Being a devout Christian, a reasonable freethinker, and a popular writer with a political conscience, John Milton took on the ambitious task of writing a modern Christian epic in English , inspired by the classic pagan tradition of epic verse. Undeterred by his visual handicap, Milton published the first edition of Paradise Lost in 1667, in the Restoration era. Given his skill, his commitment, the sheer quality and diverse connotations of the poem, Milton was therefore given his due as one of the most important literary figures to emerge from the seventeenth century, so much so that, for the purposes of academic classification, much of The era bears his name. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an original essay Paradise Lost emulates the epic tradition by beginning the poem with an invocation, which also serves as an introduction to the twelve-book poem with a succinct overview of the premises, themes, and goals. Here, and throughout the entire poem, Milton is seen to consistently emphasize the newness and superior nature of his subject, intent, and character; affirming the sentiment that distinguishes Paradise Lost from its epic-style predecessors. This might be considered due presumption on the part of the poet, for after all, unlike the ancient classical epics, which on the surface were merely glorious indications of historical themes and legends, Paradise Lost, as Samuel Barrow points out, is the "story of all things.” Because Milton, armed with the power of faith, attempts to understand almost everything, from God, Heaven, Hell, creation, the origin of man, to the future of our world, in his verses. while working on the basic biblical premise. In the process, it includes subtle opinions on pertinent ideas such as predestination, free will, existentialism, polarity in mythology, and various metaphysical concepts, to create a grand picture of fantastic imagery and insights this purpose also makes use of numerous popular references and, since the subject is biblical, it appropriately works on the reader's foreknowledge regarding them, which is obviously on a par with the epic tradition. From the very first line Milton makes the lapsarian theme of Paradise Lost – “Of man's first disobedience”, and it is seen throughout the poem, that Milton continues to emphasize the concept of 'obedience' and the repercussions of failure to adhere to it, whether through fallen angels or prime mortals. He then goes on to talk about the infamous “fruit of the forbidden tree,” which effectively “brought death into the world,” even though God already knew how these events would happen. However, throughout the poem, Milton emphasizes a certain logic that despite this, man actually had free will, and thus states his view on Calvinist doctrines. Milton also traces all human suffering to the fruit, as the source of "all our troubles" and the reason behind Adam and Eve's eviction from the Paradise of Eden. Then comes the first reference to the Son of God as "a greater man", who will restore humanity to its rightful place, thus alluding to the regaining of Paradise. Thus, summarizing the entire biblical plot in these few lines, Milton then proceeds to evoke his muse, Urania, "the celestial"; however, he does not explicitly mention his name until halfway through the poem in Book VII, where he seeks his guidance to continue his tale from Earth after describing the great battle of the immortals in Heaven. Urania as a muse was known to inspire the prophets of Israel such as Moses himself, the man who freed the Israelites from Egypt and passed on God's commandments to them. Here, through references to Moses and other biblical places”