Reading Blake's Songs

Reading Blake's Songs PDF Author: Zachary Leader
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 131738122X
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 250

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Book Description
First appearing in 1981, this book was the first full-length study of the Songs of Innocence and Experience to be published in almost fifteen years. The book provides detailed readings of each poem and its accompanying design, to redirect attention to the nature and achievement of the book as a whole, to Songs as a single, carefully unified work of verbal and visual art. Particularly close attention is paid, not only to the designs Blake etched to accompany his poems, but also to the many books and treatises for and about children to which, it is argued, Songs alludes or is indebted. Like so many important works of this period, Songs is shown to be autobiographical in nature, one of Blake’s attempts to order and account for the conflicts and crises of his own art and life. Its story is that of an artist’s growth into and out of vision, and of his gradual realization of the dangers and deficiencies of the prophetic mode.

Reading Blake's Songs

Reading Blake's Songs PDF Author: Zachary Leader
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1317381238
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 302

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Book Description
First appearing in 1981, this book was the first full-length study of the Songs of Innocence and Experience to be published in almost fifteen years. The book provides detailed readings of each poem and its accompanying design, to redirect attention to the nature and achievement of the book as a whole, to Songs as a single, carefully unified work of verbal and visual art. Particularly close attention is paid, not only to the designs Blake etched to accompany his poems, but also to the many books and treatises for and about children to which, it is argued, Songs alludes or is indebted. Like so many important works of this period, Songs is shown to be autobiographical in nature, one of Blake’s attempts to order and account for the conflicts and crises of his own art and life. Its story is that of an artist’s growth into and out of vision, and of his gradual realization of the dangers and deficiencies of the prophetic mode.

Songs of Innocence

Songs of Innocence PDF Author: William Blake
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Illumination of books and manuscripts
Languages : en
Pages : 35

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Book Description


SONGS OF EXPERIENCE (With Illuminated Manuscript)

SONGS OF EXPERIENCE (With Illuminated Manuscript) PDF Author: William Blake
Publisher: e-artnow
ISBN: 8027233208
Category : Art
Languages : en
Pages : 15

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Book Description
Shewing the Two Contrary States of the Human Soul (first published in 1794), an expansion of Blake's first illuminated book Songs of Innocence. The poems and artwork were reproduced by copperplate engraving and colored with washes by hand. Blake republished Songs of Innocence and Experience several times, often changing the number and order of the plates. The spellings, punctuation and capitalizations are those of the original Blake manuscripts. William Blake (1757 – 1827) was a British poet, painter, visionary mystic, and engraver, who illustrated and printed his own books. Blake proclaimed the supremacy of the imagination over the rationalism and materialism of the 18th-century. 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.

Reading Blake's Songs

Reading Blake's Songs PDF Author: Zachary Leader
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 131738122X
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 250

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Book Description
First appearing in 1981, this book was the first full-length study of the Songs of Innocence and Experience to be published in almost fifteen years. The book provides detailed readings of each poem and its accompanying design, to redirect attention to the nature and achievement of the book as a whole, to Songs as a single, carefully unified work of verbal and visual art. Particularly close attention is paid, not only to the designs Blake etched to accompany his poems, but also to the many books and treatises for and about children to which, it is argued, Songs alludes or is indebted. Like so many important works of this period, Songs is shown to be autobiographical in nature, one of Blake’s attempts to order and account for the conflicts and crises of his own art and life. Its story is that of an artist’s growth into and out of vision, and of his gradual realization of the dangers and deficiencies of the prophetic mode.

Songs of Innocence and of Experience

Songs of Innocence and of Experience PDF Author: William Blake
Publisher: Strelbytskyy Multimedia Publishing
ISBN:
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages :

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Book Description
Songs of Innocence and of Experience is an collection of poems by William Blake. It appeared in two phases. A few first copies were printed and illuminated by William Blake himself in 1789; five years later he bound these poems with a set of new poems in a volume titled Songs of Innocence and of Experience Shewing the Two Contrary States of the Human Soul. William Blake was also a painter before the songs of innocence and experience and made paintings such as Oberon, Titania, and Puck dancing with fairies. "Innocence" and "Experience" are definitions of consciousness that rethink Milton's existential-mythic states of "Paradise" and "Fall". Often, interpretations of this collection centre around a mythical dualism, where "Innocence" represents the "unfallen world" and "Experience" represents the "fallen world". Blake categorizes our modes of perception that tend to coordinate with a chronology that would become standard in Romanticism: childhood is a state of protected innocence rather than original sin, but not immune to the fallen world and its institutions. This world sometimes impinges on childhood itself, and in any event becomes known through "experience", a state of being marked by the loss of childhood vitality, by fear and inhibition, by social and political corruption, and by the manifold oppression of Church, State, and the ruling classes. The volume's "Contrary States" are sometimes signalled by patently repeated or contrasted titles: in Innocence, Infant Joy, in Experience, Infant Sorrow; in Innocence, The Lamb, in Experience, The Fly and The Tyger. The stark simplicity of poems such as The Chimney Sweeper and The Little Black Boy display Blake's acute sensibility to the realities of poverty and exploitation that accompanied the "Dark Satanic Mills" of the Industrial Revolution.

