Masaryk University Faculty of Arts Department of English and American Studies English Language and Literature Ivona Schöfrová Darkness in William Blake’s The First Book of Urizen Master’s Diploma Thesis Supervisor: Stephen Hardy, Ph. D. 2015 I declare that I have worked on this thesis independently, using only the primary and secondary sources listed in the bibliography. …………………………………………….. Ivona Schöfrová Acknowledgement I would like to thank my family and my partner Miroslav Vrzal for their loving support throughout my studies. I would also like to thank my supervisor, Stephen Hardy, Ph.D., for his valuable advice and encouragement. Table of Contents Table of Contents…………………………………………………………………..1 1 Introduction.…………………………………………………………..……..2 2 William Blake………………………………………………..………............6 2.1 Blake’s Prophetic Books……………………...………………9 2.2 The [First] Book of Urizen……………….….…………..…..12 3 Darkness in The First Book of Urizen.........……………………..……………19 3.1 Birth …………………………………….…………………………..21 3.1.1 Womb……………………………………………………22 3.1.2 Sex………………………………………….……………27 3.1.3 Embryology……………………………………………...32 3.2 Depths………………………………………………………………43 3.2.1 Abyss………………………………………………....…43 3.2.2 Sleep………………………………………………..…...51 3.2.3 Death…………………………………………..………..56 3.3 Perception………………………………………………………………61 3.3.1. Senses……………………………………………......…62 3.3.2. Law……………………………………………………..71 4 Conclusion…………………………………………………………………82 5 Works Cited.……………………………………………………………….87 6 List of Abbreviations………………………………………………………91 7 Resumé (Englsih) …………………………………………………………92 8 Resumé (Czech) …………………………………………………………..93 Appendix …………………………………………………………………….……94 1 1 Introduction The main aim of this thesis is to analyse selected aspects of darkness in William Blake’s The First Book of Urizen in terms of references to darkness at the textual level as well as at the visual level, taking into account also the imagery and the metaphorical level of The First Book of Urizen. These aspects are analysed in order to explain and comment on the significance of darkness and its meaning in Blake’s poem. The thesis analyses darkness with respect to the form of Blake’s The First Book of Urizen, which consists of twenty-eight plates in the form of relief etching with hand colouring, distinguishing between eighteen plates of text and designs, and ten full page designs. The thesis tries to observe how Blake uses darkness and how he employs it in order to express poetically his views on selected myths. Blake seems to derive his mythology from different sources of myths, such as Greek and Christian myths, which appear to be interconnected in his The First Book of Urizen. This allows him to introduce his own perspectives on genesis influenced by the concepts of Gnosticism, particularly the concepts of the demiurge1and his material world. Blake attempts to comment on various problematic aspects of the material world and its establishment in order to express his personal philosophies. The thesis consists of three major chapters, each divided into specific sections in order to provide a clear thematic division. The first chapter offers a theoretical background which is considered necessary for general understanding of the analysed aspects of darkness and its negative connotations in The First Book of Urizen. To be more specific, the chapter is devoted to William Blake and its main aim is to introduce not only William Blake but also the relevant aspects of his life, family background, education, and possible influences on his works, which are considered important and relevant for the subsequent analysis. It further 1 Term used in Gnosticism to refer to the creator of the material world. 2 focuses on William Blake’s prophetic writings and tries to provide a brief outline of his literary works known as prophetic books. This outline may be important in order to understand Blake’s literary tendencies in relation to the selected aspects of darkness. Furthermore, William Blake’s The First Book of Urizen is introduced and its significance within Blake’s works and his prophetic writings is explained. In addition, the chapter attempts to outline the methodology of the research and it further elaborates on the research question. A chronology of events and key characters from The First Book of Urizen is provided in order to clarify the epics of the poem, which may be helpful in terms of understanding the interpretation of the poem as well as the analytical part of the thesis. Subsequently, the following chapter ‘Darkness in The First Book of Urizen’ attempts to analyse the selected aspects of darkness within three main categories. The first category deals with birth in relation to darkness and it tries to explain the significance of darkness in terms of the three following subcategories related to