ENGL 220: Milton
Lecture 02 - The Infant Cry of God. Milton's early ode, "On the Morning of Christ's Nativity" (1629) is presented and discussed. The author's preoccupation with his standing as a novice poet and his early ambitions, as carefully outlined in the letter to Charles Diodati, are examined. The ode's subject matter, other poets' treatment of the Nativity, and Milton's peculiar contributions to the micro-genre are discussed, including his curious temporal choices, the competitive attitude of his narrator, and the mingling of Christian and classical elements. The rejection of the pagan world in the poem's final stanzas is explicated and underscored as an issue that will recur throughout the corpus. Additional reading assignments for this class meeting include "At a Vacation Exercise in the College" (1628), "On the Death of a Fair Infant" (1628), and Elegia sexta (1629). (from oyc.yale.edu)
| Lecture 02 - The Infant Cry of God |
| Time | Lecture Chapters |
| [00:00:00] | 1. Introduction: The Nativity Ode |
| [00:05:10] | 2. Milton on Poetry as a Divine Vocation |
| [00:16:02] | 3. The Poetic Celebration of the Birth of Christ |
| [00:18:43] | 4. Nativity Ode: The Prelude |
| [00:30:59] | 5. Nativity Ode: The Hymn |
| References |
| Lecture 2 - The Infant Cry of God Instructor: Professor John Rogers. Handout: The Infant Cry of Our God [PDF]. Transcript [html]. Audio [mp3]. Download Video [mov]. |
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