Critical Commentary on Kubla Khan

Critical Commentary on Kubla Khan Kubla Khan is a fascinating and exasperating poem. Almost everyone has read it, almost everyone has been charmed by its magic, almost everyone thinks he knows what it is about -- and almost everyone, it seems, has felt impelled to write about it. It must surely be true that no poem of comparable length in English or any other language has been the subject of so much critical commentary. Its fifty-four lines have spawned thousands of pages of discussion and analysis. Kubla Khan is the sole or a major subject in five book-length studies;1 close to 150 articles and book-chapters (doubtless I have missed some others) have been devoted exclusively to it; and brief notes and incidental comments on it are without number. Despite this deluge, however, there is no critical unanimity and very little agreement on a number of important issues connected with the poem: its date of composition, its "meaning", its sources in Coleridge's reading and observation of nature, its structural integrity (i.e. fragment versus complete poem), and its relationship to the Preface by which Coleridge introduced it on its first publication in 1816. In a moment of rash optimism a notable scholar once began an essay by declaring that "We now know almost everything about Coleridge's Kubla Khan except what the poem is about". The truth of the matter, however, is

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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In order to be able to discover the relevance Milton and Paradise Lost still have today in a post-modernist society, I believe that it is imperative to first be able to understand and appreciate Milton in the context and times in which this epic, Paradise

University of Cape Town Clare O'Donovan ODNCLA001 ELL305F Seminar: Milton Essay 1 K. Sole Due Date: 17/05/2005 Word Count: 2000 Plagiarism Declaration: I know that plagiarism is wrong. Plagiarism is to use another's work and to pretend that it is one's own. This is my own work. I have not allowed and will not allow anybody to copy my work with the intention of passing it off as his/her own. Signed: Date: 2005-05-13 In order to be able to discover the relevance Milton and Paradise Lost still have today in a post-modernist society, I believe that it is imperative to first be able to understand and appreciate Milton in the context and times in which this epic, Paradise Lost was written. This essay will aim to uncover some of the most important and prevalent themes found in Paradise Lost, and to explain how and why these themes remain so relevant in a society which is so far removed from the era Paradise Lost was written in. Some of the themes I will be discussing deal with important issues such as gender and colonialism. The issue of colonialism, which Milton deals with at great length, is very interesting in relation to the current times. Evans (1996) brings to the reader's attention that during the time that Paradise Lost was written, the colonisation of America was well under way and publicized to the masses. Thus it is not surprising that the text of

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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The Influences of Latin

The Influences of Latin Latin has been an influence on English throughout its history. Its influence on English was profound as the Roman army and merchants gave new names to local objects such as: pise 'pea', catte 'cat', cetel 'kettle', candel 'candle' and a numerous number of other common words. The influence of Latin on Old English was profound because Latin was considered the language of a highly developed civilization. For several hundred years, while the Germanic Tribe who became the English were still occupying their home land, they had various relations with the Romans through which they acquired a considerable number of Latin words. Not only did Latin influence the vocabulary of the English language, but its syntactic style had an impact on the English of the 16th century. Marcus Tullius Cicero work was particularly imitated, as there was a search for an oratorical contrast and balance. Latin's contribution to modern English has not been more than just derivatives. The concept of grammar also came from the artificial structure of Classical Latin which can be defined as the Latin used for poetry, oratory, and by the upper classes. Early English had no grammar, no rules. Latin provided an example of excellent grammatical structure and an oratory contrast that English eventually adopted. Latin has probably impacted legal English the most, as it shares with

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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Pullyz Paradise lost - Adam and Eve

