Free Downloads Paradise Lost (Hackett Classics)
Paradise Lost remains as challenging and relevant today as it was in the turbulent intellectual and political environment in which it was written. This edition aims to bring the poem as fully alive to a modern reader as it would have been to Milton's contemporaries. It provides a newly edited text of the 1674 edition of the poem--the last of Milton's lifetime--with carefully modernized spelling and punctuation. Marginal glosses define unfamiliar words, and extensive annotations at the foot of the page clarify Milton's syntax and poetics, and explore the range of literary, biblical, and political allusions that point to his major concerns. David Kastan's lively Introduction considers the central interpretative issues raised by the poem, demonstrating how thoroughly it engaged the most vital--and contested--issues of Milton's time, and which reveal themselves as no less vital, and perhaps no less contested, today.The edition also includes an essay on the text, a chronology of major events in Milton's life, and a selected bibliography, as well as the first known biography of Milton, written by Edward Phillips in 1694.
Series: Hackett Classics
Paperback: 496 pages
Publisher: Hackett Publishing Company, Inc.; 3rd edition (September 15, 2005)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0872207331
ISBN-13: 978-0872207332
Product Dimensions: 1 x 5.2 x 8.2 inches
Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars See all reviews (22 customer reviews)
Best Sellers Rank: #92,639 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #35 in Books > Textbooks > Humanities > Literature > World Literature > European #94 in Books > Literature & Fiction > British & Irish > Poetry #96 in Books > Literature & Fiction > Poetry > Themes & Styles > Inspirational & Religious
The best way to read one of the foundational classics of the Western world is to take a class at a university from a professor who specializes in Milton and baroque English authors. The second best way is to buy an edition like this one and read everything between the covers. Paradise Lost plumbs deeply the Greeks, Romans, the Bible and other religious and secular literature. In addition, it is a commentary on the English monarchy and the storm that overtook it with the execution of Charles I in 1649. Milton played a role in that drama, and it is embedded in Paradise Lost. By the time he started writing, a restoration was afoot, and Milton had to be careful not to indict himself for his enemies, who were looking for an excuse to arrest him. In other words, to simply read only the surface story is to miss almost everything, though the story itself is wonderfully told.I read the Kindle edition. That made it easy to pop from text to notes as they came up, deepening my understanding, but a paper book with a couple of bookmarks would be almost as easy. Paradise Lost is the work of a believer, and if you are a believer not afraid to read outside the Bible, your efforts will be rewarded. If you are a lover of literature, as I am, this is the mother lode!Paradise Lost is written in verse. This version modifies the English for modern readers. Even so, it will be a project. Set goals, stick with it, and you will be rewarded. I came to look forward to my nightly reading. My goal was 100 lines a night. Usually, though, I went over. If you've ever wanted to read one of the big ones, read Paradise Lost. It's not a classic just because bookish scholars like it!
This is an outstanding edition of Milton's classic work. Kastan provides references for words that have fallen out of modern day usage, making the text easier for today's reader to understand. The text is full of extensive footnotes, providing clarification, background data, and, for further study, references to Milton's original sources. The font size and paper quality of this paperback text make it a pleasure to read and transport.
It's pretty ridiculous that you can't just give a work like this 5 stars. Like a 3rd grade teacher wants a book report of 20 words. What they really want is a review of the Kindle version, so I'll just do that.The Kindle version is superbly annotated. When text is highlighted you can click on it and go to the footnotes, and just as easily go back. There are kindle books, so many of them, that don't even have this.
I lost the first copy I ever had when I was moving out of my dorm and I was heartbroken. This happened to be within my price range and I noticed that it said to have notes in the back. I thought I might as well try it.... I had no idea how much I had been missing! Milton is always an amazing read but he's also difficult to understand because we're not all bible scholars. Those notes ended up showing me a depth in his writing I never would have been able to understand on my own. If you're in college or high school, GRAB THIS COPY! It will save your skin a thousand times over.I bought a used copy and saying it was used was almost an insult. The spine hadn't even been cracked and there wasn't a tear, stain, or crinkle on the thing. I HIGHLY SUGGEST THIS VERSION OF THE BOOK!
I just bought the Kindle version of this book, and I already see two highly undesirable features. One is that words that have a footnote in the print version are underlined in the Kindle version, as if for emphasis. (These underlined words are links to the footnotes, but they look like emphasized words.) A second is that the line numbers in the Kindle version (every 5th line is standardly marked with a line number) appear in the body of the poem rather than in the margin, so that, e.g., [25] Every fifth line of the poem begins with a line number. These two features create a very poor reading experience. If I had known this, I would not have bought the Kindle version.
Missing from my collection, this classic was a must-have. I'm not a snob about paperback vs hardcover, so for the price, this was a nice offering. I was nicely surprised by the illustrations in this volume, and pleased with the price. I'd recommend to anyone interested in reading this hallmark tome but not willing to spend a fortune for the hardbound editions. Be practical and serious, you'll only read this once or twice in your lifetime!
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