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This seminar is a follow-up to my Paradise Lost seminars in the last two semesters. However, NEWCOMERS ARE VERY WELCOME. It is absolutely possible to do this seminar without having done the previous Paradise Lost seminars. Last semester, we had lots of newcomers. They had no problems at all and enjoyed themselves so much that our exploration of this text will now continue by popular demand.
To read Milton´s Paradise Lost is to embark on an extraordinary adventure. You will meet a truly wonderful cast of characters including Adam, Eve, God, Satan (who might perhaps even be the true hero of this text), a whole crowd of bizarre devils, Death, Sin and large numbers of well-meaning but sometimes not terribly intelligent angels. Be prepared to think about a wide range of issues: How can a successful and popular angel end up with a new career as a senior devil? Are angels vegetarians? What are this text’s implications in terms of politics and gender roles? Is our planet the centre of the universe, and does it matter? Why does Milton’s poem still fascinate readers, why can it be enjoyed by both deeply religious people of all persuasions and by sceptics and atheists? How and why did evil come into the world? How can devils stand hell’s hellish heat? What are the typical conventions of epic poetry, and how does Milton play with them? Is there sex in heaven?
Please buy one the following editions (and none other): John Milton (ed. Alastair Fowler), Paradise Lost. Longman Annotated English Poets (recommended!) or John Milton (ed. Gordon Teskey), Paradise Lost. Norton Critical Editions.Useful background knowledge on key cultural and literary contexts of Milton´s time can be found here: Christoph Heyl, Kleine Englische Literaturgeschichte. J.B. Metzler. ISBN-13: 978-3476045096.
Requirements: preparation for each session, active participation, and, if applicable, written work/exam according to your particular Studienordnung. As always: think, enjoy (!), annotate, and look things up if necessary.
Just in case your application is rejected by the LSF system: If you want to do this course because you are genuinely interested, you will be most welcome, no matter what LSF says. Please get in touch with claudia.hausmann@uni-due.de who will enrol you manually. The worst that might happen to you is that you cannot do a Leistungsnachweis if you lack the formal requirements. |