Pullyz PARADISE LOST: Adam and Eve The dramatic characters of Adam and eve have led to a spectrum of opinions, which touch issues regarding the roles of the sexes even today. Milton's dramatization of the biblical eve was interpreted vain, having trivia; characteristics inclined to fall. What was ignored was Milton's assertion of eternal; providence for both man and woman. Virginia Woolf and many other literary women's view are that Milton's verse is a powerful rendering of a culture myth, which is at the heart of west literary patriarchy. Reasons for this are that it is the story of a woman's secondness. her "otherness" which leads to her demonic anger, her fall, her sin, her fall and her exclusion from the garden of god's which for her is the garden of poetry. According to the feminists, milt shows Adam as god's favored creature, and eve as inferior who is satanically inspired. . For most women writers Milton and creature of his literary imagination constitute what 'Gertrude stein' calls patriarchal poetry. Adam and eve are capable of obedience to god; eve prefers to believe the devil. Adam loves his place of eve above his love of god. Of their free will they are disobedient. Eve before the fall is innocent womanhood, and after the fall is guilty womanhood. God is their creaotor and he has forbidden them to eat the fruit. The obligation to obey is stressed again and

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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An Analysis of Satan’s Soliloquy in John Milton’s “Paradise Lost”

AND SO THE ARCH-FIEND SPOKE An Analysis of Satan's Soliloquy in John Milton's "Paradise Lost" In the eighty-two lines that consist of Satan's famous soliloquy in Book IV (lines 32 to 113) of John Milton's Paradise Lost, one is given a great deal to think about. Obviously, first and foremost, one gets a deeper look at the character of the "tragic hero" of Milton's epic, who is consumed by his jealousy of God's new creation, Mankind. Also, by seeing more of Satan's character, one also sees Satan's reasons for sinning, how sin originally began, and in a sense, he establishes a defence for his own, ill-thought-out actions. And finally, Satan's soliloquy was a vehicle for Milton to further establish the main theme of his epic, which is, as one reads in Book I, to "justify the ways of God to men." (I.26) Above all, this deeper glimpse of Satan shows the reader that he (Satan) is quite intelligent. We see cunning skills of logic while he debates with himself the pros and cons of every point that he raises. The reader also sees in Satan that one thing that Adam and Eve crave so dearly -- self-awareness. But this self-awareness that Satan possesses does not seem to enlighten him, as Adam and Even hope it will; in fact, he seems tortured by it, as he banters back and forth with himself. This same self-awareness also enable him to see that although he has a throne in Hell,

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  • Level: University Degree
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How far do you agree with this judgment on Milton's handling of Satan in ParadiseLost I & II?

How far do you agree with this judgment on Milton's handling of Satan in Paradise Lost I & II? Satan in Paradise Lost presents an unusual dichotomy; he is both the personification of cosmic malevolence and a pathetic character. As a theist who is resolved to "justify the ways of God to man", one assumes that Milton would not deliberately show Satan in a wholly sympathetic light. Indeed, Milton warns that humans are particularly attracted to Satan's "guile" and that he is ultimately a deluded fraud. Yet Satan's villainy is caused by his faults and his conflict as the "the Antagonist of Heav'n" contributes to both the plot and God's over-aching scheme. It seems counter-intuitive to suspend the ethical context of a theodicy, however, Satan's exploits could be described as tragically heroic. As Milton engages in other conventions of classical epics such as epic similes and the invocation, one would assume that Paradise Lost has a hero of some kind. The protagonist, God, does not appear until the third book whilst Satan features prominently in the first two books. He is the first identifiable character which would gain the audiences sympathy in a traditional drama. He also exhibits the traits of a villainous tragic hero as his downfall was caused by hubris. His hamartia is "obdúrate pride"; by fancying himself as "equalled to the Most High", he is appropriately cast

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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Does Milton attempt to describe the indescribable? To what extent does he succeed?

Does Milton attempt to describe the indescribable? To what extent does he succeed? Milton uses numerous literary devices in his attempt to describe the apparantly undescribable in Paradise Lost. The beginning of Paradise Lost is similar in gravity and seriousness to the book from which Milton takes much of his story: the Book of Genesis, the first book of the Bible. This can be construed by the reader to be almost a statement of intent from Milton, who it appears is likening Paradise Lost to the Holy Bible. He seemingly seeks to elevate himself above other epics as he attempts to 'assert eternal providence, and justify the ways of God to men.' From the very outset, this appears to be a rather fanciful and audacious task, and it is dubious as to whether any mortal is able to justify such a thing. The first two sentences, or twenty-six lines, of Paradise Lost are extremely compressed, containing a great deal of information about Milton's reasons for writing his epic, his subject matter, and his attitudes toward his subject. By invoking a muse, but differentiating it from traditional muses, Milton tells us a lot about how he sees his project. In the first place, an invocation of the muse at the beginning of an epic is conventional, so Milton is acknowledging his awareness of Homer, Virgil, and later poets, and signaling that he has mastered their format and wants to be part of

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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How well does Milton create the image of Hell for the reader between the lines 61 and 77?

