| Semester |
spring semester 2024 |
| Course frequency |
Once only |
| Lecturers |
Justin Begley (justin.begley@unibas.ch, Assessor)
|
| Content |
In 1667, John Milton, England’s "self-elected national poet", published 'Paradise Lost'. Now widely regarded as one of the greatest poems in the English language, the epic narrates the story of the creation of the first humans and their remarkable downfall. Milton’s professed aim was to “justify the ways of God to men”: to explain the human condition and why there is so much misery in the world. Focussing on one of the poem’s twelve books each week, this course will offer a broad introduction to Milton’s epic, while providing specific insight into how he and his contemporaries approached questions of science, psychology, and morality, including the relationship between free will and determinism, the body and soul, and humans and the natural world. It will also situate 'Paradise Lost' within its cultural and literary contexts, including exploring developments in the epic tradition, comparing the poem with lesser-known creation epics such as Josuah Sylvester’s 'Devine Weekes and Workes' (1605) and Lucy Hutchinson’s 'Order and Disorder' (1679), and delving into its reception among critics from the conspiratorial Richard Bentley to the fanciful William Blake. |
| Learning objectives |
Students will develop an in-depth understanding of John Milton’s 'Paradise Lost'; its form, style, sources, content, and reception. They will also acquire familiarity with the epic tradition, improve their ability to read and analyse early modern poetry, and come to terms with some of the major cultural and intellectual developments of the early modern period. |
| Bibliography |
John Milton, 'Paradise Lost', ed. Gordon Teskey (Norton Critical Edition, 2005) |
| Comments |
Please read and prepare the first book of 'Paradise Lost' for the first session. |
| Weblink |
ADAM |
