William Blake
Subtitle: An Introduction
By: Edited by Anne Malcolmson
Edition: First American Edition
Publisher: Harcourt, Brace & World Inc.
Published: 1967
Place of publication: New York, USA
Language: eng
Format: Hardcover
Number of pages: 127
Copyright date: 1967
Description: Many of William Blake's contemporaries thought the visionary poet-artist, a madman, for his prophecies and mysticism ran counter to the sensibilities of the Age of Reason. Sane of mind, Blake left behind him a body of poetry that is one of the glories of English literature, richly metaphorical and burning with his belief in the freedom of the human spirit. Blake's passionate rebellion against all forms of constraint is as timely now as it was in the eighteenth century, and his splendid vision of man free to realize his best potential has special appeal for young readers.
Using the methods that proved so effective in A Taste of Chaucer, Anne Malsomson has written a general introduction that sets Blake-the man and the poet-in the perspective of his times and provides, as well, a guide to his symbolism. Selections from some of the early poems, from the manuscripts from Songs of Innocence and Songs of Experience, as well as a few passages from the prophetic books, follow, with notes to explain the text where necessary. In addition, some of Blake's own extraordinary pictures are included, eight of them in color.
Lucid, literate, and informative, this is a fine presentation of a strange and grand figure of English art and literature.