윌리암 블레이크의 『순수와 경험의 노래』에 나타난 인간의 구원

Abstract

ABSTRACT Human Salvation in the Songs of Innocence and of Experiences of William Blake

Sae-rom Lee Faculty Advisor : Prof. Ok-hee Chung Ph.D. Major in English Education Graduate School of Education, Chosun University

This study aims to examine the ideal and the vision of the two contrary states of Innocence and Experience in Songs of Innocence and of Experience of William Blake. Blake expresses his ideal and his own vision of salvation in his early and late works of poetry. This thesis agrees with Blake's poetry in terms of his artistic talent and the social disorder of late 18th century in the first chapter. In chapter Ⅱ, this thesis focuses on Blake's outlook on the world, which shows the two contrary states of the human soul; innocence and experience. Innocence is free and uninhibited state. In the state of Innocence it is true that God is a benevolent Being. On the other hand, Experience is oppressive and fallen state. In Songs of Experience, God is dipicted as a cruel and deceptive Being. Blake thought that the contraries are indispensable. He doesn't insist that the state of innocence is completely right and the state of experience is completely wrong. Therefore the contraries dynamically communicate each other to go to a higher state. Based on this aspect in chapter Ⅲ, this thesis deals with three types of existences where all kinds of contradictory forces coexist. For example, Love and Hate, Reason and Energy, Good and Evil, these are contradictory but indispensable to human existence. In Blake's poetry, these contradictory forces coexist in different ways. They are called the state of static morality, the state of chastity, and the state of dynamic morality. In these three states, 'Dynamic morality' is what Blake ultimately pursues. The 'Dynamic morality' is based on Blake's religious belief and vision. Blake's works reflect his religious belief that human beings may rise to the state of God by displaying their native divinity. Blake originally thought that human beings have their own divinity. In chapter Ⅳ, I agree to Blake's ultimate vision of salvation based on his belief in human beings' divinity and the state of dynamic morality. Human beings who had their own divinity have lost their divinity due to the separation of God. The loss of divinity appears as a religious oppression on the social side, and as distorted love on the individual side. Blake insists that human beings recover their own divinity and that human beings seek a state of higher Innocence or a state of dynamic morality passing those of Innocence and Experience. Ultimately William Blake's various works reflect his own vision of human salvation through the state of dynamic morality in which everything can harmonize and coexist.