Post-Reformation · 1671

Samson Agonistes

John Milton (1608-1674)

Milton wrote his last major poem after the Restoration had ended Puritan rule and left him blind, politically disgraced, and living under surveillance in London. The drama follows Samson during his captivity in Gaza through a series of confrontations: with fellow Israelites who mourn his fall, his father Manoa who seeks to ransom him, his wife Dalila who offers reconciliation, and the Philistine giant Harapha who comes to mock him. The poem is modeled on Greek tragedy and its real subject is Samson's inner movement from spiritual despair to renewed trust in God, culminating in his final act at the Philistine temple.

1 hr total · 6 chapters