy, and argues instead for a more complex Milton who was able to accommodate uncertainty and doubt.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 204 pages
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press (March 29, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0521551730
• ISBN-13: 978-0521551731
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.2 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.7 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,236,242 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Virginia product, December 4, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Milton Unbound: Controversy and Reinterpretation (Hardcover)

I was a friend of John Rumrich's as a graduate student at the University of Virginia. He is a genius and this book explains why. He is now a distinguished Milton scholar at the University of Texas, and this book is the culmination of his scholarly work. A must for any lover of Milton, or great scholarship for that matter.

5 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Confusion and Error, November 13, 2001

By 

Joe Joseph (Edison, New Jersey USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Milton Unbound: Controversy and Reinterpretation (Hardcover)

In attempting to "re-invent" John Milton, Rumrich actually commits some of the same mistakes he accuses other critics of making. In refuting Milton's supposed Oedipal complex he re-analyzes Milton to be suffering from some sort of Maternal womb envy (to over simplify the argument). Rumrich claims that critics who argue that Milton suffers from an Oedipal complex are actually revealing more about themselves than about the poet -- so why would this theory not in turn apply to Rumrich himself? His idea that Milton desired to be some sort of hermaphrodite was interesting, but somewhat far-fetched. The digression Rumrich goes on in discussing the similarity between Newton's and Milton's religious beliefs is so completely unintrinsic to the argument he's attempting to make (that Milton held unorthodox religious beliefs) that it becomes quite perplexing as to why he's spending so much time on the views of Sir Isaac. So what if he and Milton shared this belief? And the concluding chapter on Chaos is quite fitting, as this book is a complex and confused amalgamation of ideas that fails to coalesce into any real coherence. Perhaps Rumrich's biggest mistake is stating that Paradise Lost reveals that God is Chaos. Simply b/c chaos is the womb of God and is essential to his existence, does not imply that Milton was saying God is chaos. Rumrich's illustration of Milton's disbelief in the trinity should be applied here: God the son is not the same or even equal to God the father. Duh. Extend Milton's reasoning here to refute your claim.
But all this being said, the book is certainly thought prevoking, and it is very, very important to realize that Milton was not simply a supporter of the standard religious dogma. He was a unique, and complex thinker, who examined his beliefs on almost every level.