Europe a Prophecy
Encyclopedia
Europe a Prophecy is a 1794 prophetic book
by English poet and illustrator William Blake
. It is engraved on 18 plates, and survives in just nine known copies. It followed America a Prophecy
of 1793.
When Europe was printed, it was in the same format as Blake's America and sold for the same price. It was printed between 1794 and 1821 with only 9 copies of the work surviving. The plates used for the designs were 23 x 17 cm in size. In addition to the illuminations, the work contained 265 lines of poetry, which were organized into septnearies. Henry Crabb Robinson
contacted William Upcott
on 19 April 1810 inquiring about copies of Blake's works that were in his possession. On that day, Robinson was allowed access to Europe and America and created a transcription of the works. An edition of Europe for Frederick Tatham was the last work Blake produced, and "The Ancient of Days" was completed three days just prior to his death.
", a depiction of God separating light and darkness. The poem starts with a description of the source for the vision:
The poem then explains that it is about:
The poem describes the creation of the serpent:
The poem concludes with Los calling his sons to arms:
God in "The Ancient of Days" is a "nous" figure, a creative principle in the universe that establishes mathematical order and permanence that allows life to keep from becoming nothingness. In such a view, Jesus is seen as a Logos figure that is disconnected from the nous in that Logos constantly recreates what is beautiful. As such, Jesus, as well as the Holy Spirit, are connected in Blake's mythology to the image of the universal man as opposed to God the Father. The image is also connected to John Milton's Paradise Lost in which God uses a golden compass to circumscribe the universe. Blake's version does not create Eden but instead is creating the serpent of the poem's frontispiece. The image is also connected to a vision Blake witnessed at the steps inside of his home. There are parallels between the actions of women within Europe and the 1820s images titled Drawings for The Book of Enoch. The latter work describes the seduction of the Watchers of Heaven by the Daughters of Men; giants born of their union then proceed to ravage the land. Both works emphasise the dominance of women.
Blake had many expectations for the French revolution, which is described in a prophetic way within the poem. However, he was disappointed when the fallen state of existence returned without the changes that Blake had hoped. To Blake, the French promoted a bad idea of reason, and he was disappointed when there was not a sensual liberation. After Napoleon declared himself emperor in 1804, Blake believed that the revolutionary heroes were instead being treated as god kings that no longer cared about freedom. He continued to believe in an apocalyptic state that would soon appear, but he no longer believed that Orc man, the leader of a revolution, would be the agent of the apocalypse. Instead, he believed that God could only exist in men, and he distrusted all hero worship.
Northrop Frye
regarded it as Blake's "greatest achievement" in "a kind of 'free verse' recitativo in which the septenarius is mixed with lyrical meters." According to John Beer
: "The drift of the argument in Europe is to show how a Christian message that has been veiled, and cults exalting virginity
, have together fostered the so-called Enlightenment philosophy which left no place for the visionary
."
William Blake's prophetic books
The prophetic books of the English poet and artist William Blake are a series of difficult and obscure poetic works. While Blake worked as a commercial illustrator, these books were ones that he produced, with his own engravings, as an extended and largely private project...
by English poet and illustrator William Blake
William Blake
William Blake was an English poet, painter, and printmaker. Largely unrecognised during his lifetime, Blake is now considered a seminal figure in the history of both the poetry and visual arts of the Romantic Age...
. It is engraved on 18 plates, and survives in just nine known copies. It followed America a Prophecy
America a Prophecy
America a Prophecy is a 1793 prophetic book by English poet and illustrator William Blake. It is engraved on eighteen plates, and survives in fourteen known copies. It is the first of Blake's Continental prophecies.-Background:...
of 1793.
Background
During autumn 1790, Blake moved to Lambeth, Surrey. He had a studio at the new house that he used while writing his what were later called his "Lambeth Books", which included Europe in 1794. Like the others under the title, all aspects of the work, including the composition of the designs, the printing of them, the colouring of them, and the selling of them, happened at his home. Early sketches for Europe were included in a notebook that contained images were created between 1790 until 1793. Only a few of Blake's works were fully coloured, and only some of the editions of Europe were coloured.When Europe was printed, it was in the same format as Blake's America and sold for the same price. It was printed between 1794 and 1821 with only 9 copies of the work surviving. The plates used for the designs were 23 x 17 cm in size. In addition to the illuminations, the work contained 265 lines of poetry, which were organized into septnearies. Henry Crabb Robinson
Henry Crabb Robinson
Henry Crabb Robinson , diarist, was born in Bury St. Edmunds, England.He was articled to an attorney in Colchester. Between 1800 and 1805 he studied at various places in Germany, and became acquainted with nearly all the great men of letters there, including Goethe, Schiller, Johann Gottfried...
contacted William Upcott
William Upcott
-Life:Born in Oxfordshire, he was the illegitimate son of Ozias Humphry by Delly Wickens, daughter of an Oxford shopkeeper, called Upcott from the maiden name of Humphry's mother. His father bequeathed to him his miniatures, pictures, drawings, and engravings, as well as correspondence with many...
on 19 April 1810 inquiring about copies of Blake's works that were in his possession. On that day, Robinson was allowed access to Europe and America and created a transcription of the works. An edition of Europe for Frederick Tatham was the last work Blake produced, and "The Ancient of Days" was completed three days just prior to his death.
