In Book 3 of John Milton’s epic “Paradise Lost,” the focus shifts dramatically from the fiery depths of Hell to the serene grandeur of Heaven. Milton opens with an invoca⋯ Read the full article

In Book 2 of John Milton’s “Paradise Lost,” Satan presides over a grand council within Pandæmonium, the capital of Hell. Recently cast out of Heaven, the rebel angels gat⋯ Read the full article

John Milton’s “Paradise Lost” is a grandiose epic poem first published in 1667, and Book 1 sets the stage for the entire narrative. It begins with the famous invocation t⋯ Read the full article

In “Holy Sonnet 2,” John Donne presents a speaker who acknowledges the many ways in which he belongs to God—as child, servant, and precious creation—yet laments how easil⋯ Read the full article

In “Loves Deitie,” John Donne contemplates the elusive nature of love and its spiritual or quasi-divine power. The speaker begins by describing his inability to understan⋯ Read the full article

In “Goodfriday, 1613. Riding Westward,” John Donne contemplates the tension between worldly obligations and spiritual devotion. While physically heading west on Good Frid⋯ Read the full article

In “The Ecstasy,” John Donne meditates on the profound connection between lovers that transcends mere physical attraction. The poem begins with the lovers seated on a ban⋯ Read the full article

In “A Valediction: of Weeping,” John Donne explores the powerful interplay between sorrow and love when two souls are about to part. He likens tears to minted coins, carr⋯ Read the full article

In “Holy Sonnet 1,” John Donne pleads for God’s help, fearing both physical and spiritual decline. The speaker recognizes God as his creator, worried that what God has ma⋯ Read the full article

In “Holy Sonnet 17,” John Donne grieves the loss of a beloved figure—likely his wife—but also discovers a deepened commitment to God in the process. At first, the speaker⋯ Read the full article

John Donne’s “Holy Sonnet 7,” commonly identified by its opening line “At the round earth’s imagin’d corners,” envisions the final resurrection and the reunion of souls w⋯ Read the full article

In John Donne’s “Holy Sonnet 5,” the speaker envisions himself as a microcosm—a “little world” composed of earthly elements and a heavenly soul. Donne laments that this w⋯ Read the full article

In John Donne’s “Hymn to God My God in My Sickness,” the poet grapples with the nearness of death and the profound mystery of the afterlife. Composed when Donne believed ⋯ Read the full article

John Donne’s “Elegy XIX,” often modernly referred to as “To His Mistress Going to Bed,” is one of the most sensual and unabashed poems in the English Renaissance canon. W⋯ Read the full article

In “Song (Go and catch a falling star),” John Donne conjures a list of fanciful or impossible endeavors—catching a falling star, impregnating a mandrake root—and then equ⋯ Read the full article