The Book of Urizen by William Blake

The Book of Urizen by William Blake

The richly illuminated works of William Blake poet, prophet, and artist have fascinated readers since the late eighteenth century. In majestic verse illustrated with his own hand-colored plates, the poet explored profound and mystical themes, including the relationship between God and man and the concept of life as a journey toward spiritual self-knowledge.
One of Blake's most interesting and powerful creations, The Book of Urizen represents a parody of the book of Genesis, in which the righteous figure of God is replaced by that of Urizen, the dark power and obstacle to spiritual life. With the voice of honest indignation, Blake compels readers to recognize and overcome their inner adversary in order to rise to higher levels of perception.
Incredibly beautiful in its combination of words and pictures, The Book of Urizen boasts some of Blake's most magnificent designs, rich in energy and monumental grandeur. For any lover of Blake, this edition represents an inexpensive opportunity to enjoy one of his finest works, including full-color reproductions of the poet's distinctive hand-colored plates and a printed transcription of the poem.
Dover (1997) unabridged republication of the plates from the facsimile edition published by The Trianon Press, Paris, for the William Blake Trust, London, 1958.

WILLIAM BLAKE was born in London in 1757. He was educated at home and then worked as an apprentice to the engraver James Basire before joining the Royal Academy in 1779. In 1782 he married Catherine Boucher, and a year later began his career as a poet when he published Poetical Sketches. This was followed by Songs of Innocence (1789) and Songs of Experience (1794), which he also designed and engraved. His other major literary works include The Book of Thel (1789), The Marriage of Heaven and Hell (c. 1793), Milton (1804-8), and Jerusalem (1804-20). He produced many paintings and engravings during his lifetime. Blake died in 1827.

ALFRED KAZIN was born in Brooklyn in 1915. His first book of criticism, On Native Grounds (1942), was a groundbreaking study of American literature that changed radically our way of looking at it, and established him overnight as a major figure. In a series of books of his own since then, and in many critically edited texts of classic American literary works, he established himself as our preeminent man of letters. He taught widely at Harvard, Smith, Amherst, Hunter College, the Graduate Center of the City University of New York, and elsewhere. In 1996 he received from the Truman Capote Literary Trust its first Lifetime Achievement Award in Literary Criticism (in memory of Newton Arvin). He died in 1998.

SKU	Unavailable
ISBN 13	9780486298016
ISBN 10	0486298019
Title	The Book of Urizen
Author	William Blake
Series	Dover Fine Art History Of Art Ser
Condition	Unavailable
Publisher	Dover Publications Inc.
Year published	1997-07-09
Number of pages	48
Cover note	Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.