| The central theme of this thesis is the visual analysis of William Blake's art in connection to the available mythological and religious texts by which Blake constructed his own artificial mythology. This analysis will include explorations into Anglo-Saxon, Germanic, Jewish and Hindu myth as well as Christian and mystic texts. The various works or "books" by Blake will be the visual basis, specifically The Marriage of Heaven and Hell (1790), his later "prophetic" work Jerusalem, the Emanation of the Giant Albion (1820) and his last completed work The Illustrations of the Book of Job (1825). This thesis will affirm that Blake was heavily influenced by the various mythological symbolisms around him, which were incorporated and at times quoted, directly in his own work. |
