Awake!

Description

In the 200 years since Blake’s death, the visionary artist, poet and writer has become a household name, often beloved. Yet many struggle to comprehend his kaleidoscopic ideas; how they speak to human longings and the challenges of living in anxious times.

Philosopher and psychotherapist Mark Vernon provides a fresh route into Blake, taking him at his word. Exploring this brilliant thinker’s passionate writings, arresting artworks and fascinating life, Vernon illuminates Blake’s vivid worldview. Like us, he lived in a tumultuous era of war, discontent, rapid technological change, and human estrangement from nature. He exposed the dark sides of political fervour and social moralising, while unashamedly celebrating love and liberty. But he also conversed with prophets and angels, and was powerfully, if unconventionally, religious. If we take this seriously—not easy, in secular times—then Blake can help us to unlock the transformative power of imagination.

Written for both longstanding fans and unfamiliar readers, Awake! reveals Blake as an invigorating and hopeful guide for our modern age.

Reviews

‘The best overall study of Blake I have encountered in a very long time. Rich and energetic, it brings together detailed readings of familiar (and not so familiar) poems with sharp contemporary application, and the deep insights of a therapist well-seasoned in finding a path through dreams. A joy to read, well worthy of its extraordinary hero.’ — Rowan Williams, former Archbishop of Canterbury

‘I can’t think of many writers today who make Christianity look like something worth getting involved with. Rowan Williams is one, Mark Vernon another. When I read them, I feel excited by the possibility of a mind and soul transformed. This book, an exploration of the art and thought of perhaps the most exciting Christian of his time, William Blake, is full of light and challenge. Deeply fascinating and spiritually invigorating, it left me unusually alert for the sound of angelic voices in the hum of the everyday.’ — The Rev’d Richard Coles

‘Vernon’s biography is a glorious read. It tackles the misunderstandings surrounding Blake’s life and presents a fascinating portrait of a deeply spiritual and politically radical man, who was one of the greatest visionaries of British history.’ — Alice Loxton, historian, presenter and author of Eighteen: A History of Britain in 18 Young Lives

‘Superb: a luminous book, wholly different from other accounts of Blake’s life. Vernon understands better than anyone else why Blake matters urgently for today. The result is prescient, prophetic and compellingly readable.’ — Charles Foster, author of Cry of the Wild; Being a Beast; and The Screaming Sky

‘At this moment, we need the voice of Blake—however strange and wild it often seems—more than ever. He is one of those untimely prophets who have the power to make us see reality anew in every epoch. Vernon is a particularly sensitive reader of the great man, one who knows how to communicate Blake’s vision with rare clarity.’ — David Bentley Hart, philosopher, cultural commentator and author

‘Vernon’s undefended perception and intelligence meet Blake’s, and re-enchanted wisdom issues forth on every page. I have rarely been so energised, goaded and inspired into wakefulness. This is a book that speaks to our age.’ — Claire Gilbert, author of I, Julian

‘Vernon brings Blake alive for our times, with an engaging guide to his life and work. In the face of pitiless politics, oppressive religion and soulless work, argues Vernon, Blake still points us to a way of innocence, joy and enhanced perception.’ — Linda Woodhead, F. D. Maurice Professor in Moral and Social Theology, King’s College London

Author(s)

Mark Vernon is a London-based psychotherapist, writer and former Anglican priest. A keen podcaster and a columnist with The Idler, he speaks regularly at festivals and on the BBC. He has a PhD in Philosophy, and degrees in Theology and Physics. His previous book topics include Dante, Plato and Christianity.