Paradise Lost

nothing book was not for me

I am VERY (VERY VERY) skeptical about Kindle editions that say that they are "annotated." I don't know how many I've returned because the "annotations" were a biographical sketch, an editor's preface, some historical notes at the beginning, a table of chronology, and links in the text that really didn't work (well or at all). I cannot believe that this edition cost less than $10.00. It is LOADED with valuable textual, historical, biblical, theological, literary notes, as well as glosses on interpretation and vocabulary (even explaining things like what "shrouds and tackle" are. Because of the way the Kindle version is paginated, it's a little hard to measure, but when I checked the first 3 books of Paradise Lost in this edition, Book 1 (33 pages of the poem) was followed by 33 pages of notes Book 2 (38 pages of the poem) was followed by 29 pages of notes Book 3 (29 pages of the poem) was followed by 30 pages of notes And, yes, the text is referenced by page numbers as well as locations. The design of this eBook even takes into account how you might use it as a student: the pages with Milton's arguments and the actual text of Paradise Lost have page number references, but when you go to the notes at the end of each chapter, the Kindle version stops counting pages. So, for example, the last line of Book 3 is found on page 77, but when you get to the notes section, all 30 pages are numbered page 77. You might not agree with this methodology (I like it), but it shows that whoever assembled this eBook actually THOUGHT about what might make it useful. It is a model for other eBooks. Because I am coming back to Paradise Lost after studying it in graduate school more than 40 years ago, I am ENTHUSIASTIC about having an eBook that helps me in this way. And I am enjoying Paradise Lost like I never enjoyed it in grad school. And for $9.56?????

追記）2017/11/2 ようやく読了。といっても1/3位しか理解できませんでした。これから、失楽園 (岩波文庫）と照合します。最初から翻訳書と併読していたら読めなかったと思います。 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 以下は「 Hackett Pub Co Inc; 3rd Revised版」のレヴューです。間違いないよう。（AmazonのLinkが壊れてます。） ShakespeareのHamletとリア王を研究社の日本語注釈書（対訳本）で読めたので以前2回もTryして挫折したMiltonに再挑戦。 Paradise Lostの人気のある注釈書としては下記4書（CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platformは本文のみ） (1) Penguin Classics（2000）・・・注釈は巻末 簡潔 昔購入 注釈頁が剝がれ落ちそう。 (2) Oxford World's Classics（2004）・・・注釈は脚注 簡潔 (3) 本書 （2005）・・・注釈は脚注 懇切丁寧 (4) Dover（2005）・・・注釈は巻末 なので購入してません リア王は1日10頁、難解なHamletでも5頁読めたのにParadise Lostは日本語注釈書（対訳本）が無いのでPenguin Classicsで1～2頁しか読めない。小生は理系。数学や物理の本（大、大院）は数式中心のため英語は易しく高1ﾚｳﾞｪﾙの英語で十分、辞書もほぼ不要。企業に入って部品のManualを読む必要があったが中3ﾚｳﾞｪﾙの英語の読解力があれば読める。但し頁が分厚いので速く読まねば仕事にならない。 久しぶりの文学書しかも超難解なParadise Lost。知らない単語ばかりで辞書と格闘。(1)のみでは不十分なので(2)も購入。更にもっと分り易い本を探して本書にたどり着いた。注釈はPenguinより詳しい。 これから読み始めますが、本書はﾍﾟｰﾊﾟﾊﾞｯｸで頁が剝がれ落ちるのは目に見えているので ・Main Text・・・「Paradise Lost: Slip-case Edition」( Arcturus Pub) ギュスターヴ・ドレの挿絵が入った函入豪華本。注釈無し ・Sub Text・・・本書 ・聖書・・・新共同訳 大型ハーフボリュームバイブル 聖書はParadise Lostを読むのに必需品です。 としました。生きている内に読めるか分かりませんが何とか読みたいものです。

The best way to read one of the foundational classics of the Western world is to take a class at a university from a professor who specializes in Milton and baroque English authors. The second best way is to buy an edition like this one and read everything between the covers. Paradise Lost plumbs deeply the Greeks, Romans, the Bible and other religious and secular literature. In addition, it is a commentary on the English monarchy and the storm that overtook it with the execution of Charles I in 1649. Milton played a role in that drama, and it is embedded in Paradise Lost. By the time he started writing, a restoration was afoot, and Milton had to be careful not to indict himself for his enemies, who were looking for an excuse to arrest him. In other words, to simply read only the surface story is to miss almost everything, though the story itself is wonderfully told. I read the Kindle edition. That made it easy to pop from text to notes as they came up, deepening my understanding, but a paper book with a couple of bookmarks would be almost as easy. Paradise Lost is the work of a believer, and if you are a believer not afraid to read outside the Bible, your efforts will be rewarded. If you are a lover of literature, as I am, this is the mother lode! Paradise Lost is written in verse. This version modifies the English for modern readers. Even so, it will be a project. Set goals, stick with it, and you will be rewarded. I came to look forward to my nightly reading. My goal was 100 lines a night. Usually, though, I went over. If you've ever wanted to read one of the big ones, read Paradise Lost. It's not a classic just because bookish scholars like it!

With two Master's in English, I was afraid to read this book, even at age 65! I finally gave in and began to read it and I am SO glad I did. The translators gave notes to obscure words and there were notes at the bottom of each page to direct you to information about Milton's political opinions and biblical references. I read past the political references because I felt they were irrelevant to the true message of the book. After reading the book, I feel closer to God than I ever have.