Group 3

IV- Kepler

Bagood, Rafael Alberto M.

Estorco, Anatole II T.
Alino, Jemima M.
Castillo, Mary Elizah D.
Letrondo, Angel Joy R.
 John Milton
Born: Bread Street, London
(middle – class family)

English poet, polemicist, man of letters, and a

civil servant for the Commonwealth under Oliver
Cromwell

His poetry and prose reflect:

•deep personal convictions,
December 9, 1608- November 8, 1674
•passion for freedom,
• self-determination, John Milton's eyesight began to
fail in 1644. By 1652, he was totally
•urgent issues, and
blind. Oddly, he wrote his
•political turbulence greatest works.

Schools: St. Paul’ School and Christ’s College,

where he wrote in English, Latin, Greek, and
Italian.
John Milton
Some of his known works:
 Paradise Lost (1667), written in blank verse
 Areopagitica (1644), written in condemnation of pre-
publication censorship

 He had been steadily declining for years, most likely the

result of untreated glaucoma

 Completely got blind on May 5, 1652

 Died of gout at the age of 65

Why was the poem written?
“On His Blindness” is an autobiographical sonnet in which
John Milton meditates on his own loss of sight. It is said to be
written on 1964, the time in which the poet suffered complete
blindness.

The poem is considered to be a sonnet. This sonnet is written

in the “Petrarchan” rhyme scheme associated with the
fourteenth-century Italian poet Francesco Petrarca. Its
rhyming scheme is ABBA, ABBA, CDE and CDE.

In structure, the sonnet is a typical Petrarchan sonnet.

Nevertheless, its subject matter departs from that of
Petrarchan poems. While Petrarca was famous for writing
poems about love, Milton deals with very practical and
physical problem but still contain many spiritual
implications.
 On His Blindness
When I consider how my light is spent
Ere half my days in this dark world and wide,
And that one Talent which is death to hide
Lodged with me useless, though my soul more bent
To serve therewith my Maker, and present
My true account, lest He returning chide,
“Doth God exact day-labour, light denied?”
I fondly ask. But Patience, to prevent
That murmur, soon replies, “God doth not need
Either man’s work or his own gifts. Who best
Bear his mild yoke, they serve him best. His state
Is kingly: thousands at his bidding speed,
And post o’er land and ocean without rest;
They also serve who only stand and wait.”
Line 1-2 (analysis)
When I consider how my light is spent,
Ere half my days, in this dark world and wide,

 The speaker thinks about how all of his light has been used up ("spent") before
even half his life is over. As a man without light, he now lives in a world that is
both "dark and wide.“
 When he thinks about how he spent or use his eyesight, the speaker was
lamenting his bad luck that was brought by his late-night reading and writing.
 Finally, calling the world "dark and wide“. Interestingly, Milton makes it seem
as if the world has run out of light, rather than growing dark because of any
blindness on his part.
 The first word of the poem “When” gives us a feeling of suspense. It is a
subordinate clause that opens a box of ideas on what could follow. However, the
follow-up of the first line came only until the seventh and eight line.
 The word "ere" means "before." He became blind before his life was
halfway over. Milton went completely blind at the age of 42.
Line 3-4 (analysis)
And that one Talent which is death to hide
Lodged with me useless,

