On His Blindness

The sonnet “On His Blindness” is perhaps one of the best and most popular of Milton’s sonnets. It is indeed a pearl in the ocean of English literature. It is a great sonnet of lofty tone and noble theme. It was written in 1655. Strength of mind, power of will and determination, patience; all these traits stood him in good stead when blindness slowly came over his.What made him so sad was that the gist of poetry which had been given to him could not be used to advantage when he was suffering from blindness.

"On His Blindness" is a Petrarchan sonnet, a lyric poem with fourteen lines God judges humans on whether they labor for Him to the best of their ability. For example, if one carpenter can make only two chairs a day and another carpenter can make five, they both serve God equally well if the first carpenter makes his two chairs and the second makes his five. If one carpenter becomes severely disabled and cannot make even a single chair, he remains worthy in the sight of God. For, as Milton says in the last line of the poem, "they also serve who only stand and wait."

Here Milton bows down in humble submission to the will of God. The tone of patience and humility has perfectly mingled with that of great dignity. The poem is a human document, a revelation of the struggle in Milton’s own soul. It starts with a note of regret. Then there is a mood of doubt and questioning which however melts in the final attitude of complete resignation. The beauty and exaltation of moral feeling raise the poem to a great height. The poem is full of allusions to the bible.

The extreme simplicity of the language is its peculiar attractive. Two lines are wholly, several others are nearly, monosyllabic. It is a sonnet of Petrarchan type. But there is no division between the octave and the sestet-which is the characteristic of Italian or Petrarchan sonnet. There is a break in the middle of the eighth line.The poet’s subsequent submission charms the readers. The monologue is simply fascinating. The league used is both easy and catchy. The metre, note and cadence is perfect.