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Article: Theatrical wonder, amazement, and the construction of spiritual agency in Paradise Lost.
- Article from:
- Comparative Drama
- Article date:
- March 22, 2006
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2006 www.wmich.edu/compdr. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Criticism that addresses the presence of theatrical language and imagery in Miltons later poems is usually one of two types. The first type considers the ways in which the later poems incorporate dramatic conventions and criticize or redefine particular theatrical genres. Issues of genre are especially relevant to Samson Agonistes, a tragedy "never intended" for the stage. (1) Essays by D. M. Rosenberg, John D. Cox, and Peggy Samuels all explain ways in which Samson engages with the dramatic conventions of the Restoration and especially the work of Dryden. An alternative path is followed by Elizabeth Sauer, who looks at Samson specifically as a closet drama and examines ...