Milton's Socratic Rationalism: The Conversations of Adam and Eve in Paradise Lost (Politics, Literature, & Film)

The conversation of Adam and Eve in Paradise Lost, that most obvious of Milton's additions to the Biblical narrative, enacts the pair's inquiry into and discovery of the gift of their rational nature in a mode of discourse closely aligned to practices of Socrates in the dialogues of Plato and eponymous discourses of Xenophon. Adam and Eve both begin their life "much wondering where\ And what I was, whence thither brought and how.” Their conjoint discoveries of each other's and their own nature in this talk Milton arranges for a in dialectical counterpoise to his persona's expressed task "to justify the ways of God to men." Like Xenophon's Socrates in the Memorabilia , Milton's persona indites those "ways of God" in terms most agreeable to his audience of "men"––notions Aristotle calls "generally accepted opinions." Thus for Milton's "fit audience" Paradise Lost will present two ways––that address congenial to men per se , and a fit discourse attuned to their very own rational faculties––to understand "the ways of God to men." The interrogation of each way by its counterpart among the distinct audiences is the "great Argument" of the poem. Contents Socratic rationalism and the problem of audience An excursus on the “difficulties” in the criticism Maimonides’ Guide for the Perplexed Notes Chapter 1 Preliminaries An argument in the poem An argument in the Verse Some doubtful matters in the Verse An argument for the Verse Two learned friends Discerning a reason in rhyming verses a method of inquiry in Xenophon’s Memorabilia 4.6 The virtues of a Socratic rationalism in Paradise Lost Notes Chapter 2 Prologue Notes Chapter 3 Eve’s First Words Framing the Narrative “Under a Platan” Socratic self-knowledge Ovid’s parody and Milton’s Platonic translation “And wisdom, which alone is truly fair” (4.491) Notes Chapter 4 An Interlude His “pleaded reason[s]” (8.510) “With thee conversing, I forget all time,” (4.639) “His own works and their works at once to view” (3.59) Adam: “nor think, though men were none . . .” (4.675) Narrative presence: “all things to man’s delightful use” (4.692) Raphael: “the end\Of all yet done” (7.505–506) Adam: “something yet of doubt remains . . .” (8.13) Notes Chapter 5 Becoming Dear Nature Augustine and Aquinas: On Providence and the gift of Nature “My sudden apprehension” Providence Learning “by conversation with his like” Dreaming Desiring Judging “peculiar graces” (5.15) “Joining and disjoining” (5.106) Notes Chapter 6 “No More of Talk” (9.1) “[Their] happy state” (5.234) An excursus: “the shady spaces of philosophy” “Happy though thou art\ Happier thou may’st be” (5.75–76) An afterword Notes Note Scriptural Texts Works in Greek and Latin Commentary and Criticism About the Author The conversation of Adam and Eve in Paradise Lost, that most obvious of Milton's additions to the Biblical narrative, enacts the pair's inquiry into and discovery of the gift of their rational nature in a mode of discourse closely aligned to practices of Socrates in the dialogues of Plato and eponymous discourses of Xenophon. Adam and Eve both begin their life "much wondering where / And what I was, whence thither brought and how." In this discourse and their joint discoveries of their nature's, Milton arranges a dialectical counterpoise to his persona's expressed task "to justify the ways of God to men." Like Xenophon's Socrates in Memorabilia, Milton's persona indites those "ways of God" in terms most agreeable to his audience of "men"-notions Aristotle calls "generally accepted opinions." Thus for Milton's "fit audience" Paradise Lost will present two ways-that address congenial to men per se, and a fit discourse attuned to their very own rational faculties-to understand "the ways of God to men." The interrogation of each way by its counterpart among the distinct audiences is the "great Argument" of the poem. Book jacket Milton's Socratic Rationalism focuses on the influence of Milton's years of private study of classical authors, chiefly Plato, Xenophon and Aristotle, on Paradise Lost. It examines the conversations of Adam and Eve as a mode of discourse closely aligned to practices of Socrates in the dialogues of Plato and eponymous discourses of Xenophon.