5 h 11 minAudiobook9 minSummaryRead it, hear it, the 15-minute summary, and print and large print at costPaperback · 6 × 9 in · printing soonHardcover · 6 × 9 in · printing soonAbout this book
What if temptation speaks sweetly, offers a feast, and asks you to surrender your judgment?
In John Milton's Comus, the Lady loses her way in a dark wood while travelling with her two brothers. She wants to reach her father's house. Comus, a charming enchanter, has other plans: he uses pleasure and flattery to draw travellers into his power.
As her brothers search, they debate whether a pure mind can keep someone safe. The Attendant Spirit seeks to guide the children home. This masque brings verse, song and dramatic argument together, setting the Lady's clear judgment against Comus's persuasive words. The danger tests not only her safety, but her freedom to choose.
What you’ll discover
- A song in darkness Meet the Lady as she sings in the wood, lost but clear in mind.
- Pleasure with a hidden purpose Enter Comus's world of music and delicacies, where charm serves a dangerous purpose.
- Two brothers, different fears Follow their search as confidence in virtue meets urgent concern about the night.
- A fierce exchange of ideas Hear the Lady defend restraint, shared plenty and the wise use of nature's gifts.
- Light, darkness and song Discover how blank verse, rhymed magic and lyrics give this moral struggle its shape.
Who will love it
For readers who love poetry, seventeenth century England, and stories where a moral question is argued on stage. It also suits anyone curious about Milton before Paradise Lost.
What’s inside
The key ideas, in the 15-minute summary
- A spirit descends to a dangerous wood
- The Lady loses her way and sings
- Two brothers argue about safety and virtue
- Comus offers a feast and a chair
- Temperance answers excess in a war of words
- How a masque makes its argument in light and song
Who’s who
- The LadyThe elder sister, lost in the wood at night. She is gentle, brave and clear in mind, and she wants to reach her father's house.
- ComusThe enchanter, son of Circe and Bacchus. He rules the wood with a charmed cup and wants to win travelers over with flattery and pleasure.
- The Elder BrotherA confident young man who believes that a pure mind is its own protection, and who searches for his sister.
- The Younger BrotherThe more fearful brother, who worries about the dangers of the night and wants to find his sister quickly.
- The Attendant SpiritA guardian sent from heaven in the guise of a shepherd called Thyrsis. He wants to bring the children safely to their father.
Formats and delivery
- eBook
- On your phone, tablet, computer or Kindle, with the type as large as you like.
- Large-print eBook
- The same book in bigger, clearer type, from the first page.
- Audiobook
- 5 h 11 min, complete, read by Lucas Linden.
- 15-minute summary
- The key ideas in about 9 minutes, to read or to hear.
- Paperback
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Hardcover
- 6 × 9 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print paperback
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
- Large print hardcover
- 8.5 × 11 in. Printing soon: leave your email under Paperback or Hardcover above.
eBooks and audiobooks open right away. Download EPUB or PDF, or send the book to your Kindle. Every printed copy is made when you order it and shipped worldwide; shipping is shown at checkout.
How it works
- Start free. Nothing to pay today; the eBook of this book is yours to keep.
- Read, listen and print. 200,000+ classics as eBook, large-print eBook, audiobook and 15-minute summary, and any book printed at cost as a paperback, hardcover or large print, 5 accounts for the price of one.
- We remind you first. Free for 3 months, and we email you 7 days before your first payment. Then 0,14 USD a day in your first year on the yearly plan and 0,27 USD a day after, or 0,66 USD a day on the monthly plan. Cancel online in two clicks.
Bought on its own? Every eBook, audiobook and printed book you buy without the plan carries our 30-day money-back guarantee.
25 languages, side by side
Read and hear Comus de Milton in 25 languages and switch at any time. Or read two side by side, paragraph by paragraph: the way to learn a language with a book you love.
Comus de Milton
by John Milton · 1637
Lost in a dark wood, a young woman faces a charming magician who tries to win her over with pleasure and flattery.
