Comus by John Milton

First produced: 1634; first published, 1637

Type of work: Drama

Type of plot: Allegory

Time of plot: Antiquity

Locale: Kingdom of Neptune

Principal characters

• Attendant Spirit, later disguised as Thyrsis
• Comus, an evil magician who beguiles travelers
• The Lady, ,
• The Elder Brother, and
• The Second Brother, children traveling to meet their father Neptune
• Sabrina, a river nymph

The Story:

The Attendant Spirit comes into a wild wood, far from his usual abode outside Jove’s court, far above the dirt and hubbub of the world. He is on earth only to show the rare mortals before him some of the ways to godly virtue. He speaks of the plight of three children who are traveling to visit their father Neptune, ruler of many island kingdoms. Their path lies through a dark and treacherous wood where their lives would have been in danger if Jove had not sent the Spirit to protect them. The chief danger is Comus, son of Bacchus and Circe. He lives in the wood and possesses a magic wine that, when drunk by thirsty travelers, gives them the heads and inclinations of wild animals. The Spirit disguises himself as a shepherd to guide the children of Neptune. He leaves when he hears Comus and his band of bewitched travelers approaching.

Comus, invoking joy and feasting, drinking and dancing, declares that the night is made for love and should be so used before the sun reveals the revels of his band and turns them to sinfulness. His followers dance until he stops them, sensing the approach of a young woman whom he immediately wishes to enchant.

The Lady enters, drawn to the scene by the noise of the revelers. Unwilling as she is to meet such people, she nevertheless believes that they are the only hope she has of finding her way out of the wood. Because she is tired by her walking, her brothers leave her to find wild fruit for refreshment, but night falls before they can return and they are unable to find her again. Meanwhile, a dark cloud covers the stars. The Lady calls and sings to the nymph, Echo, to guide her to her brothers.

Comus, delighted with the song she sings, decides that the Lady should be his queen, and, in the disguise of a village boy, he greets her as a goddess. The Lady reproves him and says that she wants help to find her companions. After questioning her about them, he says that he saw two such young men gathering fruit and that it will be a delight to help her find them. Comus adds that he knows the woods perfectly and that he will therefore lead the Lady to her brothers. She replies that she will trust him. They leave the clearing together.

The two brothers arrive and the elder calls to heaven for the moon and stars, so that they might see their way. Failing this, he wishes to see the lights of someone’s cottage. The Second Brother, adding that even the sound of penned-up flocks will help them, expresses great fear for his sister’s fate. The Elder Brother insists that the Lady’s perfect virtue will protect her. The Second Brother says that beauty such as hers needs to be guarded and that she can easily be in danger in such a place. The Elder Brother repeats that he has great hope for her safety as she is armed by chastity. Nothing can violate this; the very angels in heaven will protect her.

Hearing someone approaching, the brothers call out to him. When the Attendant Spirit greets them, they think they recognize him as their father’s shepherd, Thyrsis. He anxiously asks where their sister is and, hearing that she is lost, tells them that Comus dwells in the wood. He adds that he overheard Comus offer to escort a lady to her companions. Fearing that she is their sister, he leaves to find the brothers. That news plunges the Second Brother into complete despair. The Elder Brother, maintaining that virtue can be attacked but not injured, declares that they must find Comus and fight him for their sister, but the Attendant Spirit warns them that swords will not help them against Comus. He says, however, that he was given a magic herb that is effective against all enchantments. He instructs the brothers to break the glass in Comus’s hand when they find him and to seize his wand.

In Comus’s palace, meanwhile, the Lady refuses his wine and attempts to leave, but she is restrained by a threat to transfix her in her chair. When she declares that Comus cannot control her mind, he propounds his hedonistic philosophy, saying that she should enjoy her youth and beauty, not cruelly deny them. She replies that she will never accept anything from him, since only the good man can give good things. Comus argues that in rejecting him she is denying life and the plentiful gifts of nature by her abstinence; beauty should be enjoyed, not left to wither like a dying rose. The Lady decides that she must refute these arguments with her own. She states that nature’s gifts are for the temperate to use well and that excess of luxury breeds only ingratitude in men. She fears that Comus can never understand this doctrine, and she believes that if she attempts to explain, her conviction will be so strong that his palace will tumble around him. Comus is impressed by her argument, which seems to him inspired by Jove himself, yet he determines to try again to persuade her. As he begins to speak, the brothers rush in, break his glass on the ground, and overwhelm his followers.

