A Companion to Milton

Corns, Thomas N. (Editor)

Blackwell Companions to Literature and Culture

1. Edition September 2003
548 Pages, Softcover
Wiley & Sons Ltd

ISBN: 978-1-4051-1370-0

John Wiley & Sons

Sample Chapter

Further versions

The diverse and controversial world of contemporary Milton studies is brought alive in this stimulating Companion.

* Winner of the Milton Society of America's Irene Samuels Book Award in 2002.

* Invites readers to explore and enjoy Milton's rich and fascinating work.

* Comprises 29 fresh and powerful readings of Milton's texts and the contexts in which they were created, each written by a leading scholar.

* Looks at literary production and cultural ideologies, issues of politics, gender and religion, individual Milton texts, other relevant contemporary texts and responses to Milton over time.

* Devotes a whole chapter to each major poem, and four to Paradise Lost.

* Conveys the excitement of recent developments in the field.

Preface: Thomas N. Corns (University of Wales, Bangor).

Abbreviations, Acknowledgements, and a Note on Editions
Used.

List of Contributors.

Part I: The Cultural Context.

Part II: Politics and Religion.

Part III: Texts.

1.The Early Poetry.

2.The Prose.

3.The Late Poetry.

Part IV: Influences and Reputation.

Part V: Biography.

Consolidated Bibliography.

General Index.

Index to Passages Cited.

"Taken together, the 29 essays collected here strike the
perfect balance between an exploration of the contexts surrounding
Milton's writings and an intensive analysis of his poems and
prose treatises. Uniformly well researched, felicitously written,
and cogently argued, these essays are among the best in present-day
Milton studies." (Stephen Baker Hot Fiction
Books, 20 September 2012)

"Taken together, the 29 essays collected here strike the perfect
balance between an exploration of the contexts surrounding Milton's
writings and an intensive analysis of his poems and prose
treatises. Uniformly well researched, felicitously written, and
cogently argued, these essays are among the best in present-day
Milton studies. They review previous scholarship while pursuing
innovative and exciting lines of inquiry that will surely influence
commentary on Milton in the foreseeable future."
(Choice)

"The present state of Milton studies is admirably represented,
while a careful distribution of topics has ensured satisfactory
coverage of the field. A splendid exhibition of Milton scholarship
as it currently flourishes." (Times Literary Supplement)

"students [...] will be admirably served by this comprehensive
and readable smorgasbord of current Milton studies."
(Renaissance Quarterly)

"This companion is enlightening and stimulating and will be a
helpful addition to libraries, especially those associated with
literary and cultural studies." (Reference Reviews)

Thomas N. Corns is a Professor of English at the University of Wales, Bangor. His many publications include Milton's Language (Blackwell, 1990), Uncloistered Virtue: English Political Literature, 1640-1660 (1992), and Regaining Paradise Lost (1994). He is also the editor of The Royal Image: Representations of Charles I (1999).