The French Revolution
William Blake (1757-1827)
Book the
First
The dead brood over Europe, the cloud and vision descends over chearful France;
O cloud well appointed! Sick, sick: the Prince on his couch, wreath'd in dim
And appalling mist; his strong hand outstetch'd, from his shoulder down the
bone
Runs aching cold into the scepter too heavy for mortal grasp. No more
to be swayed by visible hand, nor in cruelty bruise the mild flourishing
mountains.
Sick the mountains, and all their vineyards weep, in the eyes of the kingly
mourner;
Pale is the morning cloud in his visage. Rise, Necker: the ancient dawn calls
us
To awake from slumbers of five thousands years. I awake, but my soul is in
dreams;
From my window I see the old mountains of France, like aged men, fading away.
Troubled, leaning on Necker, descends the King, to his chamber of council;
shady mountains
In fear utter voices of thunder; the woods of France embosom the sound;
Clouds of wisdom prophetic reply, and roll over the palace roof heavy,
Forty men: each conversing with woes in the infinite shadows of his soul,
Like our ancient fathers in regions of twilight, walk, gathering round the
King;
Again the loud voice of France cries to the morning, the morning prophecies to
its clouds.
www.poemaseningles.blogspot.com
WILLIAM BLAKE
As we know, William Blake is an English well-known poet and painter. He
is a “pre-romantic” and he is also considered as the precursor of
Surrealism. He was born in London on 28
November 1757, to middle-class family. At that time, children were educated by
their mothers at home (self-taught education); he spent his entire life reading
about religion due to Blake’s mother took part in a minoritary-religious group,
the “Dissenters” who refused the authority of the Anglican Church. These
beliefs, marked Blake, he was constantly in touch with the Holy Scriptures;
some years later, when he was only a child he discovered that he had
supernatural visions, that accompanied him during his entire life (prophet). Frye
says that "all his poetry was written as though it were about to have the
immediate social impact of a new play". (www.geocities.com/athens/olympus/5599/literature/blake.html).
Some people claimed that his works were created in a state of
hallucination due to these visions, which became an important source of
inspiration and help for his artistic creation, as we can see in several poems
such as: The Angel, The book of Urizen…
The above-mentioned visions (imagination) provoked, that he invented his
own mythology or that he also used an important historic figure in his works,
which are usually compiled in what is so-called “The prophetic book”, in which
Blake apart from showing us his mythology and symbolism, he tries to show his
worries, such as: the freedom of the women (Visions of the daughters of
Albion), the slavery and the racial difference (The little black boy), the
political issues (French Revolution).
www.epdlp.com/escritor.php?id=1475
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Blake
www.geocities.com/athens/olympus/5599/literature/blake.html
www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/Prblake.htm
My chosen poem is: “The French Revolution (1791)”, is a poem in seven
books, which is just describing the history of the revolution in France, before
and after the Fall of the Bastille. The mentioned poem was not published; there
were some pages as proofs.
As the critic David Erdman describes it, "the revolutionary events
of June and July are treated as a single Day of Judgment”.(www.wwnorton.com/
college/English/nael/romantic/topic_3/ blpoem.htm)
Our purpose is to analyze a part of this poem. For analysing this poem,
we are going to analyze a little bit more about the historical and social time
in which he lived. Since, we have seen before his life (biography).
As we have said before, W.Blake is a “pre-romantic”, and as the majority
of the pre-romantics, he is a radical republican who, as others, thinks that
the French Revolution is a new period in the history, but later they realized
that they are in the same situation in which they were before, for this reason,
it is created an atmosphere of dissatisfaction. Blake showed his contempt for
Rationalism of the Illustration, as we know, the Romantics believe that
imagination show us the world as it is.
Going back to what I have written before: “Blake thinks that French
Revolution is a new period in the history”; he decides to write the poem: “The
French Revolution” to order of Joseph Johnson (a progressive editor).
At that point of my paper, we have talked about his life, why Blake
decides to write the poem, the time in which he lives… now, I would like to ask
you: How was Blake able to write about the French Revolution if he had ever
travelled?
First of all, because the Romanticism was a political and social
movement that appeared in England and Germany in s. XVIII; for this reason, he
could talk about the Romanticism, that is related to French Revolution, but how
he was able to know about the French Revolution?
