Lycidas
Lycidas is a pastoral elegy by John Milton, written in 1637 and published in 1638. It commemorates Edward King, a Cambridge fellow who died at sea, and uses the allegorical figure Lycidas—the pastoral shepherd—to frame the lament. The poem moves from intimate grief for a friend to broader meditations on poetry, learning, and the responsibilities of the poet.
The work follows the conventions of the pastoral elegy while blending classical allusions with Christian eschatology.
Lycidas was first published in Milton’s early collection of poems (1638) and is widely regarded as one