Beyond “Remembrance of Me”: Blake's late prophecies and radical Eucharistic theology

Abstract This paper examines the Eucharist in two of William Blake's late prophecies: The Four Zoas and Milton, A Poem. Like other Romantic poets, Blake carefully avoids mentioning the Eucharist directly, but nevertheless develops a sophisticated sacramental theology which harnesses transformative power while resisting calcifying doctrine. Closely examining the apocalyptic feast-scenes in the Zoas and Milton, this paper shows how Blake's symbolism draws on Anglican, Methodist, and Quaker thought, as well as 18th-century typological interpretative modes. Through these, he establishes a radical Eucharistic poetics in which Christ himself is a type to be perfected and transformed.