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3.69 AVERAGE
3.69 AVERAGE
challenging
dark
inspiring
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
N/A
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Anyone who has some interest in texts that influenced history, look no further. Once you put in the effort to get through the olde English that Milton used to write this epic poetic masterpiece of biblical proportion, this will be a poem that will stay with you for a long time after you've finished reading it. Best enjoyed with decent, or at least some, knowledge of the Bible.
I will admit I have only read Books 1-4 but they SLAPPED
I'm giving up.
For me, the biggest struggle with reading is that it's a) an epic and b) written in old-timey English. I can handle B in small doses, but when it's combined with A? Nope. For me, it's like reading Shakespeare: I have to listen to it to "get it" and so I'm just skimming the pages and occasionally being impressed by bits of imagery or prose that jump out, but without any clue of what's going on beyond the summaries.
Maybe, in a few years down the road, I'll buy an audio book and enjoy the experience of listening to Paradise Lost, but for now I'm giving up. It feels so good.
For me, the biggest struggle with reading is that it's a) an epic and b) written in old-timey English. I can handle B in small doses, but when it's combined with A? Nope. For me, it's like reading Shakespeare: I have to listen to it to "get it" and so I'm just skimming the pages and occasionally being impressed by bits of imagery or prose that jump out, but without any clue of what's going on beyond the summaries.
Maybe, in a few years down the road, I'll buy an audio book and enjoy the experience of listening to Paradise Lost, but for now I'm giving up. It feels so good.
challenging
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I thought Shakespeare was going to be hard, Paradise Lost is going to give me a run for my money, but I’m ready. So far, it flows well, but I’m having a heck of a time understanding. I’m hoping that the more I dive in, the more I can get behind the writing style. So far in Book I we meet Adam and Eve as they eat the forbidden fruit in the Garden of Eden, we also meet Satan. This is where his epic poem begins. Book II opens the flood gates by entering the gates of Hell, stating Heaven isn’t lost and creating a bridge between Hell to Earth… what could possibly go wrong? I do like the concept of Chaos, is it good is it bad? I’m wondering if we’ll explore that more. Book III is all about God asking for a volunteer and knowing it will be his son to make the sacrifice for all human kind. Then on the flip side we have Satan, who is a very interesting character; he’s disguised as a Cherub who fools the Angel Uriel. Milton makes reference to Dante’s Inferno, stating that fraud and leading others to evil is one of the worst sins to commit. This has been an interesting read so far; I do like the notes because they add value and give more context to the poem. I couldn’t imagine reading this straight through. If I made it through Dante’s Divine Comedy, I think I can make it through this.
This is starting to get a little easier to understand and I’m enjoying it a touch more. In Book IV Satan reaches the Garden of Eden where he watches Adam and Eve live their daily lives, worshiping God. He sees this and it makes him want to make them rebel. So what does he do, he whispers in Eve’s ear while she sleeps, tempting her. So in Book V we have the Archangel Raphael come down to speak to Adam and warn him. We get more on Chaos, which I like. Raphael tells them about the things God created and how it started out confused and disordered, but it was God who made Chaos ordered and beautiful. Then in Book VI it’s about Raphael speaking of the wars that rage on in Heaven. To be honest that book felt very confusing and didn’t hold my attention at all. In Book VII it’s all about the creation of the world as Raphael tells it to Adam. I liked the way this was written; there was something about it that compelled me to keep reading. This has been quite the journey so far!
This is slowly starting to get easier to pick up and actually retain and enjoy. In Book VIII Raphael is still talking to Adam about creation, but they’ve moved onto the topic of love and his love for Eve. There were some really beautiful lines written. Milton is quite the poet and it showed in this book. I’m not 100% sure why I thought this story started with Adam and Eve eating the forbidden fruit, when everything has been leading up to it. In Book IX is where it goes down. It’s a very slow progress and breakdown to get there. Satan disguises himself as a snake to tempt Eve to eat the forbidden fruit. It doesn’t take long, although when reading it felt like it took ages. Then Eve brings Adam into the fold and makes him eat the fruit and he does because he loves her so. Milton really has a way with words in writing how much love there is between the two of them, despite going against God. I have 3 books left, which I’m guessing will be the aftermath of the Fall.
I’ve made my way through Paradise Lost! To say this was a hard read isn’t completely accurate. It flowed and some of the poetry was really beautiful, but at the same time, if you weren’t paying 100% attention you’d miss something. Continuing in Book X has us seeing the aftermath of the Fall in which has gotten quite grim. Adam and Eve feel that life is not worth living any longer, Adam considers suicide but it’s Eve and God’s son, Jesus, who lead them to repent for their sins. I won’t lie, when Michael appeared in Book XI I was confused. God sends him so that Adam can see his sons Cain and Abel, although I don’t think he knows they’re his sons. He just gets to see humankind living again after the Fall. Adam needs to be shown that it’s not all over and that God basically has a plan. And in the last book, XII we see all the plans that God has laid out for humankind and the way that Adam and Eve have helped shape it. Now they must leave paradise to live in the new world. A satisfactory ending and if you’ve read the Bible you know where this was leading to. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed this but this wasn’t something I completely connected with. I’ve heard of this story and was curious about it, I’m glad I read it, but not exactly for me. I do like that it ended on a happy note.
challenging
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Easier to follow while reading along with the audio book
challenging
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
N/A
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I don’t have much to say about Paradise Lost. On a sentence by sentence analysis, it’s an exemplar of rhetoric with Milton writing the entire thing in iambic pentameter. That’s about the best thing I can say about it.
Because outside of that it’s thousands and thousands of words of fanfiction about Genesis. Milton definitely took the “why use 5 words when you can use 50?” to heart creating something that is unengaging and ultimately a drudge to get through. Yes I could probably find great passages in 2-3 line blurbs, but as a whole this is definitely FAR LESS than the sum of its parts.
Because outside of that it’s thousands and thousands of words of fanfiction about Genesis. Milton definitely took the “why use 5 words when you can use 50?” to heart creating something that is unengaging and ultimately a drudge to get through. Yes I could probably find great passages in 2-3 line blurbs, but as a whole this is definitely FAR LESS than the sum of its parts.
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes