Byrne 1 Deirdre Byrne Dr.

McBratney Romantic Literature 5 December 2012 Opposition brings forth a Moral Universe Throughout the ages, defining the true meaning of a relationship within the context of marriage has been widely debated. Traditionally, marriage has been viewed in a biblical sense in which two people unite in one flesh. Although the two become one flesh, the man is seen superior to the woman in this relationship. Society has adopted a modernized view of marriage, in which the contrasting parties, such as a man and woman, are united (Stewart 43). This unification is able to happen despite the opposing qualities from each party. Furthermore, these oppositions are actually necessary for the contrasting parties to grow. In The Marriage of Heaven and Hell, William Blake goes against the ideals of conventional religion by presenting this idea of a modernized marriage, where he argues, in order to understand good, it is necessary for one to understand its opposition, evil. Therefore, opposition is necessary in order for the universe to eternally function. Typically, institutionalized religions at this time looked down upon believing opposition to be necessary. The Marriage of Heaven and Hell is actually a play on Emanuel Swedenborgs1 Heaven and Hell. Swedenborgian faith became institutionalized during Blakes lifetime, meaning it followed an official doctrine (Wu 176). Rather than believing faith requires certain direction, and perhaps good is the only way to Heaven, Blake believes that everything in the universe is holy. Blakes moral universe in which everything is holy surpasses that of organized religion, since (1) it allows ones

A theologian and a philosopher who Blake admired for his spiritual sensations; later Blake looked down upon him since his faith became institutionalized (Wu 176).

Byrne 2 perspective to be broadened beyond the individuals five senses, allowing one to see infinite truth by using visual language and images; (2) it presents a transvaluation of good and evil showing that oppositions are dependent on each other; and (3) this opposition is necessary and vital for the world to grow into a moral universe where everything is holy. Organized religions cannot bring one to God since they have a history of corruption in which the speaker hints that they do not see everything as being holy. They believe in the traditional idea of marriage instead of the modern viewpoint, and therefore struggles with seeing the purpose of opposition. The speaker believes that understanding God as a whole is how people need to live. The final line in the poem is: For everything that lives is Holy (Blake 223). Since God created the universe, he not only created good, but he also created evil. Therefore, learning about God through religion is flawed since the rulers of Churches cannot have a greater power to understanding God than anyone else. Although Blake once admired and identified with Swedenborg in terms of his spiritual experiences, he later felt critical toward Swedenborg since his faith grew institutionalized (Wu 176). The poet feels the leaders of institutionalized religions take advantage of uneducated common people. He characterizes Priests as people who [choose] forms of worship from poetic tales. / And at length they pronounced that the Gods had ordered such things (Blake 217). This seems to be alluding to Swedenborg since he was ordained in a church that seemed politically corrupt. Therefore, perhaps he is criticizing church figures who think they have the power to tell common people what to worship, as if they had a direct connection with God. Here, the organized religions are holding those in power to a higher standard and making false claims of having a connection with God. However, ultimately those less educated people are also created in the image of God, so they are equally as holy as the leaders. During this time, many bible critics argued against

Byrne 3 those people who claimed that they interpreted the Bible: [I]f they are so complex, how can a scholarly consensus of their meaning be determined to help the common reader? (Villalobos 251) The speaker challenges people not to follow these leaders by saying, Let priests of the Raven dawn no longer, in deadly black, with hoarse note, curse the sons of joy; nor his accepted brethren (whom, tyrant, he calls free) lay the bound or build the roof; nor pale religious lechery call that virginity that wishes but acts not! (Blake 223). Here the speaker directly tells people to disregard organized religions since they are corrupt and hypocritical citing examples that the leaders are set by default of family, and tell people that they should act in one manner that is not sinful, yet they commit the sin anyway. This implies that he feels the church at the time is

corrupt and hypocritical, when his idea of a moral universe is one in which everything is holy. To demonstrate that everything is holy, Blake creates images using both language and art, which visually leads people to infinite truth where they are able to broaden their perspectives. In the early versions of The Marriage of Heaven and Hell, the pages have drawings for the reader to visually understand the religion and psychological aims of the work (Digby 103). Leonard argues that since Blakes drawings are not very memorable or elaborate, the purpose of using them in his works is not to illustrate the moments described in the poem, but rather to set the dynamic that the poem aims to achieve into motion (919). Even without the literal images on the page, Blake uses language to create an image that leads to the transvaluation of values. These images connect a both the inexperienced and experienced person with truth and reality (Digby 103). The speaker describes a vision of the creation of an infinite perception, saying, But first the notion that man has a body distinct from his soul is to be expunged. This I shall do by printing in the infernal method, by corrosives, which in Hell are salutary and medicinal, melting apparent surfaces away, and displaying the infinite which was hid (Blake 218). The speaker

Byrne 4 erases the idea that the body is separate from the soul by creating an image using Blakes acid printing technique to melt the surface away, to display the infinite within. The infinite within is an image intended to connect a person to truth and reality by cleansing ones perspective to display everything exactly as it is: infinite. The finite is representative of how a human beings perspective is limited since they only have access through the five senses. The devil asks, How do you know by evry Bird that cuts the airy way / Is an immense world of delight, closed by your five senses? (Blake 215). One person can only see the things that he or she experiences. In such a huge world, that means that each individual is missing out on experiencing a lot that is going on in the world. Digby believes that every person is capable of using sensory experience in the infinite sense, but very frequently humans break the connection with this power by [closing] himself up till he sees all things through narrow chinks of his cavern (Blake 218). Instead of opening the mind to believe the idea that everything is holy, people often intentionally maintain a narrow perspective, where they are not able to see the entire picture, but only a picture of what concerns the self. This particular self is in a state of psychological distress, divided between competing centres of desire, with their rival wills and censorships; he dare not let go of himself, lest his inharmonious nature with its fierce impulses should immediately show itself (Digby 104). People are often conflicted with trying to decide if they should listen to their desires, or the rules of an institutionalized religion. Blake implies through the imagery that by cleansing the senses and listening to desires, since everything is necessary, one can reach the infinite truth. For one to truly achieve infinite truth, one must understand that opposites are necessary in order for growth and progression to occur. In order for humans to grow and become more knowledgeable they must have access to contrasting ideas from the normal and accepted

Byrne 5 perspective. Without learning about the opposing views, one can never truly grow more to understand his or her own personal beliefs. The speaker in the poem argues: Without Contraries is no progression. Attraction and Repulsion, Reason and Energy, Love and Hate, are necessary to Human Existence (Blake 213). This supports the idea that in order for humans to grow, it is necessary to look at the other side of an issue. The speaker puts different opposites together as a way of showing how without one idea the other could not be possible. Stewart suggests this idea rejects the traditional, biblical interpretation of marriage, in which the female is controlled by the man (53). Therefore, since the male is in authority, this practiced belief by organized religions is giving the male authority between the two opposite. Whereas, the modern views of marriage strays away from this dualist view, and instead asserts that in order for one to exist, the other contrasting idea is necessary. It is inevitable that opposing ideas are here on earth, so therefore when one is able to see the other side to a situation he or she can gain a better understanding as a whole. Understanding that the vision of the infinite allows one to see the whole, unified truth, leads one to grasp the concept of the presentation of transvaluation of values. This brings forth the idea that in order to understand the idea of good, one must understand evil. For a person to truly understand a concept, one must look at both sides to a situation rather than just one. The speaker continuously gives examples of how the ideas are interconnected by saying, From these contraries spring what the religious call Good and Evil. Good is the passive that obey Reason. Evil is the active springing from Energy. Good is Heaven. Evil is Hell (Blake 213). Here again, the speaker looks down upon organized religion by giving the religious for coming up with the names of Good and Evil. Digby points out that [n]either side, or principle, can be called good or evil; these terms, like heaven and hell, are entirely relative, as Blake never tires of

