Hillsdale College: Totally free · Jul 10–13, 2026

For centuries, John Milton's Paradise Lost has been considered one of the great works of literature that's ever been written, a Christian epic that wrestles with timeless questions about temptation, freedom, pride, and God's relationship with mankind. In one of its most famous lines, Satan declares, better to reign in hell than serve in heaven. It's a line that cuts to the heart of rebellion, and Milton's response to it is one of the most powerful in all of western literature that's why hillsdale college offers a free online course on paradise lost taught by real hillsdale professors paradise lost gets at something true about human nature the most modern writing won't touch milton understood that the root of every rebellion every act of pride every rejection of god traces back to the same lies satan tells himself in that line the poem carries 1500 years of western and christian thought and Most people have never read it. In this course, Professor Stephen Smith guides you through Milton's masterpiece From the Depths of Hell to the Heights of Heaven. It'll examine Satan's rhetoric, discover the contrast between his lies and God's truth, and explore one of the greatest Christian responses to the epic tradition that began with Homer. Go to hillsdale.edu slash walsh to enroll. It's totally free. Start reading, learn the classics, rediscover the West. Start right now at hillsdale.edu slash walsh.