Fellow blogger William Wildblood from Meeting the Masters has been reading Paradise Lost for the first time and has written a couple of engaging reflections upon the experience here and here.
I read Paradise Lost about twenty-five years ago. Though I remember the overall narrative of the poem, the major themes, and, of course, most of the characters (or rather how Milton depicted them), the passage of time has washed away the subtler aspects of the work from my memory. I suppose this accounts for my interest in William's posts on John Milton's magnum opus; they have served to remind me that Paradise Lost truly is epic work, in every sense of the word.
Though it is common knowledge, not everyone who reads Paradise Lost for the first time is aware that John Milton was blind when he "wrote" it, and that writing for Milton essentially boiled down to dictating the poem to various amanuenses, a group that apparently included his own daughters. Whether or not Milton actually dictated the poem to his daughters is debatable, but the notion captured the attention of the public and many painters made the scene a subject for painting all the same.
The first artist to depict the scene (as far as I can tell) was the Swiss born English painter Henry Fuseli.
I read Paradise Lost about twenty-five years ago. Though I remember the overall narrative of the poem, the major themes, and, of course, most of the characters (or rather how Milton depicted them), the passage of time has washed away the subtler aspects of the work from my memory. I suppose this accounts for my interest in William's posts on John Milton's magnum opus; they have served to remind me that Paradise Lost truly is epic work, in every sense of the word.
Though it is common knowledge, not everyone who reads Paradise Lost for the first time is aware that John Milton was blind when he "wrote" it, and that writing for Milton essentially boiled down to dictating the poem to various amanuenses, a group that apparently included his own daughters. Whether or not Milton actually dictated the poem to his daughters is debatable, but the notion captured the attention of the public and many painters made the scene a subject for painting all the same.
The first artist to depict the scene (as far as I can tell) was the Swiss born English painter Henry Fuseli.
Henry Fuseli - Milton Dictating to His Daughter - 1794
I respect Fuseli's overall romantic vision and there is much to be said for the masterful way he uses light and shadow to convey mood, but I find his depiction of Milton to be a little bizarre. The blank eyes were surely Fuseli's way of conveying Milton's blindness to the viewer, but it was a poor choice in my estimation. Milton's eyes glow in the painting, giving him the ghostly air of a possessed man. Sure, one could argue the haunting depiction is a masterstroke because it captures the otherworldly quality of Milton's genius, but for me Fuseli pushes this aspect too hard, to the point that he succeeds in making Milton look like Jacob Marley from Dickens' A Christmas Carol (yes, I know Jacob Marley came much later, but you get the idea). Milton's ghostly presence appears even more ghostly when contrasted to the other two figures in the painting. Nevertheless, I still like the painting very much
Eugene Delacroix - Milton Dictating Paradise Lost to His Daughters - 1826
Best known for his painting Liberty Leading the People, Delacroix was a master of creating scenes saturated with romantic energy, but his depiction of Milton speaking out Paradise Lost while one of his daughters records his works seems to contain everything but romantic energy. Don't get me wrong, I admire the painting and recognize the beauty Delacroix presents here, but the scene is rather flat (even with the image of Adam and Eve being expelled from Paradise in the background). The daughter doing the writing wears an intense expression as she listens to her father, but Milton himself appears somewhat listless. For all I know, he could be dictating his shopping list rather than his magnum opus. Having said that, the portrayal is probably realistic - this is probably what Milton actually looked like when he dictated the poem, but romantic painting is not about depicting everything realistically, so in this sense I humbly feel Delacroix comes up short.
Mihály Munkácsy - Blind Milton Dictating Paradise Lost to his Daughters - 1878
In my opinion, Mihály Munkácsy's Blind Milton Dictating Paradise Lost to His Daughters is the best depiction of the scene, and no, I don't think so simply because Munkácsy was Hungarian! To begin with, Munkácsy chooses to depict Milton's blindness in a subtle way - the eyes are not glowing, nor are they simply closed, but rather obscured by shadow as he broodingly "focuses" on the space before him as he dictates. Milton's posture is one of intense concentration, the tension apparent in the clenched right hand he holds before his chest.
When I look at Munkácsy's Milton I get the sense the figure in the painting really is dictating something epic. This is mirrored by the postures and expressions of the three daughters all three of whom appear to be completely engrossed by what their father is speaking to them. Look at the way the one recording the words leans forward in her chair, indicating complete dedication and interest. She is quite literally hanging on every word Milton utters. Now in all fairness, Munkacsy had the benefit of seeing the other two works before he composed his own rendition of the scene, and I imagine he studied both to some extent before he began his own composition.
What do you think? Is Munkácsy's scene the best, or are you more partial to either Fuseli's version or Delacroix's depiction?
Well, examining these three paintings inspired by William Wildblood's posts only serves to remind me I must reread Paradise Lost soon. Unfortunately, my to-read stack of books already touches the ceiling, so I am not sure when I will get to Milton's massive epic again.
When I look at Munkácsy's Milton I get the sense the figure in the painting really is dictating something epic. This is mirrored by the postures and expressions of the three daughters all three of whom appear to be completely engrossed by what their father is speaking to them. Look at the way the one recording the words leans forward in her chair, indicating complete dedication and interest. She is quite literally hanging on every word Milton utters. Now in all fairness, Munkacsy had the benefit of seeing the other two works before he composed his own rendition of the scene, and I imagine he studied both to some extent before he began his own composition.
What do you think? Is Munkácsy's scene the best, or are you more partial to either Fuseli's version or Delacroix's depiction?
Well, examining these three paintings inspired by William Wildblood's posts only serves to remind me I must reread Paradise Lost soon. Unfortunately, my to-read stack of books already touches the ceiling, so I am not sure when I will get to Milton's massive epic again.
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