Stony Brook University will host its annual Milton Marathon, a marathon-style reading of John Milton’s epic poem Paradise Lost, on April 22 in front of the Humanities building. The event is scheduled from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. and coincides with National Poetry Month.
The marathon brings together students, faculty, and staff for a shared literary experience that emphasizes both endurance and appreciation for classic literature. Participants take turns reciting the entire poem aloud over ten hours, fostering community engagement while celebrating one of English literature’s most renowned works.
Douglas Pfeiffer, associate professor in the Department of English and leader of this year’s event, said: “It’s a poem for all time. It addresses questions of free will, which we might generally construct as questions about freedom. But maybe the best reason to be there is just that this is some of the greatest verse ever written in English and it’s a great story.”
First published in 1667 with more than ten thousand lines, Paradise Lost continues to resonate today despite being written over three centuries ago. Pfeiffer said: “It’s a poem where Milton tries to explain the source of evil in the world, and those questions are always relevant.”
Pfeiffer also addressed how events like these bring people together beyond digital interaction: “No matter how I approach Paradise Lost, or how students approach it, we all have it in front of us and it’s kind of this radical meeting ground where everyone can participate in their own way,” he said. “That’s one of the things I love about working on literature. I may have more informed ideas about this poem than someone who’s never read it before, but that doesn’t mean that their engagement with it is lesser. It just means it’s different. And that’s what I love about these public-facing events. Anyone can just walk by and participate, and that’s valuable.”
The event aims not only to honor an enduring literary masterpiece but also to create opportunities for spontaneous participation among members of the university community.
