About the Author

David Currell is Assistant Professor of English at the American University of Beirut, Lebanon. Islam Issa is Senior Lecturer in English Literature, Birmingham City University, UK. 

• Publisher ‏ : ‎ Palgrave Macmillan; 1st ed. 2018 edition (September 6, 2018)

• Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 287 pages, ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 3319904779

Digital Milton is the first volume to investigate John Milton in terms of our digital present. It explores the digital environments Milton now inhabits as well as the diverse digital methods that inform how we read, teach, edit, and analyze his works. Some chapters use innovative techniques, such as processing metadata from vast archives of early modern prose, coding Milton’s geographical references on maps, and visualizing debt networks from literature and from life. Other chapters discuss the technologies and platforms shaping how literature reaches us today, from audiobooks to eReaders, from the OED Online to Wikipedia, and from Twitter to YouTube. Digital Milton is the first say on a topic that will become ever more important to scholars, students, and teachers of early modern literature in the years to come.

 

PREFACE FOR A BIBLIOGRAPHY ON MILTON'S CREATIVE INFLUENCE(by Hugh Macrae Richmond)This Bibliography is concerned primarily with recent investigations of creative artists'response to Milton's oeuvre, as covered by John T. Shawcross in his magisterial "JohnMilton and Influence: Presence in Literature, History and Culture." For example, in 1677John Dryden described Milton as the poet of the sublime but went on to compose the lessmagnificent The State of Innocence and the Fall of Man: an Opera (1677) which stillshows Milton’s direct influence. Even his satirical mock epic, Absolom and Achitophel,reflects Miltonic precedents in its biblical theme. As for Europe, there was an early,partial translation of Paradise Lost into German by Theodore Haak, and based on that astandard verse translation by Ernest Gottlieb von Berge. A subsequent prose translationby Johann Jakob Bodmer was popular and influenced Friedrich Gottlieb Klopstock. TheGerman-language Milton tradition returned to England in the illustrations of the artistHenry Fuseli, whose work led the way for other illustrators such as Gustave Dore'. 

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A striking example of the way Milton can be successfully reintroduced to modern culture at all levels is provided by the work of Terrance Lindall. Lindall's book Paradise LostIllustrated has been compared to other Milton illustrators including William Blake (see21st c. heading below). According to New York University professor Karen Karbiener,many students prefer Lindall's version, which appeared in Heavy Metal magazine and hasa popular following among young people. Professor Karbiener gave a lecture at the

 

Williamsburg Art & Historical Center in 2004 on "Milton's Satan and his impact oncountercultural artistic movements from William Blake to the Beat poets." Lindall’s artfor Paradise Lost appears on the cover of Complete Poetry and Essential Prose of JohnMilton from Random House (2008). Holt Rinehart & Winston used another LindallParadise Lost image in a 2009 high school textbook. Oxford University's major exhibit"Citizen Milton” used one of Lindall's artworks for Paradise Lost from the NiiFoundation collection.The new perspective on Milton as an inspiration for modern creativity is reflected in thecomments on Lindall's work by current Milton scholars. Critical response to Lindall’s“Paradise Lost Series " includes William Kerrigan, former president of the MiltonSociety of America remarked "Radical artist and nonconformist Terrance Lindall haschanneled Milton’s spirit into a modern context, in a provocative series of illustrations toParadise Lost. His visual celebration of Milton reveals his remarkable affinity for theradical English poet, and his ability to create a fitting tribute to Milton’s enduringinfluence in the arts." Professor Thomas Clayton of the University of Minnesota wrote:"Clearly avoiding the view that Pop imagery is inherently a sign of trauma, Terry Lindallemploys the cartoon elements of style with a charming and often unnerving directnessand simplicity, frequently aimed at causing a trauma all his own. This is particularly thecase with his illustrations of Milton’s Paradise Lost, with which he reaches a hyper-intensified and nearly hysterical verve." Mark Daniel Cohen, critic for Review Magazineand NY Arts Magazine wrote: "Since I was a teenager back in 1982, I’ve consideredTerrance Lindall one of the globe’s greatest artists. My particular favorite is his intenseadaptation of Paradise Lost, which never fails to instill a pervasive dread in my mind."Lindall created the world’s first "Grand Paradise Lost Costume Ball", which opened thelargest festival in the world honoring John Milton’s 400th birthday. The festival tookplace between September 27 and November 2, 2008 at the Williamsburg Art & HistoricalCenter (WAH Center), exhibiting over 70 contemporary artists from around the worldand includind writers, poets, composers and performers. The exhibit included TerranceLindall’s original illustrations for Paradise Lost. New York Mayor Michael Bloombergissued a proclamation recognizing the hard work and labor of love in creating this MiltonFestival, which Random House's website confirmed as the "largest birthday tribute toMilton in the world." WAH Center founder Wendy Woon, the Edward John NobleFoundation Deputy Director for Education of the Museum of Modern Art in New York,said: “The exhibit and programs promise to be a diverse collection of multipleperspectives and strategies that should engage the audience you hope to reach." Duringhis year-long celebration of John Milton's 400th birthday (from December 8, 2008),Terrance Lindall created "The Paradise Lost Gold Illuminated Scroll," a scroll that readsfrom right to left like a Torah, now in the Milton collection at the Yuko Nii Foundation.Such is the celebratory climate of modern awareness of Milton of which we hope toexplore the origins and documentation here.