fbpx
Wikipedia

The Wood of the Self-Murderers: The Harpies and the Suicides

February 16, 2024

The Wood of the Self-Murderers: The Harpies and the Suicides is a pencil, ink and watercolour on paper artwork by the English poet, painter and printmaker William Blake (1757–1827). It was completed between 1824 and 1827 and illustrates a passage from the Inferno of the Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri (1265–1321).[1]

The Wood of the Self-Murderers: The Harpies and the Suicides, c. 1824–1827. William Blake, Tate. 372×527 mm.

It is part of a series which was to be the last set of watercolours Blake worked on before his death in August 1827. It is held in the Tate Gallery, London.

Commission edit

Blake was commissioned in 1824 by his friend, the painter John Linnell (1792–1882), to create a series of illustrations based on Dante's poem. Blake was then in his late sixties, yet by legend drafted 100 watercolours on the subject "during a fortnight's illness in bed".[2] Few of them were actually coloured, and only seven gilded.[3] He sets this work in a scene from one of the circles of Hell depicted in the Inferno (Circle VII, Ring II, Canto XIII), in which Dante and the Roman poet Virgil (70–19 BCE) travel through a forest haunted by harpies—mythological winged and malign fat-bellied death-spirits who bear features of human heads and female breasts.

Description and meaning edit

The harpies in Dante's version feed from the leaves of oak trees which entomb suicides. At the time Canto XIII (or The Wood of Suicides) was written, suicide was considered by the Catholic Church as at least equivalent to murder, and a contravention of the Commandment "Thou shalt not kill", and many theologians believed it to be an even deeper sin than murder, as it constituted a rejection of God's gift of life. Dante alludes to this by placing suicides in the seventh circle of Hell, where the violent are punished, alongside murderers, tyrants, blasphemers, sodomites and usurers.[4]

Dante describes a tortured forest infested with harpies, where the act of suicide is punished by encasing the offender in a tree, thus denying eternal life and damning the soul to an eternity as a member of the restless living dead, and prey to the harpies. Furthermore, the soul can only speak and grieve when its tree is broken or damaged as punishment for choosing suicide to express grief. Lastly, in another act of symbolic retribution, when each of the blessed and damned returns with his or her body from the Last Judgment, those damned for suicide will not re-inhabit their bodies but instead hang them on their branches, both because they denied them in their final act of life and as a reminder of what they denied themselves.[5] Blake's painting shows Dante and Virgil walking through a haunted forest at a moment when Dante has torn a twig from a bleeding tree, and then dropped it in shock on hearing the disembodied words, "Wherefore tear'st me thus? Is there no touch of mercy in thy breast?".[1]

In Dante's poem, the tree contains the soul of Pietro della Vigna (1190–1249), an Italian jurist and diplomat, and chancellor and secretary to the Emperor Frederick II (1194–1250). Pietro was a learned man who rose to become a close advisor to the emperor. However, his success was envied by other members of Frederick II's court, and charges that he was wealthier than the emperor and was an agent of the pope were brought against him. Frederick threw Pietro in prison, and had his eyes ripped out. In retaliation, Pietro killed himself by beating his head against the dungeon wall. He is one of four named suicides mentioned in Canto XIII,[6] and represents the notion of a "heroic" suicide.[7]

Describing the scene, Dante wrote:

Here the repellent harpies make their nests,
Who drove the Trojans from the Strophades
With dire announcements of the coming woe.
They have broad wings, a human neck and face,
Clawed feet and swollen, feathered bellies; they caw
Their lamentations in the eerie trees.[5]
 
Harpies in the Forest of Suicides, an 1861 engraving by Gustave Doré, illustrates the same canto of the Inferno.

Although Pietro does not reveal his identity to the travellers in Dante's episode, he does moralise on the act of suicide, asking (as paraphrased by the historian Wallace Fowlie) if it is better to submit to chastisement and misfortune or take one's own life.[6] In Canto XIII, Pietro says, "I am he that held both keys of Frederick's heart / To lock and to unlock / and well I knew / To turn them with so exquisite an art.[8]

Blake shows a number of contorted human figures embedded in the oak trees in the foreground. To the right, a male figure is seated and wears a crown. A female form is hung upside-down and transformed into a tree on Dante and Virgil's left. This figure may have been inspired by Dante's reference to La Meretrice, or Envy, to whom Pietro attributed his fall.[1] Examining Blake's use of camouflage in the work, the art historian Kathleen Lundeen observes, "The trees appear to be superimposed over the figures as if the two images in the previous illustration has been pulled together into a single focus. Through the art of camouflage, Blake gives us an image in flux, one which is in a perpetual state of transmutation. Now we see trees, now we see people."[9]