Medium level5–10 hours to read25 languages
Excellent
- Read or listen
- 25 languages, side by side
- Print and large print at cost
- 5 accounts for the price of one
Free for 3 months · starts right away, on any device
Read free3 months free · cancel anytimeFree for 3 months, then 0,14 USD a dayCancel anytimeHow it works
From the 15-minute summary · Key idea 1
A spirit descends to a dangerous wood
The masque opens with the Attendant Spirit, who steps down from the bright halls of heaven to the dark earth. He explains that he has a task. A wild wood lies on the road to the Earl's seat, and the Earl's children must pass through it. The Spirit has come to guard them, and he is dressed in the clothes of a shepherd so that he can move among humans unnoticed.
He also tells us who rules this wood. Comus is the son of the sorceress Circe and the wine god Bacchus. Like his mother, he carries a charmed cup. Travelers who drink from it forget their homes and their reason. Their faces change into the heads of beasts, though their bodies stay human, and they are glad of the change.
Free for 3 months · Cancel anytime
Free gifts
580 USD in free gifts when you start
Every book in every format and in 25 languages, 5 accounts for the price of one. Nothing to pay today.
- 200,000+ classic eBooksIn 25 languages, side by side
170 USDFREE - Every audiobookIn 25 languages, any device
120 USDFREE - 15-minute summariesRead or listen, in 25 languages
60 USDFREE - Print at cost, no markupPaperback, hardcover, large print
60 USDFREE - 5 accounts for the price of oneA shelf for everyone at home
170 USDFREE - A part in rebuilding the libraryNew languages and books for all
FREE
Questions about Comus de Milton
Can I read it free?
Yes. The first key idea of the 15-minute summary is free with no sign-up. Start free and the whole book is yours for 3 months, with the eBook to keep, plus 200,000+ more classics and any book printed at cost as a paperback, hardcover or large print. Nothing to pay today: we email you 7 days before your first payment, and you can cancel online in two clicks.
Can I buy the printed book?
Soon. The paperback, hardcover and large print editions are being prepared. Choose Paperback or Hardcover above, leave your email, and we tell you the day you can order it, printed at cost.
How many accounts do I get?
Five, for the price of one: you and 4 more people, each with their own login, shelf and their own place in every book.
Can I cancel anytime?
Yes. Cancel online in two clicks at any time and nothing more is charged. Nothing is charged in your first 3 months, and we email you 7 days before your first payment.
What is Milton's Comus about?
It tells of a young woman lost in a dark wood who meets the enchanter Comus. He tries to tempt her with pleasure and flattery, and she answers with reason and faith. Her brothers and a guardian spirit try to help her.
What is a masque?
A masque was a courtly entertainment of the 1500s and 1600s that combined verse, music, dance, costume and scenery. It often flattered a noble host. Milton gave this form a serious moral argument.
Who is Comus in Milton's poem?
Comus is an enchanter, the son of the sorceress Circe and the wine god Bacchus. He lives in a wild wood and offers travelers a magic cup that turns their faces into those of beasts.
The author
John Milton
1608–1674 · English poet
John Milton (1608–1674) was an English poet and civil servant who lived mainly in London. He wrote poetry and prose, including Comus (1634), Areopagitica (1644), Paradise Lost (1667), and Paradise Regained (1671). He served as secretary for foreign tongues under England’s Commonwealth government. He became blind in 1652.
More like this
Free
Free
Free
Free
Free
Free
Free
Free
FreeOur mission
The library burned once. We are building it back.
Every great book, in every language and every format, for every family. Every plan helps pay for new languages, new audiobooks and books for readers who have never had them. Join the movement.
Read our story- Every language25 languages today, side by side, and more every year
- No wastePrinted on demand: no warehouses, no unsold stock, no pulped copies
- For everyonePaperback, hardcover and large print at the cost of printing
Popular in poetry and plays
See all
Free
Free
Free
Free
Free
Free
Free
