/lit/ - Literature

I hate how all of DFW's covers range from bad to passable

I didn't really believe the DFW hype for a while. Still haven't read Infinite Jest or anything, but one of my professors lent me a copy of his essay book, and he's got a very unique and interesting style of using prose. I feel like his strange vocabulary doesn't come across all that unnatural. The ideas are also rather unique and interesting in how he ties in ordinary experiences with his deeper subjects. Any of you read this?


Also, I have to read Paradise Lost book one for a English course I'm taking about British Literature. Haven't really been fond of what I've read so far save for some of the romantic and renaissance poets. Can someone help me understand what the significance of Paradise Lost is and what the greater thematic elements go into the genre that make it interesting? I like epic poetry, but his language throws me off, and I'll likely struggle to understand some of the religious imagery otherwise.