Three large harpies perch on branches spanning the pair of travellers, and these creatures are depicted by Blake as monstrous bird–human hybrids, in the words of the art historian Kevin Hutchings, "functioning as iconographic indictments of the act of suicide and its violent negation of the divine human form".[10]

The harpies' faces are human-like except for their pointed beaks, while their bodies are owl-shaped and equipped with claws, sharp wings and female breasts. Blake renders them in a manner faithful to Dante's description in 13:14–16: "Broad are their pennons, of the human form / Their neck and countenance, armed with talons keen / These sit and wail on the dreary mystic wood."[11]

Notes edit

  1. ^ a b c "The Wood of the Self-Murderers: The Harpies and the Suicides: Texts". Tate. Retrieved on 14 November 2008.
  2. ^ "Illustrations to Dante". Tate. Retrieved on 15 November 2008.
  3. ^ Myrone, 147
  4. ^ Fowlie, 90
  5. ^ a b Pinsky, Robert. "Dante's Canto XIII: The Wood of the Suicides". Boston Review,. Retrieved on 14 November 2008.
  6. ^ a b Fowlie, 92
  7. ^ Vossler, Karl. "Mediaeval Culture: An Introduction to Dante and His Times". Michigan: Ungar, 1958. 261
  8. ^ Haskins, Charles Homer. "Latin Literature under Frederick II". Speculum, Volume 3, No. 2, April 1928. 129–151
  9. ^ Lundeen, 148–149
  10. ^ Hutchings, 69
  11. ^ Paley, 132

Bibliography edit

  • Fowlie, Wallace. A Reading of Dante's Inferno. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1981. ISBN 0-226-25888-2
  • Hutchings, Kevin. Imagining Nature: Blake's Environmental Poetics. McGill-Queen's University Press, 2003. ISBN 0-7735-2343-X
  • Lundeen, Kathleen. Knight of the Living Dead: William Blake and the Problem of Ontology. Selinsgrove: Susquehanna University Press, 2000. ISBN 1-57591-041-1
  • Myrone, Martin. The Blake Book. London: Tate Gallery, 2007. ISBN 978-1-85437-727-2
  • Paley, Morton D. The Traveller in the Evening: The Last Works of William Blake. Oxford: OUP Oxford, 2007. ISBN 0-19-922761-6
  • Raine, Kathleen. William Blake. London: Thames and Hudson. ISBN 0-500-20107-2