Comus escapes because they have not captured his wand. The Attendant Spirit despairs of freeing the Lady until he remembers that he can summon Sabrina. This river nymph will help them, since she loves the virtue that the Lady personifies. By song, he summons her in the name of Neptune and Triton to save the girl. As Sabrina rises from the river, she sings of the willows and flowers that she left. She frees the Lady by sprinkling on her the pure and precious water from her fountain. The Attendant Spirit gives Sabrina his blessing and prays that the river should always flow in good measure and that its banks will be fertile.

The Attendant Spirit then tells the Lady that he will lead them to Neptune’s house, where many friends are gathered to congratulate him. In Ludlow Town, at the castle, country dancers lead the Lady and her two brothers before the Earl and the Countess, who impersonate Neptune and his Queen. There the Attendant Spirit praises the young people’s beauty, patience, and honesty, and their triumph over folly; then he announces his return to his natural home in the Gardens of Hesperus, for his task is done. If any mortal would go with him, however, his way is the path of virtue.

Bibliography

Burbery, Timothy J. Milton the Dramatist. Pittsburgh, Pa.: Duquesne University Press, 2007. Chronicles Milton’s interest in the theater and analyzes his theatrical works, including Comus. Milton attended plays as a child, and Burbery suggests that his experiences may have influenced some of the dialogue in Comus.

Campbell, Gordon, and Thomas N. Corns. John Milton: Life, Work, and Thought. New York: Oxford University Press, 2008. Insightful and comprehensive biography written by the editors of the Oxford Milton that is based in part on new information about seventeenth century English history. Sheds light on Milton’s ideas and the turbulent times in which he lived.

Diekhoff, John, ed. A Mask at Ludlow: Essays on Milton’s “Comus.” Cleveland, Ohio: Case Western Reserve University Press, 1968. Assembles previously published essays by eminent Milton critics. The selections deal with all major critical issues concerning the masque.

Duran, Angelica, ed. A Concise Companion to Milton. Malden, Mass.: Blackwell, 2007. Collection of essays analyzing Milton’s works, including discussions of his legacy, a survey of more than three hundred years of Milton criticism, and Katsuhiro Engetsu’s piece on Comus, “A Mask: Tradition and Innovation.”

Hanford, James Holly, and James G. Taaffe. A Milton Handbook. New York: Meredith, 1970. A mine of information about Milton’s life, works, and critical reputation, this book offers synopses of individual works and comprehensive critical assessments. An excellent beginning point for the general reader and student.

Hunter, William B., ed. Milton’s English Poetry. Lewisburg, Pa.: Bucknell University Press, 1986. Hunter’s book assembles entries on Milton’s poetry. The essay on Comus, listed under its original title, provides an introductory overview of the masque and a detailed survey of critical opinion.

Lovelock, Julian, ed. Milton: “Comus” and “Samson Agonistes.” New York: Macmillan, 1975. In his casebook, Lovecock reprints five significant twentieth century studies of Milton’s masque. Five additional selections include significant criticism from the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.

McGuire, Maryann Cale. Milton’s Puritan Masque. Athens: University of Georgia Press, 1983. In an extended analysis of the masque, McGuire places Comus within the Puritan tradition. In a genre that was usually Royalist, she finds Puritan values reflected in its style, ethical themes, and historical contexts.

Shullenberger, William. Lady in the Labyrinth: Milton’s Comus as Initiation. Madison, N.J.: Fairleigh Dickinson University Press, 2008. This feminist analysis of the play focuses on the character of the Lady, who is described as the first of Milton’s heroes of “Christian Liberty.”