What is John Milton?
{{Infobox Writer | name = John Milton | image = John Milton - Project Gutenberg eText 13619.jpg | caption = | birth_date = {{birth date|1608|12|9|df=y}} | birth_place = Bread Street, Cheapside, [[London]], [[England]] | death_date = {{death date and age|1674|11|8|1608|12|9|df=y}} | death_place = Bunhill, [[London]], [[England]] | occupation = Poet, Prose Polemicist, Civil Servant | genre = | movement = | notableworks = [[Paradise Lost]] | website = | footnotes = }} '''John Milton''' (9 December 1608 – 8 November 1674) was an [[English people|English]] [[poet]], religious thinker, and [[Civil service|civil servant]] for the [[Commonwealth of England|English Commonwealth]] Government. He is one of the most important figures in Western [[literature]]. He is most famous for his Christian [[Epic poetry|epic poem]] ''[[Paradise Lost]]''. His writing influenced both later poets and religious thinkers. == Life == John Milton was born on 9 December 1608, the son of John Milton (senior) and Sarah Jerry. His family lived in Bread Street, London. His father was a musician and composer. His main work was as a scrivener, a secretary who reads and writes letters for people who cannot read and write for themselves. Milton's father was well paid at this work, and was able to hire a private tutor to teach his clever eldest son. Milton's brother Christopher said he studied very long into each night. Milton then went to St. Paul's School where he studied [[Latin language|Latin]], [[Ancient Greek language|Greek]], and [[Hebrew language|Hebrew]]. Milton then studied at Christ's College, [[Cambridge]] and graduated with a B.A. in 1629. On 3 July 1632, he received his Master of Arts degree. He returned home where he continued to study and write poetry for six years. He wrote a large number of poems. In 1638 he made a tour of the Continent, spending a lot of time in France and Italy, where he learned about other authors such as [[Dante]], [[Torquato Tasso|Tasso]], and [[Ludovico Ariosto|Ariosto]]. When he was 34, he married Mary Powell