This volume draws on the expertise of both historians and literary critics to examine the classical sources of Milton's republicanism, the genesis of that republicanism in the 1640s, its disappointment in the 1650s and its presence in his work (particularly in Paradise Lost) after the Restoration. Milton's prose works and his poetry are given equal coverage, making this the first collaborative volume to attempt a comprehensive thematic assessment of his political and literary career.
Contents
Preface; Part 1. Defining Milton's Republicanism: 1. Milton's classical republicanism Martin Dzelzainis; 2. Milton and the characteristics of a free commonwealth Thomas N. Corns; 3. Great senates and godly education: politics and cultural renewal in some pre- and post-revolutionary texts of Milton Cedric C. Brown; Part II. Milton and Republican Literary Strategy: 4. Biblical reference in the political pamphlets of the Levellers and Milton, 1638–1654 Elizabeth Tuttle; 5. The metaphorical contract in Milton's Tenure of Kings and Magistrates Victoria Kahn; 6. Milton, Satan, Salmasius and Abdiel Roger Lejosne; 7. Paradise Lost as a republican 'tractatus theologico-politicus' Armand Himy; Part III. Milton and the Republican Experience: 8. Popular republicanism in the 1650s: John Streater's 'heroick mechanicks' Nigel Smith; 9. Milton and Marchamont Nedham Blair Worden; 10. Milton and the protectorate in 1658 Martin Dzelzainis; 11. John Milton: poet against Empire David Armitage; Part IV. Milton and the Republican Tradition: 12. The Whig Milton, 1667–1700 Nicholas von Maltzahn; 13. Borrowed language: Milton, Jefferson, Mirabeau Tony Davies.
Prize Winner
Irene Samuel Memorial Award of the Milton Society of America
Winner of the 2006 Balzan Prize for Political thought: history and theory of the The International Balzan Foundation
Reviews
"...deserves a warm welcome for at last bringing Milton studies fully in contact with these developments in the history of political thought." David Norbrook, Times Literary Supplement
"...happily, the disagreements are there and they add mightily to the breadth and depth of this learned and valuable book." John Rogers, Journal of English and Germanic Philology
"...these essays are a stimulating exploration of the origins, growth, and extent of Milton's republican commitment, and they skillfully locate these political ideals in Paradise Lost." The Sixteenth Century Journal
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