John Milton
John Milton
John Miltonwas an English poet, polemicist, and man of letters, and a civil servant for the Commonwealth of England under Oliver Cromwell. He wrote at a time of religious flux and political upheaval, and is best known for his epic poem Paradise Lost, written in blank verse...
NationalityEnglish
ProfessionPoet
Date of Birth9 December 1608
gorgeous presenting sometime sweeping tale tragedy
Sometime let gorgeous Tragedy / In sceptred pall come sweeping by, / Presenting Thebes, or Pelops' line, / Or the tale of Troy divine.
art knitting listen loose thou thy train twisted
Sabrina fair, / Listen where thou art sitting/ Under the glassy, cool, translucent wave, / In twisted braids of lilies knitting / The loose train of thy amber-dropping hair.
astray behold head highest led near riding wandering wide
To behold the wandering moon, / Riding near her highest noon, / Like one that had been led astray / Through the heav'n's wide pathless way; / And oft, as if her head she bowed, / Stooping through a fleecy cloud.
busy cities hum please
Towered cities please us then / And the busy hum of men.
bore champion faithful hath hide oft returns seems witness
Oft he seems to hide his face, / But unexpectedly returns / And to his faithful champion hath in place / Bore witness gloriously.
country herbs
Of herbs and other country messes, / Which the neat-handed Phyllis dresses.
heard nor sound
Nor war, or battle's sound / Was heard the world around.
love nor permit short thou thy
Nor love thy life, nor hate; but what thou liv'st, Live well, how long or short permit to heav'n
attic bird notes retirement summer
The olive-grove of Academe, / Plato's retirement, where the Attic bird / Trills her thick-warbled notes the summer long.
shades
Fled / Murmuring, and with him fled the shades of night.
cricket far resort save
Far from all resort of mirth, / Save the cricket on the hearth!
farewell fields hail happy joy
Farewell happy fields / Where joy for ever dwells: Hail horrors, hail!
affected cloak dull fear luke name seldom themselves
Fear and dull disposition, luke warmness and sloth, are not seldom wont to cloak themselves under the affected name of Moderation.
above christmas eternal great happy maid mother redemption son
This is the month, and this the happy morn, wherein the Son of heaven's eternal King, of wedded Maid and Virgin Mother born, our great redemption from above did bring.