William Blake's prophetic books
Encyclopedia
The prophetic books of the English
poet and artist William Blake
are a series of difficult and obscure poetic works. While Blake worked as a commercial illustrator, these books were ones that he produced, with his own engravings, as an extended and largely private project. The French Revolution from 1791 is not illustrated, and is usually excluded from the list of prophetic books.
In them he elaborated, with some false starts, a personal invented mythology
(mythopoeia). The mythopoeia is largely Biblical in inspiration; apart from that, it has been extensively debated for both its political and religious content. David V. Erdman
considers that the separation from the corpus of The French Revolution removes a key to the symbolism used by Blake.
The prophetic books have at times in the past been dismissed as lacking in good sense. This position is now rarely to be met with in scholars of English literature
, Blake having been one of the major beneficiaries of critical fashion during the twentieth century. Northrop Frye
, and following him Harold Bloom
, have suggested that the difficulty of reading Blake's prophetic works can be overcome, and that the dismissive 'mystical' applied to them is largely an obfuscation. 'Mystical
' as to the poetic language has been indeed the equivalent of 'visionary
' applied to the engravings.
Since the prophetic books were not highly regarded, where Blake's very direct lyric poems were considered unproblematic, they had a tortuous publication history.
comprises America a Prophecy (1793), Europe a Prophecy (1794), and The Song of Los (1795), which is made up of sections Africa and Asia.
America a Prophecy is divided into a Preludium (which is part of the Orc
myth) and A Prophecy, which has obvious political content devolving from the American Revolution
. The first line of A Prophecy is repeated as the final line of Africa. On the other hand, Europe a Prophecy has an unnamed introductory section, a Preludium with Orc and Enitharmon
, and A Prophecy with connections to the contemporary situation of wartime Europe. The Asia section of The Song of Los links onto the end of Europe a Prophecy (via the word 'howl').
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
poet and artist William Blake
William Blake
William Blake was an English poet, painter, and printmaker. Largely unrecognised during his lifetime, Blake is now considered a seminal figure in the history of both the poetry and visual arts of the Romantic Age...
are a series of difficult and obscure poetic works. While Blake worked as a commercial illustrator, these books were ones that he produced, with his own engravings, as an extended and largely private project. The French Revolution from 1791 is not illustrated, and is usually excluded from the list of prophetic books.
In them he elaborated, with some false starts, a personal invented mythology
William Blake's mythology
The prophetic books of the English poet and artist William Blake contain a rich invented mythology , in which Blake worked to encode his revolutionary spiritual and political ideas into a prophecy for a new age. This desire to recreate the cosmos is the heart of his work and his psychology...
(mythopoeia). The mythopoeia is largely Biblical in inspiration; apart from that, it has been extensively debated for both its political and religious content. David V. Erdman
David V. Erdman
David V. Erdman was an American literary critic, editor, and Professor Emeritus of English at the State University of New York at Stony Brook. Professor Erdman established his reputation as a William Blake scholar when his Blake: Prophet Against Empire was published in 1954...
considers that the separation from the corpus of The French Revolution removes a key to the symbolism used by Blake.
The prophetic books have at times in the past been dismissed as lacking in good sense. This position is now rarely to be met with in scholars of English literature
English literature
English literature is the literature written in the English language, including literature composed in English by writers not necessarily from England; for example, Robert Burns was Scottish, James Joyce was Irish, Joseph Conrad was Polish, Dylan Thomas was Welsh, Edgar Allan Poe was American, J....
, Blake having been one of the major beneficiaries of critical fashion during the twentieth century. Northrop Frye
Northrop Frye
Herman Northrop Frye, was a Canadian literary critic and literary theorist, considered one of the most influential of the 20th century....
, and following him Harold Bloom
Harold Bloom
Harold Bloom is an American writer and literary critic, and is Sterling Professor of Humanities at Yale University. He is known for his defense of 19th-century Romantic poets, his unique and controversial theories of poetic influence, and his prodigious literary output, particularly for a literary...
, have suggested that the difficulty of reading Blake's prophetic works can be overcome, and that the dismissive 'mystical' applied to them is largely an obfuscation. 'Mystical
Mysticism
Mysticism is the knowledge of, and especially the personal experience of, states of consciousness, i.e. levels of being, beyond normal human perception, including experience and even communion with a supreme being.-Classical origins:...
' as to the poetic language has been indeed the equivalent of 'visionary
Visionary
Defined broadly, a visionary, is one who can envision the future. For some groups this can involve the supernatural or drugs.The visionary state is achieved via meditation, drugs, lucid dreams, daydreams, or art. One example is Hildegard of Bingen, a 12th century artist/visionary and Catholic saint...
' applied to the engravings.
Since the prophetic books were not highly regarded, where Blake's very direct lyric poems were considered unproblematic, they had a tortuous publication history.