Poem
The book begins with an image known as "The Ancient of DaysThe Ancient of Days
The Ancient of Days is the title of a design by William Blake, originally published as the frontispiece to a 1794 work, Europe a Prophecy. It shows a figure, the Ancient of Days, crouching in a circular design with a cloud-like background. His out-stretched hand holds a compass over the darker void...
", a depiction of God separating light and darkness. The poem starts with a description of the source for the vision:
- will shew you all alive
- The world, where every particle of dust breathes forth its joy. (lines 18-19)
The poem then explains that it is about:
- the night of Enitharmons joy
- That Woman, lovely Woman! may have dominion
- Go! tell the human race that Womans love is Sin;
- That an Eternal life awaits the worms of sixty winters
- In an allegorical abode where existence hath never come (lines 90-96)
The poem describes the creation of the serpent:
- Thought chang'd the infinite to a serpent, that which pitieth:
- To a devouring flame; and man fled from its face
- Then was the serpent temple form'd image of infinite
- Shut up in finite revolutions, and man became an Angel;
- Heaven a mighty circle turning; God a tyrant crown'd (lines 141-150)
The poem concludes with Los calling his sons to arms:
- But terrible Orc, when he beheld the morning in the east,
- Shot from the heights of Enitharmon,
- And in the vineyards of red France appear'd the light of his fury.
- Then Los arose his head he reard in snaky thunders clad:
- And with a cry that shook all nature to the utmost pole,
- Call'd all his sons to the strife of blood. (lines 254-265)
Themes
Europe, like many of Blake's other works, is a mythological narrative and is considered a "prophecy". However, only America and Europe were ever give the title by Blake. He understood the word not to denote a description of the future, but the view of the honest and the wise. The vision within the poem, along with some of the other prophecies, is of a world filled with suffering in a manner that is connected to the politics of 1790s Britain.God in "The Ancient of Days" is a "nous" figure, a creative principle in the universe that establishes mathematical order and permanence that allows life to keep from becoming nothingness. In such a view, Jesus is seen as a Logos figure that is disconnected from the nous in that Logos constantly recreates what is beautiful. As such, Jesus, as well as the Holy Spirit, are connected in Blake's mythology to the image of the universal man as opposed to God the Father. The image is also connected to John Milton's Paradise Lost in which God uses a golden compass to circumscribe the universe. Blake's version does not create Eden but instead is creating the serpent of the poem's frontispiece. The image is also connected to a vision Blake witnessed at the steps inside of his home. There are parallels between the actions of women within Europe and the 1820s images titled Drawings for The Book of Enoch. The latter work describes the seduction of the Watchers of Heaven by the Daughters of Men; giants born of their union then proceed to ravage the land. Both works emphasise the dominance of women.
Blake had many expectations for the French revolution, which is described in a prophetic way within the poem. However, he was disappointed when the fallen state of existence returned without the changes that Blake had hoped. To Blake, the French promoted a bad idea of reason, and he was disappointed when there was not a sensual liberation. After Napoleon declared himself emperor in 1804, Blake believed that the revolutionary heroes were instead being treated as god kings that no longer cared about freedom. He continued to believe in an apocalyptic state that would soon appear, but he no longer believed that Orc man, the leader of a revolution, would be the agent of the apocalypse. Instead, he believed that God could only exist in men, and he distrusted all hero worship.
Critical response
Robinson wrote an essay about Blake's works in 1810 and described Europe and America as "mysterious and incomprehensible rhapsody". Blake's fame grew in 1816 with an entry in A Biographical Dictionary of the Living Authors of Great Britain and Ireland, which included Europe among the works of "an eccentric but very ingenious artist".Northrop Frye
Northrop Frye
Herman Northrop Frye, was a Canadian literary critic and literary theorist, considered one of the most influential of the 20th century....
regarded it as Blake's "greatest achievement" in "a kind of 'free verse' recitativo in which the septenarius is mixed with lyrical meters." According to John Beer
John Beer
John Bernard Beer, FBA is a British literary critic. He is Emeritus Professor of English Literature at the University of Cambridge and a Fellow of Peterhouse, Cambridge. Best known as a scholar and critic of Romantic poets – especially William Blake, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, and William Wordsworth...
: "The drift of the argument in Europe is to show how a Christian message that has been veiled, and cults exalting virginity
Virginity
Virginity refers to the state of a person who has never engaged in sexual intercourse. There are cultural and religious traditions which place special value and significance on this state, especially in the case of unmarried females, associated with notions of personal purity, honor and worth...
, have together fostered the so-called Enlightenment philosophy which left no place for the visionary
Visionary
Defined broadly, a visionary, is one who can envision the future. For some groups this can involve the supernatural or drugs.The visionary state is achieved via meditation, drugs, lucid dreams, daydreams, or art. One example is Hildegard of Bingen, a 12th century artist/visionary and Catholic saint...
."