Poems vs Samson Agonistes: Which Should You Read?
Both live on shelves: English drama, Poetry
Poems
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Volume 1. This book contains all the essays and reviews that W.H. Auden wrote during the years when he was living in England, and also includes the full original versions of his two illustrated travel books, Letters…
Samson Agonistes
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In 1796, William Hayley named John Milton the “greatest English author,” high praise considering Milton (1608-1674) lived during the Age of Shakespeare. Regardless of whether Milton is truly the greatest English author,…
Side by side
The verdict
- Readers rate Poems highest: Poems 4.2 · Samson Agonistes 3.8.
- Poems has the widest readership — 7550 ratings behind its score.
Scores by source
| Poems | Samson Agonistes | |
|---|---|---|
| Goodreads | 4.2 (7550) | 3.8 (3138) |
| Hardcover | — | 4.0 (3) |
Reception
| Poems | Samson Agonistes | |
|---|---|---|
| Ratings | 7550 | 3138 |
| Editions | 34 | 60 |
| Film adaptations | 1 | 1 |
| Want to read | 10012 | 2104 |
| Reading it now | 214 | 24 |
| Written reviews | 212 | 168 |
| Wikipedia attention | 19870 | 2478 |
| Pages | 223 | 170 |
Questions readers ask
Which is rated higher: Poems or Samson Agonistes?
Poems has the higher combined reader rating across sources (Poems 4.2/5, Samson Agonistes 3.8/5).
Which is shorter to read: Poems or Samson Agonistes?
Samson Agonistes is the quickest read. Estimated at 225 words per minute: Samson Agonistes (170 pages, ≈ 3 h 09 m); Poems (223 pages, ≈ 4 h 08 m).
Which is harder to read: Poems or Samson Agonistes?
Estimated difficulty, based on era, reader shelves and length — Poems: Demanding; Samson Agonistes: Demanding.