Assembly 25 ∙ William Blake
• Blake was married to a woman called Catherine Boucher. • Blake engraved the words of his poems and surrounding designs on copper – a method he claimed he had received in a dream. Catherine helped to colour the engravings and bind the books. Most of Blake’s work sold slowly during his lifetime, so he was poor for much of his life. • In 1803, Blake was involved in a fight with a soldier. He was charged with assault but also treason – a very serious offence, because he was supposed to have insulted the king. He was found not guilty. • Blake had strong opinions on organised religion, and this made him unpopular with some people. • His artwork and poetry were also quite unusual and many people didn’t appreciate or like them, which made Blake unhappy and depressed. • In recent times, many people have enjoyed and been influenced by Blake’s work, including the band U2 and Maurice Sendak, who wrote the well-known children’s book Where The Wild Things Are. 4 Explain that Blake’s poems are often popular with young people because many of them have very powerful images. Show slide 5. Read his poem ‘The Fly’.
‘The Fly’ William Blake Little fly Thy summer’s play, My thoughtless hand Has brush’d away. Am not I A fly like thee? Or art not thou A man like me? For I dance And drink and sing; Till some blind hand Shall brush my wing. If thought is life And strength and breath; And the want Of thought is death; Then am I A happy fly, If I live, Or if I die.
Assemblies for All © Paul Stanley, 2021
59
