Nativity Ode

Some questions for guiding our readings of Milton's 'Nativity Ode':

Following up our discussion, and some of the questions asked during class:

What is the relationship between Milton’s classical and theological commitments in the poem? What does it mean to invoke the classics? And what does it mean to invoke the narratives from Christian theology? Put in another register, do the languages of theology co-exist with the languages of classical learning? How does Milton negotiate this issue in his early poem?

Do the contexts of metaphysical poetry (and the kind of aesthetic it represent) provide a meaningful context for understanding the 'Nativity Ode'?

How does Milton represent time in the poem? Is there a relationship between Milton's representation of time in 'Of Time' and the representation of time in the ode? How might Kermode's conceptions of chronos and kairos help in reading Milton's poem? (here we might also think of Esti's comments in class about Judaeo-Christian notions of time). Please do - if you have the opportunity - read the chapter 'Fictions' in Kermode's Sense of an Ending. We will be especially interested in the material on pages 44-47.

What is the role of music in the Nativity Ode?

As you may know, on Wednesday there is a Bar Ilan conference on Early Modern England - at which I will be giving a paper on our man...