Chapters in this book

1. Frontmatter i
2. Contents ix
3. Preface and Acknowledgments xi
4. PART ONE: MILTON
5. 1. The Undertaking 3
6. 2. School and the Gils 12
7. 3. An Anxious Young Man 25
8. 4. Ambitions 35
9. 5. Milton’s Syllabus 49
10. 6. Securing a Reputation 66
11. 7. Two Problematic Books 82
12. 8. Systematic Theology 89
13. 9. Drafts for Dramas 105
14. 10. Two Competitors: Davenant and Cowley 117
15. 11. Going Blind 128
16. 12. The Undertaking, Revisited 140
17. 13. Bibliographical Interlude: Publishing Paradise Lost 146
18. PART TWO: PARADISE LOST
19. 14. Structure 161
20. 15. Creating a Universe 172
21. 16. Epic Disruption 190
22. 17. Military Epic 201
23. 18. Scientific Epic 213
24. 19. Pastoral Tragedy 228
25. 20. Contamination and Doubles 242
26. 21. Justifying the Ways of God to Men 264
27. 22. Becoming a Classic 281
28. Appendix: Milton’s Classroom Authors 297
29. Notes 301
30. Index 357