John Milton, a poet who was completely
blind in 1651 wrote "Sonnet XIX" in 1652; this sonnet is his response
to his loss of sight. The theme of the
sonnet is the loss and regain of primacy of experience. Milton offers his philosophical view on
animism and God. Furthermore,
"Sonnet XIX" explores Milton's
faith and relationship with God.
"Sonnet XIX" suggests that man was created to work and not
rest. The supportive details, structure,
form, and richness of context embodies the theme. The sonnet goes through two phases: the first
phase is Milton's question addressed to God, "Why me?" he asked. Then, the second phase offers a resolution to
Milton's dilemma. Moreover, the sonnet
acts as a self-poem to Milton, himself.
In the beginning of the sonnet, Milton
suggests that his primacy of experience have been deferred when he became
blind. The words, "dark",
"death", and "useless" (lines 2-4) describe the emotional
state of Milton. His blindness created a
shrouded clarity within his mind. Line
three, "And that one talent which is death to hide" is an allusion to
the biblical context of the bible. Line
three refers to the story of Matthew XXV, 14-30 where a servant of the lord
buried his single talent instead of investing it. At the lord's return, he cast the servant
into the "outer darkness" and deprived all he had. Hence, Milton devoted his life in writing;
however, his blindness raped his God's gift away. A tremendous cloud casted over him and
darkened his reality of life and the world.
Like the servant, Milton was flung into the darkness.
Line seven, "Doth God exact
day-labor, light denied?" describes the limitations and burdens of a
person who has lost his sense of place in life.
Obviously, Milton is making a reference to his blindness in relation to
line seven. Line seven implies that once
the usefulness of a man has diminished, then is man doomed to wasting the rest
of his remaining days. In other words,
has Milton's handicap made him into an obsolete machine? The quote "To be or not to be,...",
(Hamlet, Act 3, Scene1) runs through Milton's mind. Shall he struggle and fight in the webs of
darkness, or shall he accept defeat. A
sense of "dark clarity" - a sinister paradox occupies Milton's mind.
His brain was once clear, set, and on task; but now, it is clouded,
unorganized, and fragmented.
However, in the darkness, a new form of
clarity arises. "That murmur. Soon
replies, God doth not need Either man's work or his own gifts;" (lines
9-10) suggests that the willingness to try is good enough to satisfy God. Milton's realization of the needs of God from
man bought him to a higher enlightenment.
Therefore, the "dark clarity" renewed Milton's primacy of
experience. Like, Kenneth Rexroth,
Milton broke away from the "beaten path" and chose his own.
Perhaps, the struggle within the darkness
guides the truth out of the abyss. For
example, if a person listens to Bach or Mozart, the musical experience is
different when the listener's eyes are closed.
When the outer eye is shut from the physical world, then the inner eye
(the mind) works in the dark. In the
darkness, the seeds of imagination grow; therefore, the seeds give the listener
a new experience. Again, the primacy of
experience is found within the dark.
Hence, the mind's eyes see a whole new world differently than the world
we live. If the truth shall set a person
free, therefore truth is derived from the fundamentals of darkness.
Albert Einstein
said, "Imagination is more important than knowledge, for knowledge is
limited, whereas imagination embraces the entire world...stimulating progress,
or giving birth to evolution." In
other words, imagination is the fundamental of darkness. In the mind's eyes, a sense of truth rises
from the inky and bottomless pool.
Therefore, the pool is the redemption of Milton's soul. There is a coexistence between light and
dark. Line fourteen, "They also
serve who stand and wait." implies that the people who are patient,
focused, and determined will be able to see the light. The word "they" is referred to the
virtues of truth.
"Sonnet
XIX" contains the following characteristics: it is unique in style, rich
in context, and carries a melodic mood and tone. The style of the sonnet was derived from the
Baroque Period. The elements of written
work during the Baroque period consisted of sharp contrast, biblical context,
and change in mood. Furthermore, the
Baroque style has a strong emphasis on creating balance. Throughout Milton's sonnet, there were many
contrasts made between light and dark.
The usage of "light"
and "dark" creates a sense of balance in the sonnet. Paired words such as: "light" and
"dark", "death" and "soul", "useless"
and "work", "denied" and "serve" are antonyms of
each other. These words create an
atmosphere of mood and balance.
"Sonnet
XIX" is written in Petrachan form.
Milton's choice of form and pattern of end rimes intensifies the depth
and insight of the sonnet. The structure
of the end rime consists of two forms.
From lines one to eight, the end rime pattern is abba...abba. The last six lines end with an end rime
pattern of abc...abc. The effectiveness
of the sonnet is enhanced by the melodic sentence structure of each line. The alternating pattern of end rimes provide
a dramatic mood and tone to the sonnet.
Milton's sonnet
is an example of exploring human behavior and the unfamiliar to understand the
rational world. Milton suggests that
God's satisfaction is to see man at work and not his accomplishments. From lines one to eight, the tone of Milton's
emotions was dark and expressed anthropocentric feelings. Essentially, Milton' s state of mind was
confusion and bitterly anguished over his blindness. On line four, Milton describes his soul bent
out of the physical world. He believed
that without exercising his gift, he would be doomed till the day of his
death. He sits in darkness.
However in the
darkness, Milton came to understand that God does not need him to exercise the
gift. From Voltaire's short story,
"Candide" Pangloss said, "for man was put in the Garden of Eden,
he was put there ut operaretur eum, to work; which proves that man was not born
for rest." In other words, the work
and effort is more important than the gift from God. Like Candide, Milton suffered and endured his
own hardships and struggles before he realized his place in life. In conclusion, Milton learned to cultivate
his garden as to parent to his child.
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