February 16, 2024
wood, self, murderers, harpies, suicides, pencil, watercolour, paper, artwork, english, poet, painter, printmaker, william, blake, 1757, 1827, completed, between, 1824, 1827, illustrates, passage, from, inferno, divine, comedy, dante, alighieri, 1265, 1321, 18. The Wood of the Self Murderers The Harpies and the Suicides is a pencil ink and watercolour on paper artwork by the English poet painter and printmaker William Blake 1757 1827 It was completed between 1824 and 1827 and illustrates a passage from the Inferno of the Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri 1265 1321 1 The Wood of the Self Murderers The Harpies and the Suicides c 1824 1827 William Blake Tate 372 527 mm It is part of a series which was to be the last set of watercolours Blake worked on before his death in August 1827 It is held in the Tate Gallery London Contents 1 Commission 2 Description and meaning 3 Notes 4 BibliographyCommission editBlake was commissioned in 1824 by his friend the painter John Linnell 1792 1882 to create a series of illustrations based on Dante s poem Blake was then in his late sixties yet by legend drafted 100 watercolours on the subject during a fortnight s illness in bed 2 Few of them were actually coloured and only seven gilded 3 He sets this work in a scene from one of the circles of Hell depicted in the Inferno Circle VII Ring II Canto XIII in which Dante and the Roman poet Virgil 70 19 BCE travel through a forest haunted by harpies mythological winged and malign fat bellied death spirits who bear features of human heads and female breasts Description and meaning editThe harpies in Dante s version feed from the leaves of oak trees which entomb suicides At the time Canto XIII or The Wood of Suicides was written suicide was considered by the Catholic Church as at least equivalent to murder and a contravention of the Commandment Thou shalt not kill and many theologians believed it to be an even deeper sin than murder as it constituted a rejection of God s gift of life Dante alludes to this by placing suicides in the seventh circle of Hell where the violent are punished alongside murderers tyrants blasphemers sodomites and usurers 4 Dante describes a tortured forest infested with harpies where the act of suicide is punished by encasing the offender in a tree thus denying eternal life and damning the soul to an eternity as a member of the restless living dead and prey to the harpies Furthermore the soul can only speak and grieve when its tree is broken or damaged as punishment for choosing suicide to express grief Lastly in another act of symbolic retribution when each of the blessed and damned returns with his or her body from the Last Judgment those damned for suicide will not re inhabit their bodies but instead hang them on their branches both because they denied them in their final act of life and as a reminder of what they denied themselves 5 Blake s painting shows Dante and Virgil walking through a haunted forest at a moment when Dante has torn a twig from a bleeding tree and then dropped it in shock on hearing the disembodied words Wherefore tear st me thus Is there no touch of mercy in thy breast 1 In Dante s poem the tree contains the soul of Pietro della Vigna 1190 1249 an Italian jurist and diplomat and chancellor and secretary to the Emperor Frederick II 1194 1250 Pietro was a learned man who rose to become a close advisor to the emperor However his success was envied by other members of Frederick II s court and charges that he was wealthier than the emperor and was an agent of the pope were brought against him Frederick threw Pietro in prison and had his eyes ripped out In retaliation Pietro killed himself by beating his head against the dungeon wall He is one of four named suicides mentioned in Canto XIII 6 and represents the notion of a heroic suicide 7 Describing the scene Dante wrote Here the repellent harpies make their nests Who drove the Trojans from the Strophades With dire announcements of the coming woe They have broad wings a human neck and face Clawed feet and swollen feathered bellies they caw Their lamentations in the eerie trees 5 nbsp Harpies in the Forest of Suicides an 1861 engraving by Gustave Dore illustrates the same canto of the Inferno Although Pietro does not reveal his identity to the travellers in Dante s episode he does moralise on the act of suicide asking as paraphrased by the historian Wallace Fowlie if it is better to submit to chastisement and misfortune or take one s own life 6 In Canto XIII Pietro says I am he that held both keys of Frederick s heart To lock and to unlock and well I knew To turn them with so exquisite an art 8 Blake shows a number of contorted human figures embedded in the oak trees in the foreground To the right a male figure is seated and wears a crown A female form is hung upside down and transformed into a tree on Dante and Virgil s left This figure may have been inspired by Dante s reference to La Meretrice or Envy to whom Pietro attributed his fall 1 Examining Blake s use of camouflage in the work the art historian Kathleen Lundeen observes The trees appear to be superimposed over the figures as if the two images in the previous illustration has been pulled together into a single focus Through the art of camouflage Blake gives us an image in flux one which is in a perpetual state of transmutation Now we see trees now we see people 9 Three large harpies perch on branches spanning the pair of travellers and these creatures are depicted by Blake as monstrous bird human hybrids in the words of the art historian Kevin Hutchings functioning as iconographic indictments of the act of suicide and its violent negation of the divine human form 10 The harpies faces are human like except for their pointed beaks while their bodies are owl shaped and equipped with claws sharp wings and female breasts Blake renders them in a manner faithful to Dante s description in 13 14 16 Broad are their pennons of the human form Their neck and countenance armed with talons keen These sit and wail on the dreary mystic wood 11 Notes edit a b c The Wood of the Self Murderers The Harpies and the Suicides Texts Tate Retrieved on 14 November 2008 Illustrations to Dante Tate Retrieved on 15 November 2008 Myrone 147 Fowlie 90 a b Pinsky Robert Dante s Canto XIII The Wood of the Suicides Boston Review Retrieved on 14 November 2008 a b Fowlie 92 Vossler Karl Mediaeval Culture An Introduction to Dante and His Times Michigan Ungar 1958 261 Haskins Charles Homer Latin Literature under Frederick II Speculum Volume 3 No 2 April 1928 129 151 Lundeen 148 149 Hutchings 69 Paley 132Bibliography editFowlie Wallace A Reading of Dante s Inferno Chicago University of Chicago Press 1981 ISBN 0 226 25888 2 Hutchings Kevin Imagining Nature Blake s Environmental Poetics McGill Queen s University Press 2003 ISBN 0 7735 2343 X Lundeen Kathleen Knight of the Living Dead William Blake and the Problem of Ontology Selinsgrove Susquehanna University Press 2000 ISBN 1 57591 041 1 Myrone Martin The Blake Book London Tate Gallery 2007 ISBN 978 1 85437 727 2 Paley Morton D The Traveller in the Evening The Last Works of William Blake Oxford OUP Oxford 2007 ISBN 0 19 922761 6 Raine Kathleen William Blake London Thames and Hudson ISBN 0 500 20107 2 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title The Wood of the Self Murderers The Harpies and the Suicides amp oldid 1191332366, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

article

, read, download, free, free download, mp3, video, mp4, 3gp, jpg, jpeg, gif, png, picture, music, song, movie, book, game, games.