Poetry of revolution : the poetic representation of political conflict and transition in Milton’s Paradise Lost and Marvell’s Cromwell Poems
Date
2007-03
Authors
Le Roux, Selene
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Stellenbosch : University of Stellenbosch
Abstract
Seventeenth-century England witnessed a time of radical sociopolitical
conflict and transition. This thesis aims to examine how
two writers closely associated with this period and its
controversies, John Milton and Andrew Marvell, represent events
as they unfold. This thesis focuses specifically on Milton’s
Paradise Lost and Marvell’s Cromwellian poems in order to show
how these poets reinterpret established literary conventions and
invoke traditional Puritan practices in order to explain and
legitimise the precarious new dispensation of post-Civil War
England. At the same time, their work produces ambiguities and
tensions that threaten to undermine the very discourse that they
attempt to endorse. Both poets’ work indicates an active
involvement in the political embroilments of their time while
retaining its aesthetic value. Therefore, these texts do not only
function on an aesthetic level but also within the historical
framework of political ideologies.
The focus of this thesis is a discussion of the relationship
between politics and poetry, with the emphasis on poetry of conflict and transition in civil society. In other words, it is not
only considered how different poetic genres reflect social and
political change in different ways but also how these genres in
turn contribute to political rhetoric. During the English Revolution Milton and Marvell try to provide solutions for the
political disturbance, even while remaining aware of the new
conflicts produced in the attempt.
Description
Thesis (MA (English Literature))--University of Stellenbosch, 2007.
Keywords
Dissertations -- English literature, Theses -- English literature, Milton, John,1608-1674. Paradise Lost, Marvell, Andrew,1621-1678 -- Criticism and interpretation, Milton, John,1608-1674 -- Political and social views, Marvell, Andrew,1621-1678 -- Political and social views, Politics and literature