Evidence: | [Marginalia in Keats's annotated copy of "Paradise Lost", Book 7, lines 420-34] Keats underlines the phrase "With clang despised the ground, under a cloud/ In prospect." He writes: 'Milton in every instance pursues his imagination to the utmost - he is "sagacious of his Quarry", he sees Beauty on the wing, pounces upon it and gorges it to the producing of his essential verse. "So from the root the springs lighter the green stalk," etc. But in no instance is this sort of perseverance more exemplified than in what may be called his stationing or statuary. He is not content with simple description, he must station, - thus here, we not only see how the Birds "with clang despised the ground" but we see them "under a cloud in prospect." So we see Adam "Fair indeed and tall - under a plantane" - and so we see Satan "disfigured - on the Assyrian Mount." This last with all its accompaniments, and keeping in mind the Theory of Spirits' eyes and the simile of Gallilio [sic], has a dramatic vastness and solemnity fit and worthy to hold one amazed in the midst of this "Paradise Lost" -' |
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Century: | 1800-1849 | ||||||||||
Date: | unknown | ||||||||||
Country: | unknown | ||||||||||
Time: | n/a | ||||||||||
Place: | n/a | ||||||||||
Type of Experience (Reader): |
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Type of Experience (Listener): |
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Reader: | John Keats |
Age | Adult (18-100+) |
Gender | Male |
Date of Birth | 31 Oct 1795 |
Socio-economic group: | Professional / academic / merchant / farmer |
Occupation: | poet |
Religion: | atheist |
Country of origin: | England |
Country of experience: | unknown |
Listeners present if any: (e.g. family, servants,
friends, workmates) |
n/a |
Additional comments: | n/a |
Author: | John Milton |
Title: | Paradise Lost |
Genre: | Other religious, Poetry |
Form of Text: | Print: Book |
Publication details: | n/a |
Provenance: | owned |
Record ID: | 22617 | |
Source - | ||
Author: | John Keats | |
Editor: | John Barnard | |
Title: | John Keats: The Complete Poems | |
Place of Publication: | London | |
Date of Publication: | 1988 | |
Vol: | n/a | |
Page: | 525 | |
Additional comments: | The marginalia is transcribed in Appendix 4 of this edition |
Citation: | John Keats, John Barnard (ed.), John Keats: The Complete Poems (London, 1988), p. 525, http://can-red-lec.library.dal.ca/Arts/reading/recorddetails2.php?id=22617, accessed: 20 April 2024 |
Reading Experience Database version 2.0. Page updated: 27th Apr 2016 3:15pm (GMT)