Elin Ford-Davies How well does Milton create the image of Hell for the reader between the lines 61 and 77? During the lines 61-77 of Paradise Lost, Milton deals with and portrays many important events from the bible. He manages to use complex language and effective descriptions, to convey the evilness of Hell and all of the fallen angels, effectively to the reader. Milton begins by describing what happened in the Garden of Eden to the reader. He gives the story of Adam and Eve's journey and shows us what will happen if we give into such temptations. This is also significant in showing us the path to hell and the sins to avoid. This leads on to the introduction of the fallen angels and Satan himself. Milton succeeds in portraying these fallen angels as terribly evil, deceitful and rebellious, the exact opposite to God's highly respected greatness and power over these fallen angels. Milton emphasises the clear difference between heaven and hell. Between the lines 61-77 Milton's portrayal of Hell emphasises how much the fallen angels have been punished for their behaviour and how that kind of evil behaviour will not be tolerated by God in heaven. He uses lines like: "Oh how unlike the place from whence they fell" To covey the difference between the two places. He uses lines like this to emphasise how different hell is compared to the paradise, which is heaven. The fallen

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  • Level: University Degree
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Fate and freedom in Marvell and Milton.

Fate and freedom in Marvell and Milton The concluding image in Marvell's lyric 'The Definition of Love' starkly depicts the separation intrinsic to the lovers' existence: As lines (so loves) oblique may well Themselves in every angle greet: But ours so truly parallel, Though infinite, can never meet. (25 - 8) The perfection and harmony of their love paradoxically prevent them ever from combining or meeting 'as one'. That is to say, the lovers will never meet to consummate their affections and their union can only remain emotional or intellectual, and certainly not physical. Yet this mixture of 'Despair / Upon Impossibility' (3 - 4) does not in any respect demean the value of the love or lessen its intensity: rather, it is from this that it reaches its perfection by transcending the ordinary. In finding a way to resist Fate's 'tyrannic power' (16) they accomplish a fuller union than they otherwise would: Therefore the love which us doth bind But Fate so enviously debars, Is the conjunction of the mind, And opposition of the stars. (29 - 32) Although Fate has placed them 'as the distant Poles' and any physical union will only be the result of freak planetary accident, they have nonetheless defied her and found solace in pursuing more than 'feeble Hope' (7). They have overcome the immediate circumstances of the universe and uncovered a richer 'divine' existence

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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On The Morning of Christ's Nativity: An Application of The Bible to the Work of John Milton.

Paula Rienguette ENGL 2116 Prof. Richard Schell November 12/ 2002 On The Morning of Christ's Nativity: An Application of The Bible to the Work of John Milton. Milton's Nativity Ode contains a "theory of all things" in respect to his vision. This theory deals greatly with the idea that the human body is merely a tomb for the soul. While in the Bible we have been taking the body of the King to represent the whole land. The death of the King is in comparison the death of the land. Like the Kings of Christ's time, Milton writes to bring attention to the three types of liberty he hoped to achieve in England: Liberty from the Church [tyranny of the bishops], liberty of the individual [divorce and education], and liberty from the state [King]. The poem can be broken down into four parts: the first eight verses deal with the coming of Christ, the next ten with the mystery of music, verse nineteen and forward focus on the silencing of the oracles and concludes with verse twenty-seven and the birth of Christ. In "On the Morning of Christ's Nativity" Milton sees both Christmas and Easter as the same thing since it is impossible to have one without the other. The baby in the cradle is the man on the cross. John Milton's "On The Morning of Christ's Nativity" uses the idea of the Jesus of history and the Christ of fact to relay his ideas of the creation of the world and the

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  • Level: University Degree
  • Subject: Linguistics, Classics and related subjects
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