The Cambridge Companion to Milton

Book Overview

An accessible, helpful guide for any student of Milton, whether undergraduate or graduate, introducing readers to the scope of Milton's work, the richness of its historical relations, and the range of current approaches to it. This second edition contains several new and revised essays, reflecting increasing emphasis on Milton's politics, the social conditions of his authorship and the climate in which his works were published and received, a fresh sense of the importance of his early poems and Samson Agonistes, and the changes wrought by gender studies on the criticism of the previous decade. By contrast with other introductions to Milton, this Companion gathers an international team of scholars, whose informative, stimulating and often argumentative essays will provoke thought and discussion in and out of the classroom. The Companion's reading lists and extended bibliography offer readers the necessary tools for further informed exploration of Milton studies.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0521655439
• ISBN13: 9780521655439
• Release Date: September 1999
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press
• Length: 313 Pages
• Weight: 1.15 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 6.0" x 8.8"
• Grade Range: Grade 12 and higher

Customer Reviews

New to Milton

As a relative newcomer to the world of John Milton, I found this book incredibly useful in providing a comprehensive overview of the many facets of the man, his life, his work, his politics and his poetry. I would read it in conjunction with a good biography. The essays vary in their degree of complexity and the opinions of the essayists are thoughtful and informative and several of them exhibit a real passion for their subject. I'm not a Milton specialist but I would imagine there is enough substance here to keep even the most rigorous scholar stimulated and for students and people like myself who are interested in the man and world behind Paradise Lost, I can highly recommend it.

Remarkably clear and helpful

I never understood what all the fuss about Milton was about until I read this book. His times, his politics, his personality and his work are all illuminated in these essays.

A rich buffet!

Among the books in the great Cambridge Companion series, this work offers eighteen enlightening essays on John Milton: his prose, poetry, social life, etc. A rich buffet for the Milton scholar or student!