Don’t Mess with Milton!
Thursday, May 15th by scott malia
We live in a Smackdown world. Awards shows, blogs and critical essays are often dedicated to deciding which things, people or ideas are better than the next. Shakespeare has certainly been the subject of much debate, particularly from those who believe that his mega-fame has come at the expense of the reputations and explorations of other contemporary and non-contemporary artists. For some, Will is always seated at a table for one.
The latest compare-athon pits Shakespeare versus the poet John Milton. This examination is book-length and features extended passages of Milton (most famous for Paradise Lost) that make up nearly half the book. The author of the book asserts that Milton is a far superior poet in terms of his subject matter, tone, and technique. The reviewer took a decidedly different bent, noting the impact of length upon audiences’ perception of them.
The reviewer noted that Shakespeare is immensely quotable. You can get a good bon mot from him in two sentences or less. Milton is a different story. His written may not be any less intricate or accomplished, but it comes in more complicated packaging. He might need half a page to get an idea totally off the runway. That’s not a bad thing, but it might give one reason why he hasn’t enjoyed the historical and literary acclaim that the modestly educated man from Stratford has. Maybe if he’d been more pithily poetic, Milton wouldn’t have ended up the same way Paradise did.
May 17th, 2008 at 7:37 am
Always thought (and taught) three ‘World Class’ English Literary figures - Chaucer, Shakespeare and Milton.
Can they be compared?
I doubt it - all were Masters of the highest rank … and each of us will have her/his preference.
Why not the acclaim for some … ah, something to do with the genre they wrote in? Shakespeare wrote plays - for a popular audience, amazing how often plays stay up there in the popularity stakes. Shouldn’t forget Shakespeare’s Sonnets flopped badly when published in 1609.