The Continental prophecies
The cycle of Continental propheciesContinental prophecies
The Continental Prophecies is a group of illuminated books by William Blake that have been subject of numerous studies due to their recurrent and unorthodox use of political, literary and sexual metaphors...
comprises America a Prophecy (1793), Europe a Prophecy (1794), and The Song of Los (1795), which is made up of sections Africa and Asia.
America a Prophecy is divided into a Preludium (which is part of the Orc
Orc (Blake)
Orc is a proper name for one of the characters in the complex mythology of William Blake. Unlike the medieval sea beast, or Tolkien's humanoid monster, his Orc is a positive figure, the embodiment of creative passion and energy, and stands opposed to Urizen, the embodiment of tradition.In Blake's...
myth) and A Prophecy, which has obvious political content devolving from the American Revolution
American Revolution
The American Revolution was the political upheaval during the last half of the 18th century in which thirteen colonies in North America joined together to break free from the British Empire, combining to become the United States of America...
. The first line of A Prophecy is repeated as the final line of Africa. On the other hand, Europe a Prophecy has an unnamed introductory section, a Preludium with Orc and Enitharmon
Enitharmon
Enitharmon is a major female character in William Blake's mythology, playing a main part in some of his prophetic books. She is, but not directly, an aspect of the male Urthona, one of the Four Zoas. She is in fact the Emanation of Los, also male. There is a complex verbal nexus attached. The Zoa...
, and A Prophecy with connections to the contemporary situation of wartime Europe. The Asia section of The Song of Los links onto the end of Europe a Prophecy (via the word 'howl').
The books
- TirielTirielTiriel is the eponymous character in a poem by William Blake written c.1789, and considered the first of his prophetic books. The character of Tiriel is often interpreted as a foreshadowing of Urizen, representative of conventionality and conformity, and one of the major characters in Blake's as...
(c.1789) - The Book of ThelThe Book of ThelThe Book of Thel is a poem by William Blake, dated 1789 and probably worked on in the period 1788 to 1790.It is illustrated by his own plates, and is relatively short and easy to understand, compared to his later prophetic books. The metre is a fourteen-syllable line. It was preceded by Tiriel,...
(c.1789) - America a ProphecyAmerica a ProphecyAmerica a Prophecy is a 1793 prophetic book by English poet and illustrator William Blake. It is engraved on eighteen plates, and survives in fourteen known copies. It is the first of Blake's Continental prophecies.-Background:...
(1793) - Europe a ProphecyEurope a ProphecyEurope a Prophecy is a 1794 prophetic book by English poet and illustrator William Blake. It is engraved on 18 plates, and survives in just nine known copies. It followed America a Prophecy of 1793.-Background:...
(1794) - Visions of the Daughters of AlbionVisions of the Daughters of AlbionVisions of the Daughters of Albion is a 1793 poem by William Blake, produced as a book with his own illustrations. It is a short and early example of his prophetic books, and a sequel of sorts to The Book of Thel....
(1793) - The Book of UrizenThe Book of UrizenThe Book of Urizen is one of the major prophetic books of the English writer William Blake, illustrated by Blake's own plates. It was originally published as The First Book of Urizen in 1794. Later editions dropped the "First". The book takes its name from the character Urizen in Blake's mythology,...
(1794) - The Book of AhaniaThe Book of AhaniaThe Book of Ahania is one of the English poet William Blake's prophetic books. It was published in 1795, illustrated by Blake's own plates....
(1795) - The Book of LosThe Book of LosThe Book of Los is a 1795 prophetic book by English poet and painter William Blake. It exists in only one copy, now held by The British Museum. The book is related to the Book of Urizen and to the Continental prophecies; it is essentially a retelling of Urizen from the point of view of Los...
(1795) - The Song of LosThe Song of LosThe Song of Los is one of William Blake's epic poems, known as prophetic books. The poem consists of two sections, "Africa" and "Asia". In the first section Blake catalogues the decline of morality in Europe, which he blames on both the African slave trade and enlightenment philosophers...
(1795) - Vala, or The Four ZoasVala, or The Four ZoasVala, or The Four Zoas refers to one of the incompleted prophetic books by English poet William Blake, begun in 1797. The titular main characters of the book are The Four Zoas: , who were created by the fall of Albion in Blake's mythology. It consists of nine books, referred to as "nights"...
(begun 1797, unfinished, abandoned c.1804) - Milton, A Poem (1804-1810)
- Jerusalem: The Emanation of the Giant AlbionJerusalem: The Emanation of the Giant AlbionJerusalem, subtitled The Emanation of the Giant Albion, was the last, longest, and greatest in scope of the prophetic books written and illustrated by the poet, artist, and engraver William Blake....
(1804–1820)