Selected Poems

An authoritative new edition of Milton’s essential verse

John Milton, who abandoned early plans of becoming a clergyman to become a poet, was a master of almost every type of verse-from the classical to the religious, from the lyric to the epic. His writing reflected his radical views and his profound understanding of politics and power. This collection includes such early works as the devotional “On the Morning of Christ’s Nativity,” “Comus,” and the pastoral elegy “Lycidas.”

For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.