Songs of Innocence and of Experience

Songs of Innocence and of Experience PDF Author: William Blake
Publisher: Princeton University Press
ISBN: 9780691037905
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 220

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Book Description
Preface by David Bindman, General Editor. Foreword. List of Abbreviations. Introduction. The Plates with a transcription of the text. Plates From Other Copies. Commentary on the text and the plates. Appendix. Works Cited.

Songs of Innocence

Songs of Innocence PDF Author: William Blake
Publisher: Courier Corporation
ISBN: 9780486227641
Category : Literary Collections
Languages : en
Pages : 68

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Book Description
Blake's original color plates are faithfully reproduced in this illuminated edition of his early poems

William Blake: Song of Innocence and of Experience

William Blake: Song of Innocence and of Experience PDF Author: William Blake
Publisher: Tate Enterprises Ltd
ISBN: 1849763283
Category : Poetry
Languages : en
Pages : 133

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Book Description
'Every page is a window open in Heaven ... interwoven designs companion the poems, and gold and yellow tints diffuse themselves over the page like summer clouds. The poems [of Song of Innocence] are the morning song of Blake's genius.' - W.B. Yeats'Blake sang of the ideal world, of the truth of the intellect, and of the divinity of imagination ... The only writer to have written songs for children with the soul of a child ... he holds, in my view, a unique position because he unites intellectual sharpness with mystic sentiment.' - James JoyceSong of Innocence and of Experience is a rare and wonderful book, its seeming simplicity belying its visionary wisdom. Internationally recognised as a masterpiece of English literature, it also occupies a key position in the history of western art.This unique edition of the work allows Blake to communicate with his readers as he intended, reproducing Blake's own illumination and lettering from the finest existing example of the original work. In this way readers can experience the mystery and beauty of Blake's poems as he first created them, discovering for themselves the intricate webs of symbol and meaning that connects word and image.Each poem is accompanied by a literal transcription, and the volume is introduced by the renowned historian and critic, Richard Holmes. The poems are narrated by novelist and critic, Adam Mars-Jones.This beautiful edition of Song of Innocence and of Experience will be essential for those familiar with Blake's work, but also offers an ideal way into his visionary world for those encountering Blake for the first time.

Reading William Blake

Reading William Blake PDF Author: Saree Makdisi
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1316239551
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 151

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Book Description
William Blake (1757‒1827) is one of the most original and influential figures of the Romantic Age, known for his work as an artist, poet and printmaker. Grounding his ideas both in close reading and in the latest scholarship, Saree Makdisi offers an exciting and imaginative approach to reading Blake. By exploring some of the most important themes in Blake's work and connecting them to particular plates from Songs of Innocence and of Experience, Makdisi highlights Blake's creative power and the important interplay between images and words. There is a consistent emphasis on the relationship between the material nature of Blake's illuminated books, including the method he used to produce them, and the interpretive readings of the texts themselves. Makdisi argues that the material and formal openness of Blake's work can be seen as the very basis for learning to read in the spirit of Blake.

Songs of Innocence and Songs of Experience

Songs of Innocence and Songs of Experience PDF Author: William Blake
Publisher: Prabhat Prakashan
ISBN:
Category : Young Adult Nonfiction
Languages : en
Pages : 54

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Book Description
Songs of Innocence and Songs of Experience by William Blake: Immerse yourself in the poetic genius of William Blake with Songs of Innocence and Songs of Experience. This iconic collection of poems explores the contrasting themes of innocence and experience, offering profound insights into the human condition. Key Aspects of the Book Songs of Innocence and Songs of Experience: Poetic Mastery: William Blake's poems are celebrated for their lyrical beauty and deep philosophical underpinnings, making this collection a masterpiece of English literature. Exploration of Dualities: The book delves into the duality of human nature, contrasting innocence with experience, and prompting readers to reflect on the complexities of life. Spiritual and Philosophical Themes: Songs of Innocence and Songs of Experience touches on spiritual and philosophical themes that continue to resonate with readers. William Blake was a visionary English poet, painter, and printmaker known for his unique blend of creativity and mysticism. This collection represents his artistic and philosophical legacy, offering readers a glimpse into the depths of his imagination.