Byrne 6 insisting (39). No one can truly understand what good is without having knowledge of evil. Therefore, the terms could not even exist without the other one. The speaker defines the two as energy and reason, in which both can be seen as positive things. However this suggests that the ideas are interconnected. One cannot understand how to act with reason if there is no energy to motivate oneself; and one cannot act with energy without having the reason in knowing how to. The Voice of the Devil further explains this saying, That Energy, called Evil, is alone from the Body, and that Reason, called Good is alone from the Soul (Blake 213). Although these ideas are opposites, here once again they are related and joined together in a marriage sense in which Evil and Good are working as a team, for the sake of bettering the body and soul. The speaker then presents a contrary idea to this statement saying, Energy is the only life and is from the Body, and Reason is the bound or outward circumference of Energy (Blake 214). Rather than working against each other, Reason is working with Energy here. Together, the two opposing ideas representing good and evil are becoming stronger through this unification. In a world where everything is holy, this idea where Blake refuses to separate the ideas of good and evil seems more appropriate than that of the institutionalized religions (Stewart 45). The Proverbs of Hell is used to show again how despite having two contrasting ideas, these opposites make the other idea possible. For example, Prisons are built with stones of Law, Brothels with bricks of Religion implies that religion only gives people who feel desire more desire, rather than suppressing the desire like it intends to. This transvaluation of good and evil shows that the two ideas are necessary and inevitable. Once two contrasting ideas have been unified and they are joined in a sense similar to a modern marriage, true harmony can be set.

Byrne 7 By showing a transvaluation of values, Blake is able to demonstrate that opposites are eternally necessary in the world and create a moral universe. Everything is holy, so therefore even if people look down upon contrasting ideas, everything is important for the universe to continue functioning. Williams suggests that Blakes notion of life is the interconnection and interdependence of all entities (45). Everything in the world is connected with each other, even if it might be something as opposite as good and evil. The Memorable Fancy [A Devil, My Friend] concludes with the lines, I have also the Bible of Hell: which the world shall have whether they will or not (Blake 222). This shows that even when people try to hopefully think that hell does not exist, it will still exist. Without having a Hell there cannot be a Heaven. That is not necessarily a bad thing since Hell allows one to understand Heaven. An institutionalized religion that creates its own doctrines and teachers by claiming something to be Gods plan is inferior to this moral universe. This universe allows a world which does not educate people about evil, but it shows that both ideas are necessary and crucial for the other to exist. This modernized view of marriage is one that lasts forever since the interplay between enternal contrariesnever ceases (Raine 55). Everything in the world is holy, and for that reason, even contrasting ideas are important since everything on the universe works together to make it what it is. A moral universe in which everything is holy triumphs over the institutionalized religions during this time since it allows people to look at the opposing perspectives and understand that contrary ideas are necessary and important. This supports a more modern view of marriage in which there is a balance between contrary ideas. Typically a marriage between opposites could be seen as problematic, however here Blake shows that when separate ideas are unified, they can succeed in making each other stronger. Institutionalized religions during this

Byrne 8 time period were very corrupt and took advantage of the uneducated people during the time. Rather than having a set doctrine on rules to follow, Blake believes that everything is holy. Even evil is holy, because it is a part of this complex universe which is interconnected to everything else in the world eternally. Although humans only have five senses, it is important for people to realize that there is a much bigger universe, and an infinite perspective. This infinite perspective can see all of these contrasting ideas working together. Opposition brings forth a true friendship since it allows the universe to progress. This moral universe is superior to organized religion since it looks at the entire perspective as holy.

Byrne 9 Bibliography Digby, George Wingfield. Symbol and Image in William Blake. Oxford: Clarendon, 1957. Print. Leonard, Garry. "'Without Contraries There Is No Progression': Cinematic Montage And The Relationship Of Illustration To Text In William Blake's The [First] Book Of Urizen1." University Of Toronto Quarterly 80.4 (2011): 918-934. Literary Reference Center. Web. 11 Nov. 2012. Raine, Kathleen. The Human Face of God: William Blake and the Book of Job. London: Thames & Hudson, 1982. Print. Stewart, David. "The Context Of Blakean Contraries In The Marriage Of Heaven And Hell." Essays In Literature 21.1 (1994): 43-53. MLA International Bibliography. Web. 11 Nov. 2012. Villalobos, John. "William Blake's 'Proverbs Of Hell' And The Tradition Of Wisdom Literature." Studies In Philology 87.2 (1990): 246. Academic Search Complete. Web. 11 Nov. 2012. Viscomi, Joseph. Blake and the Idea of the Book. Princeton, NJ: Princeton UP, 1993. Print. Williams, Nicholas M. "The Sciences Of Life: Living Form In William Blake And Aldous Huxley." Romanticism 15.1 (2009): 41-53. Academic Search Complete. Web. 11 Nov. 2012.