 When Milton says that talent is "death to hide," he is referring to

the money in the Biblical story and also to his own "talent," in the
sense of a skill or trade.
 The talent that he talks about could be his intelligence and his
writing and reading skills, which he had used in service of Oliver
Cromwell's government. This "talent" is "lodged" or buried within
the speaker just like the money in the story, "The Parable of
Talents."
Line 4-6 (analysis)
though my Soul more bent
To serve therewith my Maker, and present
My true account, lest he returning chide;
 The speaker has just told us that his talent is as useless as money
buried in the desert, but now he says that his uselessness has
nothing to do with a lack of will. To the contrary, his soul
desires (is "bent") to use his skills in the service of his "Maker,"
God.
 The word "account" here means both" story" and "a record of
activities with money."
 The speaker worries that God will scold or "chide" him. And if
God is anything like the lord from the parable, the speaker could
get cast into a darkness even more fearful than the one created
by his blindness.
Line 7-8 (analysis)
"Doth God exact day-labour, light denied?"
I fondly ask. […]
 He wonders if God demands that people undertake hard,
physical work, or "day-labour," when they don't have any
light.
 The speaker doesn't have any light because he's blind
 The word "exact" means something like "charge," "claim,"
or "demand." So the speaker wants to know if God
demands work as a kind of payment that is due to Him.
 The first section of the poem is completed by the words "I
fondly ask." The word "fondly" means "foolishly," not
"lovingly." The speaker accuses himself of being an idiot for
even thinking this question.
Line 8–10 (analysis)
But patience, to prevent
That murmur, soon replies, "God doth not need
Either man's work or his own gifts; who best

 Patience is often personified in Christian art because of its

role in helping one to achieve important virtues like
courage and wisdom.
 The speaker is about to "murmur" his foolish question, but
then his patience steps in to stop him.
 Patience points out that God does not need anything. God
is complete and perfect. He doesn't need work or talents
("gifts") of any kind.
Line 11 (analysis)
Bear his mild yoke, they serve him best.
[…]
Essentially, this means accepting things as they come,
especially suffering and misfortune.
A "yoke" is a wood frame that is placed around the
necks of farm animals, like oxen, so that they can be
directed.
Patience doesn't want to make God sound like a slave
driver, so God's yoke is called "mild," or not-that-bad.
It's not how much you have to show for your time on
earth that counts, it's how you handle your submission
to God.
Line 11-14 (analysis)
His state
Is Kingly. Thousands at his bidding speed
And post o'er Land and Ocean without rest:
They also serve who only stand and wait."
 The final point made by patience is that God is more like a king than a lord
thus the parable does not strictly apply .
 Kings have unlimited resources, especially if they control a "state" as large as
the entire earth.
 With His kingly status, God has plenty of minions to do His "bidding" by
rushing from place to place.
 Unlike lords, kings also have people who "wait" on them, who stand in a state
of readiness until their action is needed.
 The word "post" here just means "to travel quickly."
 The poem ends with a vindication of the speaker's passivity, which has been
forced on him by his blindness.
Poetic Elements : FORM

“On His Blindness” is an example of

Petrarchan sonnet in structure since it
followed an octave-sestet style. Since it a
sonnet, it would also follow that the poem is
an example of a lyric poetry.
Poetic Elements : Rhythm
All the lines in the poem are in iambic pentameter. In
this metric pattern, a line has five pairs of unstressed
and stressed syllables, for a total of ten syllables. The
first two lines of the poem illustrate this pattern:
1...........2........... ……3............4................5 …..
When I | con SID | er HOW.| my LIFE | is SPENT
1.....................2.............. 3.....................4....................5
Ere HALF | my DAYS | in THIS | dark WORLD.| and
WIDE
Poetic Elements : Voice

The voice of this poem is a man who is seething with

frustration with his incapability of serving God
profitably.
Poetic Elements : IMAGERY

The poem focuses on the sense of sight or rather the

loss of it. The voice of the poem laments on his loss
of sight and how this problem could affect his poetic
talent. At the beginning, the voice helps us picture
out a world that is dark and wide then at the end, it
help us imagined God with His angels doing his
bidding and human at His side singing praise for
Him.
Poetic Elements : SOUND
Since the poem is a Petrarchan sonnet, the poem
could be divided into two parts: the octave and the
sestet. The octave follows a rhyming pattern of
a/b/b/a/a/b/b/a while the sestet follows the rhyming
patter of a/b/c/a/b/c
Themes
Guilt and Blame
 The speaker is guilty for he thinks he wasted the gift that
God has given him by doing late-night reading and writing.
He feels guilty because he thinks that due to his blindness,
he could not anymore serve his purpose. He thinks that
because of the loss of his eyesight, his poetic talent would
be buried deep into his soul and would not anymore see
the light of the day.