birth, including the symbolism and interpretations of a womb, conception and embryology. The following chapter deals with the category of depths in relation to darkness and it analyses the significance of darkness and its meaning and negative connotations in terms of three categories particularly interested in abysses, sleep and the concept of death. The third analytical chapter is devoted to perception and possible problems resulting from perception in their relation to darkness. Perception is analysed in terms of the category of senses and Urizen’s law. The analytical part of the thesis partially relies on The William Blake Archive, which is a 1996 digital humanities project providing digital reproductions of William Blake’s works and it is used as a primary source. In addition, the thesis also takes into account selected academics and their woks which are considered relevant to the analysis of The First Book of Urizen. In particular, the theoretical background and the analytical part frequently refer to works of Northrop Frye, namely his Collected Works of Northrop Frye: Northrop Frye on 3 Milton and Blake 2and Fearful Symmetry: A Study of William Blake3, which may be important for understanding William Blake’s works and literary tendencies. Furthermore, references to Peter Ackroyd’s Blake4 as well as to Kathleen Raine’s William Blake5 are used to clarify Blake’s biographical data including his life and his family background. For the purpose of the thesis, Camille Paglia and her Sex Bound and Unbound. Blake6 is also considered an important source of references since it deals with possible interpretations of Blake’s works. Finally, the thesis also takes into consideration other scholars, such as Alexander Gilchrist’s The Life of William Blake7, David Erdman and his commentaries to Blake’s designs in The Illuminated Blake8 or J. Sloss’s and J. P. R. Wallis’s The Prophetic Writings of William Blake9. The complete list of secondary sources is provided in the Works Cited of this thesis. The last part of the thesis is the conclusion. It introduces the findings resulting from the analysis of the aspects of darkness in Blake’s The First Book of Urizen with respect to the mentioned categories of darkness at the textual, visual and metaphorical level. In the chapter, Blake’s development of the concept of darkness will be further discussed and particularised. Finally, it may be necessary to emphasise Appendix of the thesis because it provides the mentioned twenty-eight plates of William Blake’s The First Book of Urizen, as well as other selected designs by William Blake which are considered relevant for the thesis (in terms of the possibility to compare and contrast The First Book of Urizen with other Blake’s 2 Erdman, David V. The Illuminated Blake. Garden City, NY: Anchor/Doubleday, 1974. Print. 3 Fearful Symmetry: A Study of William Blake. 4 Ackroyd, Peter. Blake. London: Vintage; 1999. Print 5 Raine, Kathleen. William Blake. London: Thames & Hudson, 1996. Print. 6 Paglia, Camille. "Sex Bound and Unbound. Blake". Sexual Personae. New York: Vintage, 1991. 270–299. 7 Gilchrist, Alexander. The Life of William Blake. Ed. Walford Graham Robertson. London: John Lane, 1929. Print. 8 Erdman, David V. The Illuminated Blake. Garden City, NY: Anchor/Doubleday, 1974. Print. 9 D. J. Sloss and J. P. R. Wallis "The Book of Urizen." The Prophetic Writings of William Blake. Ed. Vol. 1. Oxford: Clarendon, 1926. 80-104. Print. 4 works and concepts). Thus, not only textual but also visual references are provided and also clarified. 5 2 William Blake William Blake (28 November 1757 – 12 August 1827) is a generally known and recognised English poet of the Romantic Age. However it is not possible to reduce his sphere of interest and his work only to poetry or generally literature. William Blake, apart from being a canonical author, is also a recognised visual artist, particularly engraver, painter and colourist. He is also indisputably regarded a graphic designer, calligrapher, printmaker and the inventor of the illuminated printing method. Furthermore, one needs to take into the account that William Blake is also considered an important philosopher, visionary, mystic and occultist. However, the list is still not complete. William Blake is also recognised for his political views as well as his views on religion, which are considered provocative. Therefore, Blake is also appreciated as a non-conformist, radical, autodidact, decided and strict individualist or sexual rebel whose revolutionary views were seen in terms of a radiating antichristian ethos10. Blake’s artworks are regarded as a complex and masterful combination of Blake’s skills including elements from various branches and spheres of his interests. William Blake was born into the family