John Kerrigan

Shakespeare's Sonnets have caused endless debate and speculation: who is the dark lady, who is the 'only begetter'; and what light do the poems shed on the life of the poet? Yet the sonnets themselves can be enjoyed for their lyricism rather than their intention.

Written as a form of personal confession - of love, of grief, of anger, of jealousy and of lust - the sonnets encompass a huge range of human emotion beautifully expressed within the

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"How original was Shakespeare and how was Shakespeare original? This lucid, innovative book sets about answering these questions by putting them in historical context and investigating how the dramatist worked with his sources: plays, poems, chronicles and prose romances. Shakespeare's Originality unlocks its topic with rewarding precision and flair, showing through a series of case studies that range across the output-from the mature comedies to...

"John Milton's Paradise Lost, an epic poem on the clash between God and his fallen angel, Satan, is a profound meditation on fate, free will, and divinity, and one of the most, beautiful works in world literature. Extracted from the Modern Library's highly acclaimed The Complete Poetry and Essential Prose of John Milton, this edition reflects up-to-date scholarship and includes a substantial introduction, fresh commentary, and other features - annotations...