JERUSALEM
William Blake
Dec 2023 · DigiCat
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About this ebook
The poem was inspired by the apocryphal story that a young Jesus, accompanied by his uncle Joseph of Arimathea, a tin merchant, travelled to what is now England and visited Glastonbury during the unknown years of Jesus. The legend is linked to an idea in the Book of Revelation describing a Second Coming, wherein Jesus establishes a new Jerusalem. The Christian Church in general, and the English Church in particular, has long used Jerusalem as a metaphor for Heaven, a place of universal love and peace. In the most common interpretation of the poem, Blake implies that a visit by Jesus would briefly create heaven in England, in contrast to the "dark Satanic Mills" of the Industrial Revolution. Blake's poem asks questions rather than asserting the historical truth of Christ's visit. Thus the poem merely implies that there may, or may not, have been a divine visit, when there was briefly heaven in England. 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.
About the author
William Blake (1757–1827) was not only a seminal figure in the history of both poetry and visual arts but also an iconoclastic and visionary British poet, painter, and printmaker. His unique synthesis of art and poetry has earned him recognition as one of the most significant cultural figures of the Romantic Age. Blake's corpus of work is extensive and profound, with 'Jerusalem: The Emanation of the Giant Albion' being one of his most ambitious and complex prophetic books, which he both wrote and illustrated. The work encapsulates Blake's rich symbolism and his belief in the spiritual and artistic emancipation of mankind. Blake published 'Jerusalem' in 1804 but continued to work on it until his death. It stands out not only for its visionary qualities but also for its challenge to the political and social norms of his time. His creative genius often combined the visionary with the revolutionary, intertwining mythology, Christian mysticism, and his prophetic visions. 'Jerusalem' is emblematic of Blake's literary style, which includes not only a unique mythology and the creation of a vast, metaphysical landscape but also a critique of the contemporary socio-political scene. Notably, his work was not widely appreciated during his lifetime, but in the Victorian era, it began to ascend in stature, with Blake now recognized as a saintly figure of British Romanticism, and 'Jerusalem' standing as a testament to his extraordinary imaginative power.
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