The stranger from paradise : a biography of William Blake

Bibliographic Information

The stranger from paradise : a biography of William Blake

G.E. Bentley, Jr

Published for the Paul Mellon Centre for Studies in British Art by Yale University Press, c2001

  • : pbk

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Note

Includes bibliographical references (p. [464]-492) and index

Description and Table of Contents

Volume

ISBN 9780300089394

Description

William Blake's wife once said of him: "I have very little of Mr. Blake's company; he is always in Paradise". This fascinating and generously illustrated biography of the great English artist, poet, and mystic brings us very much into Blake's company, presenting, often in the words of his contemporaries, everything that is known of his life and times. G.E. Bentley tells us that although Blake struggled with the ways of the world in his youth and early manhood, he was always frustrated that these ways were not his own. Instead he spoke the language of radical religious dissent, standing outside the popular political and social conventions of his time and lamenting the power of Church and State. Blake learned to participate in traditions of vision and piety, to exult in the power of the spirit and in visionary art and literature. He created a new gospel of art, other-worldly and fundamentally spiritual, and in his old age, he exhibited a serenity in poverty and a devotion to the realm of the spirit that was revered by his disciples. Blake's life bears the shape of great art itself, says Bentley. From his youthful vaulting ambitions in painting, engraving, poetry, and music, through his mature flirtation with fortune, to his joyful return to the vision and confidence of his youth, Blake's life provides a pattern of noble self-sacrifice and wise self-understanding that is an inspiration to his generation and to ours.
Volume

: pbk ISBN 9780300100303

Description

This illustrated biography of William Blake, the great English artist, poet and mystic, seeks to encompass virtually everything that is known of his life and times. Often invoking the words of Blake's own contemporaries, G.E. Bentley describes the struggles of Blake's youth, his gradual embrace of the power of the spirit and visionary art and literature, and the serenity he achieved in his old age.

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