the classic writers of the past? Is it appreciation, baffled boredom, or even contempt? Do we turn our nose up at them as bigoted, oppressive, dead white males and believe they are no longer relevant to our lives?If so, Leigh Hunt's sonnet offers a powerful correction. He describes his awe at seeing a lock of hair that once belonged to Milton, the author of the epic poem "Paradise Lost." Hunt's breath "stirs" the "thin outer threads," as if granting them new life. He falls into a reverie in which he stands alongside his hero, talking of "lovely things that conquer death." This captures the way, whenever we turn to great literature, we enter a timeless moment.
from Christopher Nield: The Epoch Times: The Antidote--Classic Poetry for Modern Life: A reading of 'On a Lock of Milton's Hair'
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