LEVIATHANS behind the scenes: Stories of Sea Monsters

I’m a big fan of the work of William Blake (1757-1827), an English poet, painter, and printmaker (three of my greatest passions!). His paintings and writings all have a sharp apocryphal edge to them that I find really interesting. You are probably familiar with his painting “The Great Red Dragon And The Woman Clothed With Sun,” which was a pivotal part of the plot to the 2002 film Red Dragon. But his work went largely unknown during his lifetime, and due to his entrenchment in mysticism and enlightenment philosophy (including modern anarchism), he was considered mad by most of his peers. (Plus he often spoke of seeing “visions” from an early age, but who am I to judge?) Later critics and artists have come to revere Blake as a master without equal.

I happened upon his painting “Behemoth and Leviathan,” which is part of his series of illustrations based on the Book of Job. The inscription he used from the Bible is incredibly creepy: “Behold now Behemoth, which I made with thee.” Blake’s extensive use of symbolism included designating the right hand as good and the left as evil. In this painting, God is clearly pointing at these creatures with his left hand.

William Blake, "Behemoth And Leviathan" (ca. 1805-1810)

But why did Blake only draw attention to the Behemoth with the inscription? I felt quite certain that it was due to the fact that the Behemoth was some kind of hellish creature, and that the Leviathan was some figment of one of Blake’s visions, perhaps based on some mythological sea creature mixed with childhood nightmares.

I was wrong.

Read the rest of this entry »