Life of John Milton

The biography traces the poet's life from childhood and schooling through formative travels abroad and growing literary ambition. It follows his development as a lyric and dramatic writer, his pamphlets and tracts amid religious and political controversies, and his period of public service coinciding with the loss of sight. It recounts personal relationships, marriages, domestic strains, and financial and familial difficulties after a change of government. The account describes the conception, composition, and publication struggles of his major epics and later dramatic poems and concludes with critical appraisal of their theology, language, versification, and lasting poetic qualities.