The Valley of Vision

Blake as Prophet and Revolutionary

Fiction & Literature, Literary Theory & Criticism, British, Nonfiction, History
Cover of the book The Valley of Vision by Peter Fisher, University of Toronto Press, Scholarly Publishing Division
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Peter Fisher ISBN: 9781487596958
Publisher: University of Toronto Press, Scholarly Publishing Division Publication: December 15, 1961
Imprint: Language: English
Author: Peter Fisher
ISBN: 9781487596958
Publisher: University of Toronto Press, Scholarly Publishing Division
Publication: December 15, 1961
Imprint:
Language: English

The author of this important contribution to the study of Blake was tragically drowned in a sailing accident when he had almost completed it in manuscript. His was a critical mind of singular erudition and power. As is abundantly evidenced in these chapters which Northrop Frye has prepared for publication. Fisher had made a careful study of Oriental philosophy and of Plato and the Neo-Platonists and this background enabled him to make an original and fruitful analysis of his central interest, Blake.

The book is not a study of Blake's sources but of his context. The author is trying to answer the question: given Blake's general point of view, why does he make the specific judgments he does make, judgments which so often seem merely glib or petulant or perverse. Blake himself, in explaining a painting, remarked: "It ought to be understood that the Persons, Moses & Abraham, are not here meant, but the States Signified by those Names." Fisher explains what Blake meant by "states," and shows that such names as Plato, Bacon or Newton, or such terms as "priest" or "deist" in Blake's writings, refer not to individuals but to cultural forces in Western civilization, the influence of which accounted for the social conditions that Blake attacked. The attack itself, Fisher shows, was based on a revolutionary dialectic, a sense of the underlying opposition between reactionaries committed to obscurantism and social injustice, the "Elect" as Blake calls them, and the prophets committed to a greater vision (the "Reprobate"), with the mass of the public (the "Redeemed") in between.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

The author of this important contribution to the study of Blake was tragically drowned in a sailing accident when he had almost completed it in manuscript. His was a critical mind of singular erudition and power. As is abundantly evidenced in these chapters which Northrop Frye has prepared for publication. Fisher had made a careful study of Oriental philosophy and of Plato and the Neo-Platonists and this background enabled him to make an original and fruitful analysis of his central interest, Blake.

The book is not a study of Blake's sources but of his context. The author is trying to answer the question: given Blake's general point of view, why does he make the specific judgments he does make, judgments which so often seem merely glib or petulant or perverse. Blake himself, in explaining a painting, remarked: "It ought to be understood that the Persons, Moses & Abraham, are not here meant, but the States Signified by those Names." Fisher explains what Blake meant by "states," and shows that such names as Plato, Bacon or Newton, or such terms as "priest" or "deist" in Blake's writings, refer not to individuals but to cultural forces in Western civilization, the influence of which accounted for the social conditions that Blake attacked. The attack itself, Fisher shows, was based on a revolutionary dialectic, a sense of the underlying opposition between reactionaries committed to obscurantism and social injustice, the "Elect" as Blake calls them, and the prophets committed to a greater vision (the "Reprobate"), with the mass of the public (the "Redeemed") in between.

More books from University of Toronto Press, Scholarly Publishing Division

Cover of the book Industry and humanity by Peter Fisher
Cover of the book Canadian Studies in the New Millennium, Second Edition by Peter Fisher
Cover of the book Helter-Shelter by Peter Fisher
Cover of the book Secrets of the Oracle by Peter Fisher
Cover of the book "I wish to keep a record" by Peter Fisher
Cover of the book Fiscal Frameworks and Financial Systems in East Asia by Peter Fisher
Cover of the book Poems and Essays by Peter Fisher
Cover of the book The Intellectual as Hero in 1990s Ukrainian Fiction by Peter Fisher
Cover of the book Artistry Unleashed by Peter Fisher
Cover of the book The Promised Land by Peter Fisher
Cover of the book Teachers in Trouble by Peter Fisher
Cover of the book The Patriots and the People by Peter Fisher
Cover of the book Unpopular Culture by Peter Fisher
Cover of the book Studies of Rheumatoid Disease by Peter Fisher
Cover of the book Marriage, Dowry, and Citizenship in Late Medieval and Renaissance Italy by Peter Fisher
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy