Blake's Jerusalem as visionary theatre : entering the divine body / Susanne M. Sklar.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Sklar, Susanne Marie, 1958-

Series:

Oxford theological monographs

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Blake, William, 1757-1827. Jerusalem.

Blake, William, 1757-1827--Criticism and interpretation.

Blake, William, 1757-1827.

Criticism and interpretation.

Physical Description:

xvii, 310 pages, 8 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations ; 24 cm.

Other Title:

Blake's Jerusalem as visionary theater

Place of Publication:

Oxford ; New York : Oxford University Press, 2011.

Summary:

William Blake described his illuminated epic Jerusalem as 'the grandest poem that this world contains'. Blake's avowed intention in constructing the work was to move readers from a solely rational way of being (called Ulro) to one that is highly imaginative (called Eden/Eternity), with each word chosen to suit 'the mouth of a true Orator'. Rational interpretation is of limited use when reading this multifaceted epic and its non-linear structure presents aperennial challenge for readers.

Susanne Sklar engages with the interpretive challenges of Jerusalem by considering it as a piece of visionary theatre-an imaginative performance in which characters, settings, and imagery are not confined by mundane space and time-allowing readers to find coherence within its complexities. With his characters, Blake's readers can participate imaginatively in what Blake calls 'the Divine Body, the Saviour's Kirigdom, a way of being in which all things interconnect: spiritually, ecologically, socially, and erotically.

Imaginatively engaging with Jerusalem involves close textual reading and analysis. The first part of this book discusses the notion of visionary theatre, and the theological, literary, and historical antecedents of Jerusalem's imagery, characters, and settings. Particular attention is paid to the theological context of Blake's Jesus ('the Divine Body'), and Jerusalem, the heroine of his poem. This prepares the ground for a scene-by-scene commentary of the entire illuminated work. Jerusalem tells the story of Albion's fall, many rescue attempts, escalating violence and oppression, and a surprising apocalypse-in which all living things, awakening, are transfigured in ferocious forgiveness. Book jacket.

Contents:

Part I Perspectives, Characters, Settings 17

1 Visionary Theatre-Apocalyptic Images 19

Jerusalem and the Book of Revelation 20

The Book of Revelation and Visionary Theatre 20

Visionary Musicals? 23

Alchemical Visionary Theatre 25

Jacob Boehme-Prophetic Progenitor 28

Freemasonry and Jerusalem 35

Sublime Allegory-and Visionary Theatre 40

Entering Apocalyptic Images 42

2 Dramatis Personae 44

Angelmorphic Characters: The One and the Many 45

The Characters 49

Sons and Daughters 50

Zoas and Emanations 54

Spectres, Shadows, and Vala 56

Albion's Antecedents 61

Our Hero, Los-and the Narrator 63

3 Jerusalem: Her Character and Context 67

Like Christ 67

The Harlot, the Bride 68

The Woman Clothed with the Sun 71

Boehme's Sophia, Blake's Jerusalem 72

Joanna Southcott, A Woman Clothed with the Sun 75

Southcott, Sharp, and Pughe 76

Erotic Spirituality-Southcott and Blake 78

Visionary Enactments 81

In Blake's Poem 83

Her Character and Story 84

Chapter One 85

Chapter Two 88

Chapter Three 90

Chapter Four 91

4 Jerusalem's Jesus 94

Nature and Function 94

Jesus's First Appearances 95

The Frontispiece (Jl) 96

The Preface (J3) 96

Scene One (J4) 96

Visualizing Jesus: Young's Night Thoughts 98

Coinherent Contraries 101

Beyond Law: Blake and St Paul 104

Erotic Spirituality 107

In the Moravian Church 107

Swedenborg 111

Swedenborg's Writings 111

The Birth of Jesus 113

Healing Ministry: Raising Albion 114

Beyond the Trinity 115

Transfiguring Crucifixion 117

Creative Apocalypse 119

5 Shifting Settings-Building Projects 122

Shifting Settings 122

Building Projects 124

Druid Structures 125

Antiquarians, Druids, and Freemasons 126

Urizen's Temple 133

Golgonooza 134

Jerusalem: The Transfiguring City 138

Part II The Commentary 143

Reading the Poem 145

1 'To the Public'-Albion's Fall 149

Overture: The Preface (1-4) 149

Opening Scene: Albion Rejects the Divine Song (4-5) 151

Scene Two: Los and the Spectre (6:1-11:7) 154

Scene Three: In the Spaces of Erin (11:8-14:34) 158

Scene Four: Sculpting World Views (15-17) 161

Scene Five: Hand and Hyle Intensify Fallenness (18-19) 164

Scene Six: Beulah and the Veil (19:40-25:17) 165

Interval (26) 169

Plate 26 170

2 'To the Jews'-Rescue Attempts 171

The Preface (27) 171

Scene One: Albion's Fall: The Refugee Report (28-30) 173

Scene Two: The Triumph of Vala (31:2-34:35) 176

Scene Three: The Divisions of Reuben (34:36-36:42) 179

Scene Four: Los and the Eternals (36:43-41:31) 181

Scene Five: The Rescue Attempt (42-6) 185

Scene Six: Cycles of Violence (47:1-48:12) 191

Scene Seven: Redemptive Erin, A Terrible Separation (48:13-50:30) 191

Interval (51) 195

Plate 51 195

3 'To the Deists'-Calamities Amplify 197

The Preface (52) 197

Scene One: Intensified Fall, Los Infected! (53:1-58:20) 199

Scene Two: Urizen's Temple (58:21-59:21) 204

Scene Three: In Cathedron's Looms (59:22-62:42) 205

Scene Four: Hermaphrodite Spectre Rising (63:1-65:4) 209

Scene Five: Naked Daughters, War, Disease (65:5-69:5) 210

Scene Six: Beulah-Ulro/Heavenly Canaan (69:6-71:55) 213

Scene Seven: Fallibly Building (71:56-75:27) 216

Excursus 217

Interval (76) 221

Plate 76-Transfiguring Crucifixion 222

4 'To the Christians'-The Great Awakening 223

The Preface (77) 223

Scene One: Jerusalem Before the Furnaces (78:1-80:36) 225

Scene Two: Weaving False Bodies (80:37-82:79) 226

Scene Three: Los on his Watch (82:80-86:49) 229

Scene Four: Banal Bickering (86:50-88:54) 233

Scene Five: Apocalyptic Transformation (88:55-93:27) 234

Scene Six: Albion Awakens (94-9) 240

Eternal Interval (100) 248

Curtain Call (Plate 100) 248

Encore: Into Eternity 251

Various Eternities 251

Character Synchronisms 253

Synchronic Images 255

From Ulro to Eden 257

In Conclusion 258.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages [261]-289) and index.

ISBN:

9780199603145

0199603146

OCLC:

709682954