Dreams, Hopes, and Plans

 Before the speaker has gone blind, he had high hopes. He
planned on serving God profitably and using his talent for
prosperity. However, due to him getting blind at a young
age, all his hopes was replaced by his self-doubt.
Themes
 Virtue
Patience was emphasized in the poem. Patience is an important
virtue because it is due to this that we achieved the others. If we do
not have any patience to do something then we could never depart
from zero. Also during his time of darkness, his patience preserved,
stayed strong and never wavered. It was Patience that stopped him
from further questioning himself and God. It was this virtue that
helped him have an epiphany on his blindness.

 Adoration and Fear of God

The speaker greatly adored and feared God at the same time. He
adored him to the point that he wanted to serve Him with all that
he has, and feared him because he thinks that when one does not
utilize his talent, he would be punished. Since he is blind, he could
not anymore perfectly utilized his poetic talent and that would lead
him to his damnation
Themes
 Inner Conflict
The primary focus of the poem is the speaker’s inner conflict.
He wanted to serve God profitably just like how the first and
second servant had served their Lord in the parable.
However, his blindness stand as a hindrance to his goal. He
then wonders if God would demand from him the same
service of what He would demand to those who could see.

 Spiritual Light
“Light” is one of the most focused subjects in the poem. Not
only is his eyesight that is important to him, but also his
spiritual light. The spiritual light is the same as the light of
life. Although he lost the light of his eyes, he was still alive
due to his inner light preserving and giving him power.
Themes
 Fairness of God
God judges humans on whether they labor for Him to
the best of their ability. For example, if one carpenter
can make only two chairs a day and another carpenter
can make five, they both serve God equally well if the
first carpenter makes his two chairs and the second
makes his five. If one carpenter becomes severely
disabled and cannot make even a single chair, he
remains worthy in the sight of God.
Figurative Language
Milton uses figurative language to express his grievances and discontent.
He reflects upon his life and “how my light is spent,” or the time he had his sight.

Milton then expresses the feeling of the “dark world and wide” of the
blind as his introduction to his questions. He begins to question his writing that
only death can take away (“...one talent which is death to hide..”), “lodged...
useless” within him because of his new blindness.

As a result, Milton begins to question God, “Doth God exact day-labour,

light denied?” Milton wonders as to the meaning of his blindness; if God want
him to continue to write, even with his blindness.

Moreover, Milton uses allegory in comparing his situation with the

event in the Parable of Talents with him being the third servant who buried his
money and God as the Lord.

Furthermore, Milton uses personification to express the importance of

words and values. He personifies “Patience” as if patience were a man who replies
for him. Patience is his reasoning for accepting the fact that he is blind. It is used
to introduce the answer towards his questioning.
Examples of Figures of Speech
Alliteration: my days in this dark world and wide (line 2)

Metaphor: though my soul more bent / To serve therewith

my Maker (lines 3-4). The author compares his soul to his
mind.

Personification/Metaphor: But Patience, to prevent / That

murmur, soon replies . . . (lines 8-9).

Paradox: They also serve who only stand and wait.

 Notes
1....light is spent: This clause presents a double meaning:
(a) how I spend my days, (b) how it is that my sight is used
up.
2....Ere half my days: Before half my life is over. Milton was
completely blind by 1652, the year he turned 44.
3....talent: gifts of God.
4....useless: Unused.
5....therewith: By that means, by that talent; with it
6....account: Record of accomplishment; worth
7....exact: Demand, require
8....fondly: Foolishly, unwisely
9....Patience: Milton personifies patience, capitalizing it
and having it speak.
10..God . . . gifts: God is sufficient unto Himself. He
requires nothing outside of Himself to exist and be happy.
11. yoke: Burden, workload.
12. post: Travel.