To Annihilate
Title
To Annihilate
Student Commentary:
In this plate from Milton (1967 facsimile), a muscular nude male figure seems to be placing his hands violently on an older figure. The older male has long flowing hair and wears a long robe, seeming to potentially represent Moses. Blake scholars, however, theorize that the older figure is supposed to represent the god-like figure of oppression from Blake’s own mythology, Urizen, while the younger figure represents Milton, the epic hero of this poem. As Milton raises his hands to Urizen in a threatening manner, his stance splits the word “selfhood” at the bottom of the plate. Urizen holds a broken tablet containing Hebrew writing with one half of the tablet in each hand. Above the struggle between the two men stand several human figures holding musical instruments. They all appear angelic or cherubic in dress. Behind them, a vivid sunset appears to set the sky on fire.