John Milton&#39;s epic 17th-century poetic masterpiece draws upon Bible stories and classical mythology to explore the meaning of existence.&nbsp;<i>Paradise Lost</i>&nbsp;has exercised enormous influence on generations of artists and their works, ranging from the Romantic poets William Blake and Percy Bysshe Shelley to Joseph Haydn&#39;s oratorio&nbsp;<i>The Creation</i>&nbsp;and J. R. R. Tolkien&#39;s&nbsp;<i>The Lord of the Rings</i>.