The genius of William Blake was not recognized during his lifetime. He was either ignored, or regarded as a madman. Today he is regarded as one among the greatest 18th century poet.
Born in London on November 28, 1757, William Blake was schooled at home. The boy wished to be a painter, and his parents sent him to drawing school when he was ten years old.
Blake’s first printed work, ‘Poetical Sketches’ is a collection of apprentice verse, mostly imitating classical models. The young poet attacked war and tyranny in these poems. ‘Songs of Innocence and of Experience’, is his widely known work of poetry that came out in 1789.
Works such as The ‘French Revolution’, ‘America, a Prophecy’, ‘Visions of the Daughters of Albion’, and ‘Europe, a Prophecy’, express his opposition to the English monarchy. William Blake passed away in 1827.
