The Conflict of Heaven and Hell
Alan Jacobs’s Paradise Lost: A Biography provides an engaging exploration of John Milton’s monumental poem, placing it at the crossroads of literary genius, religious beliefs, and political turmoil. Instead of creating a conventional biography of Milton, Jacobs delivers a biography of the poem itself—exploring its beginnings, the ideas that shaped it, and its lasting impact through the ages.The book begins by painting a vibrant picture of 17th-century England, an era characterized by civil conflict, the breakdown of the monarchy, the emergence and decline of the Puritan Commonwealth, and the subsequent return of the monarchy. Milton, who was a fervent republican…
