This is my second Epic poem after The Divine Comedy and I feel like I can easily put them in a similar category especially since they have such similar themes.

You can’t deny the artistic achievement that Milton accomplished and you can’t deny its influence.

There are parts that are genuinely moving. The humanity of Adam and Eve, the victor of Christ and the Angels against their foes in the battle of Heaven. The immediate aftermath of the Fall where Satan and his Devils just look around like “what just happened”. The bitterness and misery of the Devil.

I loved the themes of Paradise Lost.

Something I was surprised about is that this is always pitched as a “sympathy for the Devil” work and I found that kinda odd. The character of Satan is so pathetic and miserable and like a petulant child throughout the entire work it’s hard to root for him.

That being said he is the most interesting character here even if I found him unsympathetic.

As for my final ranking, in 2025, it’s a tough read. The language is old. The pace is slow and it’s extremely stylized. I could see myself return to the work, but it’s still more of a challenge to read with reading parts. Definitely glad I read it (and can say I have lol).

Give it a shot! I highly recommend either reading it aloud to yourself or finding an audiobook to read it to you as you read along, I think it enhances the experience and makes it much more approachable.