Paradise Lost

Enter the grand, dramatic world of Paradise Lost, where angels clash, heaven trembles, and humanity’s fate hangs in the balance. In this six-week Zoom course, we will explore John Milton’s powerful epic in a clear, engaging, and accessible way—no prior experience required. Together, we’ll follow the story of Satan’s rebellion, Adam and Eve’s choices, and the timeless questions Milton raises about freedom, temptation, and resilience.

Recommended text: Milton, John, Paradise Lost, ed. Gordon Teskey (Norton Critical Edition), ISBN: 978-0393617085. Students may use a different text if its diction is the 1674 model.

Paul Kalkstein studied Paradise Lost at Princeton with Tom Roche and Robert Fagles. He taught it for many years to seniors at Phillips Academy, Andover.