A detailed and historically-grounded study of a key literary figure, this book should appeal to Blake scholars and historians with an interest in the radical and religious culture of late eighteenth and early nineteenth century England. New research on Blake's links to, and reaction against, the Swedenborg New Church make this study a valuable addition to scholarship in this area. This study traces the links between William Blake's ideas and radical Christian cultures in late eighteenth-century England. Drawing on a significant number of historical sources, Robert W. Rix examines how Blake and his contemporaries re-appropriated the sources they read within new cultural and political frameworks. By unravelling their strategies, the book opens up a new perspective on what has often been seen as Blake's individual and idiosyncratic ideas. We are also presented with the first comprehensive study of Blake's reception of Swedenborgianism. At the time Blake took an interest in Emanuel Swedenborg, the mystical and spiritual writings of the theosophist had become a platform for radical and revolutionary politics, as well as numerous heterodox practices, among his followers in England. Rix focuses on Swedenborgianism as a concrete and identifiable subculture from which a number of essential themes in Blake's works are reassessed. This book will appeal not only to Blake scholars, but to anyone studying the radical and sub- culture, religious, intellectual and cultural history of this period. Contents: Introduction; Early texts and the Moravian tradition; Libertines, liberators and legislators; Swedenborgianism; From Swedenborg to radical politics; International Swedenborgians in London; The divine image; The Marriage of Heaven and Hell as satire; The visionary marketplace; Index. About the Author: Robert Rix is Assistant Professor in the Department of English, Germanic and Romance Languages at the University of Copenhagen, Denmark.

Robert Rix is Assistant Professor in the Department of English, Germanic and Romance Languages at the University of Copenhagen, Denmark.

Introduction
Early texts and the Moravian tradition
Libertines, liberators and legislators
Swedenborgianism
From Swedenborg to radical politics
International Swedenborgians in London
The divine image
The Marriage of Heaven and Hell as satire
The visionary marketplace
Index
Table of Contents provided by Publisher. All Rights Reserved.

What is included with this book?

The New copy of this book will include any supplemental materials advertised. Please check the title of the book to determine if it should include any access cards, study guides, lab manuals, CDs, etc.

The Used, Rental and eBook copies of this book are not guaranteed to include any supplemental materials. Typically, only the book itself is included. This is true even if the title states it includes any access cards, study guides, lab manuals, CDs, etc.