Milton and Ecology

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Cambridge University Press, Nov 20, 2003 - Literary Criticism - 165 pages
In Milton and Ecology, Ken Hiltner engages with literary, theoretical, and historic approaches to explore the ideological underpinnings of our current environmental crisis. Focusing on Milton's rejection of dualistic theology, metaphysical philosophy, and early-modern subjectivism, Hiltner argues that Milton anticipates certain essential modern ecological arguments. Even more remarkable is that Milton was able to integrate these arguments with biblical sources so seamlessly that his interpretative 'Green' reading of scripture has for over three centuries been entirely plausible. This study considers how Milton, from the earliest edition of the Poems, not only sought to tell the story of how through humanity's folly Paradise on earth was lost, but also sought to tell how it might be regained. This intriguing study will be of interest to eco-critics and Milton specialists alike.

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Contents

the ecological importance of place
11
Eve as the gardens spirit of place
30
Eves Fall as an uprooting
43
Sabrina puts down roots
55
Pauls and Luthers
75
confusing
86
Jobs wisdom
102
forbidding unripe fruit
113
the EarthHuman wound
125
Select bibliography
156
Index
163
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