The Arms of the Family: The Significance of John Milton's Relatives and Associates by John T. Shawcross (review)

Abstract

MLR, 100.2, 2005 485 In Chapters 3-5, Alfar considers in turn the sisters in Lear, Lady Macbeth, and Cleopatra. Goneril and Regan, she argues, are trapped by the pressures on any mon? arch in this period: ifthey behave like tyrants it is because all early modern monarchs are forced by their situation to behave like tyrants on occasion. Lady Macbeth is a differentand altogether more interesting case: in the book's strongest chapter, Al? far argues that Lady Macbeth is a parodic version of the perfect early modern wife and helpmeet. Finally, Alfar considers the case of Cleopatra, who is both admired and abused, making use of the point established earlier in her analysis of Julietand discus? sion of Elizabeth I. The book concludes with a chapter on the women in The Winter's Tale and a reading of that romance suggesting that Shakespeare was seeking a way of reconciling the irreconcilable in his culture. A short conclusion summarizes the discussion and points to other examples of works that create and punish female evil. One of the most attractive features of this study is Alfar's enthusiasm and convic? tion. She works hard to express the complex ideas of others in clear and simplified language. The study does seem rushed, however, not only when she omits the women of the histories, but also when she tells us she uses the conflated text of King Lear, although 'Clearly, a study of the differences would yield fascinating results for my argument' (p. 206 n. 8), because she will perform that task in a longer study yet to come. The omissions are unfortunate because they suggest that her scholarly project is at times too simplified. University of Georgia Frances Teague The Arms of the Family: The Significance ofJohn Milton's Relatives and Associates. By John T. Shawcross. Lexington: University Press of Kentucky. 2004. vii + 304 pp. $45; ?3195- ISBN 0-8131-2291-0. The life of John Milton can hardly be described as a neglected area of literary scho? larship, and yet in this excellent and informative book, John T. Shawcross presents a wealth of new material on the subject. His overriding argument is thatfamily mat? ters do matter and that some of Milton's key family relationships have been either neglected or misread by Miltonists in the past. So Shawcross gives extended and detailed attention to familial figures?in particular Milton's brother Christopher, his brother-in-law Thomas Agar, and his two nephews John and Edward Philips?not given sufficientlyfull consideration in other biographies. The book has three main lines of attack: the addition of a large amount of scholarly work to the field of Milton studies; a revisionist reading, in the light of this new information, of Milton's life and associations, particularly in relation to political and religious matters; and, in a final chapter, an attempt to relate this new family-oriented life to the literary Milton. The book is extremely successful in the firsttwo of these objectives, and also achieves the third, even if the final chapter?'Protestant and Familial Literary Implications'?is perhaps more of an interesting afterthought than a triumphant crescendo. What is particularly impressive about this book is how, in boldly revisionist, almost iconoclastic mood, Shawcross repeatedly reveals that in Milton studies 'received notions passed down from one commentator to another' (p. 2) have often been inadequate and sometimes simply false. The book proceeds in an orderly fashion, devoting self-contained chapters to its main protagonists, and there is a welter of new information about each. For instance, we learn in greater detail than ever before the importance of Royalist figures such as Thomas Agar (the second husband of Milton's sister Anne), Christopher Milton, and Edward Philips, and Shawcross argues that these people, and other 'well-to-do [. . .] "significant" people of England' (p. 163), were absolutely central to Milton's milieu . Shawcross convincingly speculates, forexample, that it is these connections that 486 Reviews helped Milton escape punishment afterthe Restoration, and this serves to modify the traditional narrative, which stresses the importance of political allies such as Andrew Marvell. Shawcross argues?in one of the more powerful strands in the book?that it...