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8th out of 185 books
—
185 voters
The Complete Poems
One of the great English Romantic poets, William Blake (1757-1827) was an artist, poet, mystic and visionary. His work ranges from the deceptively simple and lyrical "Songs of Innocence" and their counterpoint "Experience" - which juxtapose poems such as "The Lamb and The Tyger", and "The Blossom and The Sick Rose" - to highly elaborate, apocalyptic works, such as "The Fou...more
Paperback, 1072 pages
Published
March 30th 1978
by Penguin Classics
(first published 1977)
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Blake is my favorite poet, and thus picking this up for a dollar at the Friends Of The Library sale was seven kinds of sweet.
I'm not a huge Poetry person, mostly because I have much use for an art form that (in modern poetry at least) is designed to conceal it's meaning. That's why I like the Romantics, they're not afraid to say it. And what they lose in subtlety they more then make up for in sheer language.
Plus the subject matter is always much more interesting in Romantism. Man's soul suspen...more
I'm not a huge Poetry person, mostly because I have much use for an art form that (in modern poetry at least) is designed to conceal it's meaning. That's why I like the Romantics, they're not afraid to say it. And what they lose in subtlety they more then make up for in sheer language.
Plus the subject matter is always much more interesting in Romantism. Man's soul suspen...more
I doubt I will ever have read Blake enough (and this nice, thick book in particular) to ever be able to say that I have fully "read" him. Blake is like nothing I have ever read, nor could I describe the experience I have reading him to that of any other poet. It seems at times I'm reading a myth instead of a Romantic poet (which, perhaps, would make him happy to hear). Fun wouldn't be the word...maybe captivated? Overtaken? Fascinated to momentary fulfillment? Well, at least as much as any poem...more
I heard an Angel singing
When the day was springing,
'Mercy, Pity, Peace
Is the world's release.'
Thus he sung all day
Over the new mown hay,
Till the sun went down
And haycocks looked brown.
I heard a Devil curse
Over the heath and the furze,
'Mercy could be no more,
If there was nobody poor,
And pity no more could be,
If all were as happy as we.'
At his curse the sun went down,
And the heavens gave a frown.
Down pour'd the heavy rain
Over the new reap'd grain ...
And Miseries' increase
Is Mercy, Pity, Peace.
When the day was springing,
'Mercy, Pity, Peace
Is the world's release.'
Thus he sung all day
Over the new mown hay,
Till the sun went down
And haycocks looked brown.
I heard a Devil curse
Over the heath and the furze,
'Mercy could be no more,
If there was nobody poor,
And pity no more could be,
If all were as happy as we.'
At his curse the sun went down,
And the heavens gave a frown.
Down pour'd the heavy rain
Over the new reap'd grain ...
And Miseries' increase
Is Mercy, Pity, Peace.
Have just completed "Jerusalem", "Milton", "The book of Thel" the prophetic books. I've been reading and returning to Blake since the mid-1980s and collect prints of the facsimiles when I can get them. This is my first time to get through the books mentioned above.
They remind me a lot of Tolkien's project. Blake and Tolkien both where English men who created their own mythologies about England. Both were religious. Both made paintings of their imaginative worlds.
The difference is that Tolkien w...more
They remind me a lot of Tolkien's project. Blake and Tolkien both where English men who created their own mythologies about England. Both were religious. Both made paintings of their imaginative worlds.
The difference is that Tolkien w...more
I myself enjoy writing poetry, and although I have a passion for it, many poets do not appeal to me. William Blake is onec of those poets that certainly does. Many poetry authors tend to make their creative writing too complex, and often so subversive that it is difficult to grasp what they are trying to say. William Blake doesn't. His poems are extremely simple to read (so simple that they could almost be recognised as nursery rhymes), easy to understand, yet at the same time have a deep meanin...more
Many people hold varying opinions on William Blake and his poetry. My opinion is that he used simple language to create romantic visions about the natural world he loved. And he created some pretty unique ideas such as Urizen.
I personally have not read all the poems in this volume (although I've read as many as I could) because there are many drafts and different versions of poems. The ones I have read I have enjoyed very much so and not simply because my favourite high school teacher thoroughly...more
I personally have not read all the poems in this volume (although I've read as many as I could) because there are many drafts and different versions of poems. The ones I have read I have enjoyed very much so and not simply because my favourite high school teacher thoroughly...more
Blake has genius. Sometimes so simple and direct, but always inspired and inspiring. He has a grip on words, a feel for them, an ability to draw from everyday references something towering, powerful, bizarre, extraordinary. There is force.
One of the few poets I have ever read where each and every poem is great.
Must have for anyone who is curious about what infinity in a grain of sand means.
No poet has ever touched me more than William Blake.
How am I to write a review about one of the most talented writers this world has ever seen? Unfortunately I am not capable to comprehend all the greatness of Mr. Blake's art. No matter how many times I visit the world he created I discover new and deeper meanings. And I have a feeling those discoveries will never end. If you can read one verse, one poem, do so, for it may make you a better person.
If thought is life and strength and breath
And the want of thought is death
Then am I a happy fly
If I live
Or if I die
It is not every day that you find such gems.
And the want of thought is death
Then am I a happy fly
If I live
Or if I die
It is not every day that you find such gems.
my favorite poet. spend days delving into the subcontext of his works and you'll never see religious texts the same again.
"The mind that alters, alters all." Nobody pegged today's young people better then old Billy Blake.
well, my edition is not a penguin one..it's an old rare one...but so lovely! :) Preface by Sampson
Nov 23, 2008
Noran Miss Pumkin
rated it
5 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
all
Recommended to Noran by:
father
Shelves:
poetry
my copy was from the 1800's--when I was a teen. wish i still had it-gave it away as a gift.
I am deeply interested in Blake and his works.
Odd, yet likeable.
Oct 06, 2008
Nunu
added it
mistical
Blake is a madman.
May 19, 2013
Scott Hogan
marked it as to-read
May 18, 2013
Aurelius03
marked it as to-read
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William Blake was an English poet, painter, and printmaker. Largely unrecognised during his lifetime, Blake's work is today considered seminal and significant in the history of both poetry and the visual arts.
Blake's prophetic poetry has been said to form "what is in proportion to its merits the least read body of poetry in the language". His visual artistry has led one modern critic to proclaim h...more
More about William Blake...
Blake's prophetic poetry has been said to form "what is in proportion to its merits the least read body of poetry in the language". His visual artistry has led one modern critic to proclaim h...more
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If only because of the fact that it might be the single bitchiest poem ever written.
Also Dead Man. That's...more
Jun 11, 2008 02:10pm
Must be the phase of the moon--we agree again.
pe
Jun 13, 2008 12:40am