Paradise Lost by John Milton was published in 1667.
BANNED in 2023 in Orange County public schools
John Milton’s Paradise Lost was among the 673 books removed from Orange County public school classrooms and libraries in 2023. This mass book ban came after the passing of HB 1069. The new 2023 law prohibits any material that “depicts or describes sexual conduct” on Florida public school library and classroom shelves. Anticipating a slew of parental objections resulting from the new law, Orange County schools preemptively banned 673 books.
The epic poem Paradise Lost is widely recognized for its literary merit. Its influence on theology, philosophy and political thought makes it a cornerstone of English Literature. Paradise Lost has been studied in educational institutions for centuries, alongside Homer, Virgil and Dante Alighieri. A Christian poem, Paradise Lost tells the story of The Fall of Man. It features Adam, Eve, Satan and God.
A Religion News Service article introduces the passages from Paradise Lost that may feature the “sexual conduct” that led to the poem’s ban. Written in Milton’s flowery verse, the passages spend more time describing the foliage surrounding Adam and Eve’s bed than their actions. Their sexual activities are shrouded in euphemism: “There they their fill of love and love’s disport/Took largely, of their mutual guilt the seal/The solace of their sin.”
Orange County Public Schools followed in the footsteps of the 18th century Catholic Church, which also banned Paradise Lost for a period of time. In 1972, Paradise Lost was placed on the Church’s Index of Forbidden Books. The Church’s ban was due to its “anti-Catholic sentiment” rather than its descriptions of sex.
“For so I created them free and free they must remain.”