This edition contains all Milton's English poems with the exception of Paradise Lost, together with translations and texts of all his Latin, Italian and Greek poems. Since its first publication in 1968 John Carey's edition has established itself, together with Alastair Fowler's Paradise Lost (also published by Longman) as the standard edition of Milton's poetry for students and general readers alike. It has fuller explanatory notes than any other edition, and - a distinctive feature - a headnote to each poem to summarise the judgements and disagreements of modern critics. The headnotes of this updated Complete Shorter Poems concisely abstract some 700 articles and 70 books that, since 1968, have augmented the scholarly and critical debate about the greatest of England's non-dramatic poets. The result is not just an edition but a clear succinct guide through the rich but bewildering profusion of modern Milton scholarship.

This edition contains all Milton's English poems, with the exception of Paradise Lost, together with translations and texts of all his Latin, Italian and Greek poems. It provides explanatory notes and a summary of modern criticisms for each poem.

An important and innovative edition of Milton's shorter verse & the first volume to present the poems with the original spelling and pronunciations intact, offering readers the opportunity to experience the vitality of the poems as they were experienced by Milton's contemporaries: Includes Milton's original Latin poems, with a new English translation on facing pages for cross-comparison Serves as a companion to Lewalski's Paradise Lost and Loewenstein's prose selections of Milton Features both collected and uncollected poetry in English, Latin, and Greek, the latter two with translations Retains original spelling and punctuation of Milton's 1645 Poems and his 1671 Paradise Regained and Sampson Agonistes Offers readers comprehensive footnotes, marginal glosses, chronology, bibliography, and longer discussions in introductions to sections

John Milton is, next to William Shakespeare, the most influential English poet, a writer whose work spans an incredible breadth of forms and subject matter. The Complete Poetry and Essential Prose of John Milton celebrates this author’s genius in a thoughtfully assembled book that provides new modern-spelling versions of Milton’s texts, expert commentary, and a wealth of other features that will please even the most dedicated students of Milton’s canon. Edited by a trio of esteemed scholars, this volume is the definitive Milton for our time. In these pages you will find all of Milton’s verse, from masterpieces such as Paradise Lost–widely viewed as the finest epic poem in the English language–to shorter works such as the Nativity Ode, Lycidas,, A Masque and Samson Agonistes. Milton’s non-English language sonnets, verses, and elegies are accompanied by fresh translations by Gordon Braden. Among the newly edited and authoritatively annotated prose selections are letters, pamphlets, political tracts, essays such as Of Education and Areopagitica, and a generous portion of his heretical Christian Doctrine. These works reveal Milton’s passionate advocacy of controversial positions during the English Civil War and the Commonwealth and Restoration periods. With his deep learning and the sensual immediacy of his language, Milton creates for us a unique bridge to the cultures of classical antiquity and medieval and Renaissance Christianity. With this in mind, the editors give careful attention to preserving the vibrant energy of Milton’s verse and prose, while making the relatively unfamiliar aspects of his writing accessible to modern readers. Notes identify the old meanings and roots of English words, illuminate historical contexts–including classical and biblical allusions–and offer concise accounts of the author’s philosophical and political assumptions. This edition is a consummate work of modern literary scholarship.

An important and innovative edition of Milton's shorter verse & the first volume to present the poems with the original spelling and pronunciations intact, offering readers the opportunity to experience the vitality of the poems as they were experienced by Milton's contemporaries: Includes Milton's original Latin poems, with a new English translation on facing pages for cross-comparison Serves as a companion to Lewalski's Paradise Lost and Loewenstein's prose selections of Milton Features both collected and uncollected poetry in English, Latin, and Greek, the latter two with translations Retains original spelling and punctuation of Milton's 1645 Poems and his 1671 Paradise Regained and Sampson Agonistes Offers readers comprehensive footnotes, marginal glosses, chronology, bibliography, and longer discussions in introductions to sections

John Milton is most famously remembered for his epic narrative "Paradise Lost" and its sequel "Paradise Regained." In addition to these classic works Milton wrote several shorter pieces. These shorter works are collected together in this volume and include the following: On the Morning of Christ's Nativity; A Paraphrase on Psalm CXIV; Psalm CXXXVI; On the Death of a Fair Infant Dying of a Cough; At a Vacation Exercise in the College, Part Latin, Part English; The Passion; On Shakespeare; On the University Carrier; Another on the Same; An Epitaph on the marchioness of Winchester; On His Being Arrived to the Age of Twenty-Three; L'Allegro; Il Penseroso; Sonnet to the Nightingale; Song on May Morning; On Time; At a Solemn Music; Upon the Circumcision; Arcades; Comus, a Mask; Lycidas; When the Assault was Intended to the City; To a Virtuous Young Lady; To the Lady Margaret Ley; On the Detraction which Followed upon my Writing Certain Treatises; On the Same; On the New Forcers of Conscience under the Long Parliament; To Mr. H. Lawes on His Airs; On the Religious Memory of Mrs. Catherine Thomson, my Christian Friend, deceased Dec. 16, 1646; On the Lord General Fairfax at the Siege of Colchester; To the Lord General Cromwell, on the Proposals of Certain Ministers at the Committee for the Propagation of the Gospel; To Sir Henry Vane the Younger; On the Late Massacre in Piemont; On His Blindness; To Mr. Lawrence; To Cyriack Skinner; To the Same; On his Deceased Wife; Milton's Introduction to Samson Agonistes; and Samson Agonistes.

John Milton (9 December 1608 - 8 November 1674) was an English poet, polemicist, man of letters, and civil servant for the Commonwealth of England under Oliver Cromwell. He wrote at a time of religious flux and political upheaval, and is best known for his epic poem Paradise Lost (1667), written in blank verse. Milton's poetry and prose reflect deep personal convictions, a passion for freedom and self-determination, and the urgent issues and political turbulence of his day. Writing in English, Latin, Greek, and Italian, he achieved international renown within his lifetime, and his celebrated Areopagitica (1644), written in condemnation of pre-publication censorship, is among history's most influential and impassioned defences of free speech and freedom of the press. William Hayley's 1796 biography called him the "greatest English author," and he remains generally regarded "as one of the preeminent writers in the English language," though critical reception has oscillated in the centuries since his death (often on account of his republicanism). Samuel Johnson praised Paradise Lost as "a poem which...with respect to design may claim the first place, and with respect to performance, the second, among the productions of the human mind," though he (a Tory and recipient of royal patronage) described Milton's politics as those of an "acrimonious and surly republican." Odin's Library Classics is dedicated to bringing the world the best of humankind's literature from throughout the ages. Carefully selected, each work is unabridged from classic works of fiction, nonfiction, poetry, or drama.

Edited by William Kerrigan, John Rumrich, and Stephen M. Fallon The legendary author of Paradise Lost and other poems was also a superb and provocative prose writer. Culled from Modern Library’s definitive The Complete Poetry and Essential Prose of John Milton, this indispensable collection, authoritatively annotated and updated for this new volume, now includes selections from Milton’s Commonplace Book and the complete text of The Tenure of Kings and Magistrates in addition to Milton’s letters, pamphlets, political tracts, and essays. Milton tackles diverse subjects and takes controversial positions, including notorious defenses of divorce and protests against censorship. With expert analysis, a chronology of the author’s life, clean layouts, and a comprehensive index, The Essential Prose of John Milton is an invaluable keepsake—a book bound to be a revelation for all readers of this monumental author. “Meticulously edited, full of tactful annotations that set the stage for his work and his times, and bringing Milton, as a poet and a thinker, vividly alive before us.”—Robert Hass, former Poet Laureate of the United States