I feel, the answer could be clear, if we think that, in this period in
France, they are living under an oppressive time, (as it had happened in England
during the 17th century) in which the Romantics could not talk about
what was happening in their own country, because the consequences could be very
hard, as for instance: They could be exiled, it was a way of the Romantics did
not go instead of government and did also not speak about how they think the
access of literature “real knowledge” had to be. What the government tried to
do, was becoming the 3rd class ignorant. In response to that, French Romantics
built a subterranean literature through which French Romantics could express
what they considered, the solution for the problem was; and they (French
Romantics) published their works in other countries. So, now, using our words;
we can say that William Blake was able to write about the French Revolution; because
maybe he had read before one of these publications in England (problems,
possible solutions and consequences…) and having the experience acquired from
the English Revolution, which was like a preparation (fermentation) for the
French Revolution, in which appears again the feeling of refusing ordinary
people to take part in debate and action as it happened in the English Revolution;
he decided to write about.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/French_Revolution
(He consultado también apuntes del año pasado de Literatura Francesa)
encarta.msn.com
pubs. Socialistreviewindex.org.uk/isj62/cox.htm
According to Viscomi: “Blake, at the beginning of his poem: “The French
Revolution” is always calling for freedom, both at the political and spiritual
level”. "This desire for liberty affects both the individual and the
social body. Blake was very pro-revolution. He thought that the revolution
would overthrow ways of being. He saw the French Revolution as the apocalypse
prophesied in the Bible, the beginning of the new age."
According to Viscomi, who claims: “Blake saw the Revolution as the
apocalypse prophesied in the Bible”, we’ll understand why the above-mentioned
poem is compiled in “The prophetic book”.
To continue with our paper, we’ll analyse the poem:
The first line: “The dead brood over Europe,
the cloud and vision descends over chearful France;” I think it refers to the
American War of Independence → “The dead over Europe” and the second part
of the line refers to the consequences to have participated in the American War
of Independence→ if France had not participated in that War, maybe
everything had gone right. “cheerful France”.
The rest of the strophe, talks about the weakness of
the monarchy personified by the illness of the King (Louis XVI), and the
disappearance of the monarchy when it says: “No more, to be swayed by visible
hand, nor in cruelty bruise the mild flourishing mountains”.
“Sick the mountains, and all their vineyards weep, in
the eyes of the kingly mourner;
Pale is the morning cloud in his visage”. The mountains represent the
aristocracy and the vineyards represent the low class (majority), and if the
low class is dissatisfied due to an increase of the taxes, which are related to
the American War of Independence in which France, lost everything. The
aristocracy is also dissatisfied because they were loosing their privileges,
and what they want is having the same privileges, so, everybody is oppressing
the King. And then: “Pale…” is representing how France looks when everything
start to fall to pieces.
“Rise, Necker: the ancient dawn calls us
to awake from slumbers of five thousands years. I awake, but my soul is in
dreams;
From my window I see the old mountains of France, like aged men, fading away”.
Necker was one of the ministers under the reign of
Louis XVI; he tries to change and convert the system more right (to awake from
slumbers of five thousands years) with the privileges. So, he published an
extract of the royal finances in which appears the cost of the privileged
class. And Louis XVI sacked him. But, in his interior he felt that one day his
purpose will become true (I awake, but…).
“Troubled, leaning on Necker, descends the King, to
his chamber of council; shady mountains
In fear utter voices of thunder; the woods of France embosom the sound;
Clouds of wisdom prophetic reply, and roll over the palace roof heavy”.
The aristocracy is not sure about their power (shady
mountains in fear), is dissatisfied because the King has organized the General
States, and they protest against (voices of thunder). The low class knows that
they have the power (the woods…).
Some people know what is going to happen with the
Revolution.
“Forty men: each conversing with woes in the infinite
shadows of his soul,
Like our ancient fathers in regions of twilight, walk, gathering round the
King;
Again the loud voice of France cries to the morning, the morning prophecies to
its clouds.”
Finally, I think that last part of the poem represents
the death of the King.
I have analyzed the poem to be based on the history of
the French Revolution, besides, putting in relation with Blake’s life (social
& political).
My last question in relation to the poem is: Which was
the possible impact if the poem had been published?
W.Blake had feared the government, and he had been
persecuted. For this reason, the poem was not published and was only
distributed to some people that though as him.
www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/Prblake.htm
To conclude, I would like to do a little reflection of how W. Blake has
influenced in our times?
William Blake is a modern writer, since he wrote against: the women
rights, the slavery, and the marriages without love… he showed us what the
society is going to reveal against. So, he is showing again that is a prophet
of times to come. During his lifetime, he was not appreciated, because
everybody though that he was mad. Nowadays, he is being more appreciated, in
addition, a good sentence of W.Blake that appears in: “The Marriage of heaven
and Hell” that says: “You will never know what enough is, if you don’t let you know
what more than enough is”.→ the way of the excess.
W.Blake’s quote appears in the lyrics of a well-known musical group
“Héroes del Silencio” in “El Camino del Exceso” that says: “The way of the
excess manage us towards the tower of knowledge. What implies a philosophy that
goes after.
www.pandeblog.net/musica/2006/02/influencias-en-las-letras-de-heroes-del-silencio
By: Sélica Honrubia Gomar