On His Blindness by John Milton

On His Blindess is an Italian sonnet by John Milton, one of the greatest

poets of English literature. It was written after he had become totally blind at the age
of forty three. It anticipates the theme of his masterpiece, Paradise Lost, to justify
the ways of God to men.
Milton, a puritan, views his blindness as a deliberate design of God and
considers it Gods way to prove Miltons greatness. Yet, when isolated and embittered
by his blindness, he is disturbed by some intriguing questions such as why God made
him blind; why God did not make him feel the urge to write his masterpiece when he
had vision and when he was in the prime of his youth; and why God exacted daylabour, light denied. He humbly murmurs these complaints, not against, but to God.
Patience, personified in the sonnet, answers all his questions. God never needs
mans work or his own gifts to please himself. Who best / Bear His mild yoke,
they serve Him best. Thousands are at his disposal in his kingly state to serve him
and run errands over land and ocean without rest. But people, who accept the mild
yoke of God without any murmur of complaints and wait for His favour, serve Him
best.
Miltons preference of the Italian sonnet to the English and Spenserian sonnet
is remarkable. Its dual structure best serves to deal with the theme of the sonnet. He
describes his life before and after losing his vision and raises his questions in the first
eight lines of the sonnet, which form the octave of the sonnet. He personifies
patience and lets it answer all his questions in the next and last six lines, which form
the sestet of the sonnet. Moreover, his conviction in classicism is very vibrant in his
preference of the Italian sonnet, the variant of which is best exemplified in the sonnet
with the rhyme pattern: abbaabbacdecde.
The poem thus presents a cosmic theme of lofty religious idealism in the form
of solution to deal with the inscrutable ways of God: Acceptance is the best service
to God.
Yet, there is one more possible way of looking at this sonnet. During the two
Civil Wars (1642-1646 and 1648-1651), Milton supported the parliamentarians led by
Lord Cromwell. In 1649 he was appointed foreign secretary by the Puritan
Government (1649-1660). Even after he had become blind, he continued his
government service till 1660 with the help of Andrew Marvell, a metaphysical poet.
He remained in the favour of Cromwell. If this political situation (Cromwells speech
In the name of God, go) is considered, it can be argued that Milton viewed
Cromwell as God in the sonnet and he presents himself as a servant waiting on him.
Thus the sonnets flavour makes up the finest synthesis of the personal, the
theological, the philosophical and the political.

Q-As:
1. John Milton is known as
Ans: a puritan poet
2. What is the masterpiece of Milton?
Ans: Paradise Lost ( 1667)
3. What kind of poem is Miltons On His Blindness?
Ans: A sonnet
4. What kind of sonnet is Miltons On His Blindness?
Ans: An Italian or Petrarchan sonnet
5. What is the rhyme pattern of Miltons On His Blindness?
Ans: abbaabbacdecde
6. What is personified in the poem?
Ans: Patience
7. What is the complaint of the poet?
Ans: Doth God exact day-labour, light denied?
(or) The poet is embittered by his blindness and questions why God made him
blind and kindle his creative spirit to write his masterpiece.
8. Who answers the questions of Milton in the sonnet?
Ans: Patience, which is personified.
9. What is Patiences answer to the questions of Milton?
Ans: Who best / Bear His mild yoke, they serve Him best.
10. What is the theme of the sonnet?
Ans: The cosmic religious idealism acceptance is the best service to God.
11. Exemplify Miltons classicism.
Ans: Miltons adoption of the Italian sonnet to deal with the cosmic religious theme.
12. State the period of two civil wars fought during the 17 century in England.
Ans: Civil War I 1642-1646; Civil War II 1648-1651