第一讲:浪漫主义时代(The Romantic Age)
美国独立战争(1776年)与法国大革命(1789年)两件反对极权的抗争,群众开始有了反抗专政者的思想,这可说是浪漫主义之滥觞.使抗争思想崛起的,则是宗教改革与欧洲启蒙运动.他们反对宗教控制人性,使人类能拥有自由的良心.因此,他们认为神明该存在在人类内心或大自然中,而不是任何宗教厂所及其领袖的宫殿内.
William Blake(1757~1827)常被认定是浪漫主义的第一名诗人(请参考真理电台《大师开讲——阅读文学家》第七集http://www.tianzhu.org/tz_prg_vol.php prg_id=95&parent=1&vol_id=3127),Blake认为当时所谓的失落「该是心灵的失落,因为我们已经失去了我们真正的良心()alienation from oneself, one's world, and one's fellow human beings.」,疏离了自身并与其他人类疏离」(Norton, 21).因此重建个人的心灵,可说是重建一切的第一步.
Blake自己创造了许多自演,营造了许多形象(Imagery),其中最重要的是Albion(The Universal Man)与耶路撒冷的结合.Albion代表Blake心中的理想英雄,他就是这世上最真实人类的代表.他理想的实现,则以耶路撒冷为其追寻的目标.该诗已经由CHARLOTTE CHURCH以《Jerusalem》之名称演唱(超连结:http:/www.mp3search.ru/m3u.html id=170207).
And did those feet in ancient time
Walk upon England's mountains green
And was the Holy Lamb of God
On England's pleasant pastures seen
And did the Countenance Divine
Shine forth upon our clouded hills
And was Jerusalem builded here
Among these dark Satanic Mills
Bring me my Bow of burning gold:
Bring me my Arrows of desire:
Bring me my Spear: O clouds unfold!
Bring me my Chariot of fire.
I will not cease from Mental Fight,
Nor shall my Sword sleep in my hand
Till we have built Jerusalem
In England's green and pleasant Land.
Blake最长的一首诗叫做The Marriage of Heaven and Hell,其中
PLATE 4
The voice of the Devil
All Bibles or sacred codes. have been the causes of the following
Errors.
I. That Man has two real existing principles Viz: a Body & a Soul.
2. That Energy. calld Evil. is alone from the Body. & that Reason.
calld Good. is alone from the Soul.
3. That God will torment Man in Eternity for following his Ener-
gies.
But the following Contraries to these are True
I Man has no Body distinct from his Soul for that calld Body is a
portion of Soul discernd by the five Senses. the chief inlets of Soul in
this age
2. Energy is the only life and is from the Body and Reason is the
bound or outward circumference of Energy.
3. Energy is Eternal Delight
PLATE 5
Those who restrain desire, do so because theirs is weak enough to
be restrained; and the restrainer or reason usurps its place & governs
the unwilling.
And being restraind it by degrees becomes passive till it is only the
shadow of desire.
The history of this is written in Paradise Lost. & the Governor or
Reason is call'd Messiah.
And the original Archangel or possessor of the command of the
heavenly host, is calld the Devil or Satan and his children are call'd
Sin & Death
But in the Book of Job Miltons Messiah is call'd Satan.
For this history has been adopted by both parties
It indeed appear'd to Reason as if Desire was cast out. but the Devils account is, that the Messi
从这两个plate里,讽刺当时宗教与社会主流思想,主要是在批评肉身软弱而精神崇圣的学说.如果各位参考过维跟斯坦的著作,也会发现这是现今哲学所探讨的主要方向.他鼓吹人的感官才是人类的动力来源(Energy is eternal delight).他挑战整个世界对罪恶或魔鬼的定义.Blake也指出人类最具价值的就是他们肉体的能量,然而宗教却视其为魔鬼的化身.Blake认为灵魂与肉体并非两极化的对立(Man has no Body distinct from his soul)
Blake写这首诗的主要目的,是要给读者一记当头棒喝.他故意变成魔鬼的代言人,主要是挑战当时没有深度的宗教思想.他还故意写些地狱的箴言:在播种的时候我们要学习;收割时要教导;在冬日我们要享受(In seed time learn, in harvest teach, in winter enjoy).我们中国人相信中庸之道,而Blake却说:「The road of excess leads to the palace of wisdom,. Prudence is a rich ugly old maid courted by Incapacity. He who desires but acts not, breeds pestilence」.在某些地方他的思想也与君主论作者马基维利非常相似,如:A dead body revenges not injuries.
总而言之,Blake的思想在当时虽为谬论,但现在我们听起来到觉得稀松平常.维根斯坦的思想(http://www.tianzhu.org/tz_prg_vol.php prg_id=95&parent=1&vol_id=3287).