The Inner Worlds of George Fox and William Blake

The first session of the course reflects on Fox and Blake’s understanding of the imagination. By delving into early Quaker and Blakean symbolism, learners will be introduced to a stunning vision of the spiritual world, which, if acted upon, revolutionises the relationship between minds and bodies, human beings and nature.

The second session considers Fox and Blake in the role of radical religious critics. By drawing out the similarities between Fox and Blake’s attacks on priesthood, ritualism and traditional hierarchy, participants will be introduced to a radical vision of Christianity, which valorises immediate experience and inner prompting over stale outward conformity. In both sessions, participants will have the opportunity to consider their own understanding and experience of the inner world. Themes across the two sessions will include:

• Reading the Bible like Blake and Fox
• Imagination, faculty of perception or deception
• Nature and Revelation
• Spiritual authority and rebellion

This course will appeal to those who want to go deeper into the writings and thought of either Blake or Fox, alongside those who want to deepen their understanding of traditions of radical Christianity in the early modern period. This short course is intended as a blend of historical exploration and spiritual questing, to enrich participants’ appreciation of the visionary dynamics of the Quaker Way.