ON HIS BLINDNESS : A poem summary.

37. ON HIS BLINDNESS

- John Milton

When i consider how my light is spent, ere half my days, in this dark world and wide,And that one talent which is death to hide lodged with me useless, Through my soul more bent to serve there with my marker and present my true account, lest he returning chide - Doth god exact day labour  light  denied ? I fondly ask, But patience, to prevent that murmur, work or his own gifts. Who best bear his mild yoke, They serve him best: His state is kingly; thousands at his bidding speed and post O'er land and ocean without rest. They also serve who only stand and wait.

    In "On His Blindness", the poet John Milton talks openly about the loss of his eye sight due to heavy work lead while working for the British Republic.

    The poet thinks about how all the "light" has been "spent"  before half his life has been used up.HE lives in a world that is a not only dark but also wide and scary. Milton is struggling to understand what god expects of him. He is upset because he is about  to losses that one talent he has which is like "death to hide". Here we find a biblical reference to the parable (story) of  talents. There were three sons who were given money by their father before he left them. The first two elder sons invested the money and received a lot of great dividends (returns). They made a lot of money because he thought the money would get stolen when the father returned after many year he was happy with two elder sons. However, he scolded the younger son Milton feels that god expected him to use his talent but his blindness is preventing him from serving god much as he wants to "though my soul more bent to serve there with my maker, and present my true account".

    Milton's "true" account refers to his religious poetry was concerned with god relationship to mankind and he considered it a serious duty to write poetry and makes god's mysterious ways more clear to people and honor god with his poetic language.

    At line seven, Milton's wonder if god still expects him to write poetry without eyesight. he says god is for giving because knowing his condition and strong desire to please him god would not expects anything from him nor punish him. However, his patience or the inner voice  has been personified. Potions explains that god does not need the service of man, nor does he care if his gifts are use or not. He is "king of kings" and has thousand of angels serving him day and night over the earth and the sea.

    Service to god counts not only in active work but also in patients resignation to his will. It is the  intent and the grace with which one deals with hardship that counts.

    "On his blindness" is a sonnet which consists of fourteen lines divided into two segments of eight line known as the octave and six lines known as the seated the is poem is written in the first person hence, We can assume that the  speaker of the poem is the poet himself.

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