The Complete Poetry of William Blake

A visionary of eighteen-century English society, William Blake produced a huge collection of poetry, mythology, satires, political pieces, and prophetic works, in addition to his famous etchings and engravings. Although rejected as a madman during his lifetime for claims of hearing voices and later having visions, Blake has achieved notoriety as an innovative and extraordinarily imaginative artist. His poetry varies greatly in style and substance, reflecting the writer's literary development and radical shifts in religious belief. This complete collection of Blake's poetry includes his famous "Songs of Innocence and Songs of Experience," which exemplify the author's fondness for thematic dichotomies in poems like "The Lamb" and "The Tyger". Also included are "The Four Zoas," "Milton" and "Jerusalem," all of which display an extensive use of symbolism derived from Christianity and an elaborate view of Blake's theories on reality and knowledge.