William Blake, with designs by Celia Levetus

Songs of Experience

(Nutt, 1902)

In contrast to her work in Blake’s ‘Songs of Innocence’, here Levetus introduces a more unsettling and menacing undertone, echoing the uneasiness in the poems (first published in 1794).  Bare, spindly branches wrap around the image, creating a claustrophobic atmosphere.  The snake, a symbol of Satan, looms threateningly on the left, while the winged woman to the right seems to be protecting the two frightened children at her feet.