literary passport

paradise lost #20

All who have thir reward on Earth, the fruits
Of painful Superstition and blind Zeal,
Naught seeking but the praise of men, here find
Fit retribution, emptie as thir deeds

When Milton decides to let loose upon those who would try to make paradise on this lowly, fallen planet he pulls no punches.

paradise lost #19

He with his whole posteritie must dye,
Dye hee or Justice must

There are two different dispensations with a third hovering above, between, and through Book III of Paradise Lost. 

paradise lost #18

        I made him just right,
Sufficient to have stood, though free to fall.

Free will. Now, here’s one tough cookie if you’re going to be putting words into God’s mouth. The problem is easy to see and every school child eventually poses the conundrum to their parents…

paradise lost #17

        but thou
Revisit’st not these eyes, that rowle in vain
To find thy piercing ray, and find no dawn

Milton’s blindness is a tragic motif that runs throughout his poetry. There are moments when Paradise Lost steps away from its epic theme and addresses this personal loss.

paradise lost #16

For hot, cold, moist, and dry, four Champions fierce
Strive here for Maistrie, and to Battel bring
Thir embryon Atoms

We have arrived at one of the most horrific parts of Paradise Lost: Satan’s journey though the abyss and his meeting with Sin and Death.