Customer Reviews

Paradise Lost

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I read Philip Pullman's "The Golden Compass and "The Subtle Knife", the first two books of the His Dark Materials trilogy, which is based around the idea of a second War in Heaven and another Fall. They are really incredible. While waiting for the third book to be released, I decided to read Paradise Lost, one of Philip Pullman's main inspirations and the source of a lot of the allusions. Paradise Lost is surprisingly readable for a book that was published in 1667. I understood it, even with the older edition I read which didn't have much of a readers' guide, and I'm only 15. Even though you don't always understand every word and every mythological allusion, you can always get the basic idea, especially with some help from the footnotes. If you read it alone, you might find it boring, but I would strongly recommend reading the His Dark Materials books first. They discuss a lot of the ideas in Paradise Lost. (Was Satan right to rebel against God?) Then when you read P.L., you will enjoy seeing where Philip Pullman got some of his ideas. You can't help but like the His Dark Materials books, then when you read Paradise Lost you understand them so much more. Everyone over the age of 14 should read them both.

Rating Paradise Lost on a 5-star chart is not even fair.Some books are not to be rated at all, `cos they do deserve more.Paradise Lost deserves your time and your mind.

So important in modern literature that a lot of people credit the Bible with things that were actually the imagination of Milton in "Paradise Lost." A long twisty tumbling poem that never loses its meaning from the first word to the last. The characterization of Lucifer is unlike any I've ever read, and the most powerful passage in the story is Lucifer addressing the legions of hell, ordering them to do whatever they can to thwart God, while tears of sadness at the loss of heaven stream down his face. Milton played with both typical and atypical views of sin and damnation and created something so timeless that lots of us don't know he imagined it.

In any discussion of religion, I wouldn't leave home without it.

Be not mistaken: this is the finest piece of literature ever written. Ever. About anything. Few books even draw close. This is Milton's tribute to the English language - the English epic poem that draws near then surpasses Homer's Oddyssey (greek) and Dante's Divine Comedy (italian) The story of Satan's fall, creation, Adam and Eve, and the Fall of Man. I have read it three times in the last eight weeks and there are still new twists and tangles in it I am uncovering. It is simply, truly amazing. It is an experience. It is a revelation. I am not exaggerating. Ask C.S. Lewis. PS - I am not an intellectual. I am a 21 year old student who has found gold.

I'm 16, and I had to read this book for school. In the beginning, I really didn't get any of it, but once I got into it, and really concentrated on Paradise Lost, it was incredible, to see Milton's view of Satan. Really, a must read.

The first time I read it, I plowed through, barely comprehending, until I reached the end. And I started again, put it down, and it stood, neglected, at book three. So anyway, I decided to take a course on Milton, as I had (poorly) read his major work. And it is one of the most amazing works to have gotten through. Book Nine: Satan makes yet another soliloquy (avengers are, in the end, alone). He reflects on his fall, and sees that Eden is better than Heaven, for what omnipotent creator would make a lesser creation? (Milton loved the pastoral ideal: i.e. farmers/ nature, as per Greek Elysium) And Satan laments that he will not (not cannot) stay in Eden or go back to Heaven unless as a conquerer; he laments that he is to destroy Man, whom he admires, and Earth, which he loves, in order to strike at the God who slighted him (he created/appointed his Son as King in Heavan, and Lucifer had previously been #2) and damned him. He reflects on the fact that his former, huge, mighty state must enter the beastial snake, but accepts it as necissary. It's a soloquy that rivals, if not surpasses, the "better to reign..." one. Definitely read this, but it is best read when accompanied by critique/observations from another: it'll really draw out the story, the author, and the subtlties: such as the ideas of IDEAL gender roles.

What can one say about Paradise Lost? Say it is epic, brilliantly wrought, a profound picture of God, Satan and all that is in between. It is all these things, and more. I can say, upon reading Paradise Lost with resolution that it is no less than the highest and most skilfull use of the English language that I have yet seen or expect I shall ever see. In Paradise Lost, Milton poses some of the most fascinating questions about human nature and the nature of free will manifest in any work of literature. It is a brilliant work to be appreciated and honored by all who respect art, and seek a fuller, richer life.

I suppose I could be thankful that this edition did not try to update Milton's English. The software that comes with it is just a .doc file; a hypertext document linking outdated words to definitions or mythic references to explanations would have been far more useful. The book itself is in a pleasing font, but the binding is weak and pages easily fall out.

Paradise Lost I think, is one of the best epics written around 1667. The language and Milton's own belief of Christanity is one of the main reasons this unique epic was so popular during his time, and why it has remained one of the worlds greatest epics still today. Unlike other epics written at the time, Milton tries to stay away from war as being his central subject. Instead, he writes of more nobler topics. The whole idea that the entire universe is guided by God's providenc, is captured in this epic unlike any other.

This epic poem, contained in a series of 12 books is a must-read for any who wish to expand their knowledge of literature, religion, and human nature. Each book in the poem is preceded by Milton's argument, which provides a plot summary of that particular book. To really understand Milton, the dedicated scholar must go above, underneath, around, through and most importantly, beyond the plot. Through this poem, Milton poses alarming questions regarding the nature of God and Satan, Heaven and Hell, Good and Evil. Satan is the hero of the work. By this I do not mean to say that Satan is a hero, but simply that he was the antagonist of this tale, in the same way that Oedipus was the antogonist of his. This is a profound work that will question every belief that the Christian and Jewish faithful hold to be true. It is only through this constant questioning that we are able to find our true faith. If you find that this poem causes you to lose faith in God, you didn't have true faith in the first place. Those who are believers of God will find that questioning their faith will only serve to strengthen it.