Example Of Paradise Lost Case Study

Yes, Milton’s Paradise Lost is an epic poem. First criterion of an epic poem is related to its magnitude, it should be long spreading over hundreds of verses, and Paradise lost, certainly, fulfills that requirement. Following the norms of epic poetry, Milton describes his Paradise Lost in the style of a narration. Secondly, an epic poem usually revolves around the life events of a hero, and some critics contend that Milton projects Satin as the protagonist of his poem. Another characteristic of an epic poem is that it begins in the midst of an ongoing story, and later, the reader is made aware of the previous events as the poem progresses. Paradise Lost also opens with Satin already in the depths of the Hell and the events that lead to the downfall of Satin are described later in the poem. Likewise, the subject matter of Epic poems is war, supernatural and heroism. Although Milton does not describe war and heroism in the conventional sense, Paradise Lost does contain a sort of spiritual war and Milton expresses heroism in the form of obedience to God and patience, as for supernatural, Paradise Lost is teemed with it. The above discussion depicts that Paradise Lost is indeed an epic poem, and to call Paradise Lost a spiritual epic would not be an exaggeration.
Yes, religion was a very significant and prevailing subject in the age of Milton. The rise of Puritans made the religion a very relevant issue in the literature during Milton’s time. Most contemporaries of Milton were awestruck by the aura of Paradise Lost. Although Milton was at odds with his contemporaries in the sphere of politics and religion, Milton’s contemporaries acknowledged the magnificence of Paradise Lost with open hearts and admitted the supremacy of Milton in the genre of epic poetry. No substantial criticism was made on Paradise Lost until the mid-twentieth century.