Book Boulevard

Posted by J.R. (A) on June 15, 2004 at 05:08:06

An epic poem, unpublished in Blake's lifetime, it contains much of
the raw material for "Jerusalem" and, to a lesser extent, "Milton,"
his two other epic poems. A refreshing, totally different take on
the nature of man and God, this poem tells us nothing less than where
we came from, what we are, and what we are for; it contains some of
the finest poetry in the language, like,

"O Love. O Pity. O Pain.
O the pangs, the bitter pangs of love forsaken."

It is replete with wisdom not usually encountered:

"Why wilt thou Examine every little fibre of my soul,
Spreading them out before the sun like stalks of flax to dry?
The infant joy is beautiful, but its anatomy
Horrible, Ghast, and Deadly; nought shalt thou find in it
But Death, Despair & Everlasting brooding Melancholy."

You've encountered precious little like it. Regards,

J.R.