| Hecate, or The Night of Enitharmon's Joy | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Artist | William Blake |
| Year | 1795 |
| Type | Pen andink withwatercolour on paper |
| Dimensions | 44 cm × 58 cm (17.32 in × 22.83 in) |
| Location | Tate Britain,London |
The Night of Enitharmon's Joy, often referred asThe Triple Hecate or simplyHecate, is a 1795 work of art by the English artist and poetWilliam Blake which depictsEnitharmon, a female character inhis mythology, orHecate, achthonicGreco-Roman goddess ofmagic and theunderworld. The work presents a nightmarish scene withfantastic creatures.[1][2]
The Triple Hecate is painted with deeptones and bold masses. Blake employed a new technique whose "effect is darker and richer than [his] illuminated books".[3] One scholar interprets his colour printHecate thus:
"She is triple, according to mythology: a girl and a boy hide their heads behind her back. Her left hand lies on a book of magic; her left foot is extended. She is attended by a thistle-eating ass, the mournful owl of false wisdom, the head of a crocodile (blood-thirsty hypocrisy), and a cat-headed bat."[4]
Blake often drew onMichelangelo to create and compose his epic images, including Hecate's, according to a consensus of critics. "Blake is indebted to Michelangelo for many of his giant forms".[5] Michelangelo contributed many "characters to Blake's gallery of mythic persons and heroes".[6] Regarding theHecate colour print, a suggested trail may be traced. From Michelangelo, Blake copied his early sketch entitledThe Reposing Traveller, which then evolved into a figure for his work (1795–1797) regardingNight Thoughts,[7] and also into the similarly posed figure of Hecate here.[8]
The image may also allude to the Three Fates — theMoirai ofGreek mythology and theParcae ofRoman. Notwithstanding these allusions, critics point out that a contemporary trigger for Blake's inspiration probably was the return popularity ofShakespeare's playMacbeth.[9] As Hecate listens offstage,[10] the three witches, in arranging Macbeth's doom, chant: "Double, double, toil and trouble; Fire burn and cauldron bubble". Each witch in turn adds her verses, the second's being:
Hence,bat,owl,snake orfrog would be appropriate toThe Triple Hecate.[9]
Blake printed his illuminatedEurope a Prophecy in 1794. The bulk of the book, according to one scholar, "is devoted tothe night of Enitharmon's joy, when she establishes her Woman's World with its false religion of chastity and vengeance: a religion of eighteen hundred years, which is the error of officialChristianity."[11] In other words, it is said to represent a Feminine Will over apatriarchal Christianity.[12][13][14] Blake's character is described as "theMoon of love toLos'sSun",[11] hence its relationship with Hecate, one of the Moon Goddesses alongsideDiana/Artemis andSelene. She is also invoked inHamlet, in theplay within the play method, by the (actor) Lucianus: "With Hecate's ban thrice blasted, thrice infected, Thy natural magic and dire property [...]"[15] but inEurope: a Prophecy Enitharmon's night is presented in this way:
There are other literary sources for the myth of Hecate, such asMetamorphoses byOvid, VI 140, VII 74, 94, 174, 177, 194, 241, XIV 44, 405, and Blake himself: "The Gods all Serve her at her will; so great her Power is, like fabled Hecate, she doth bind them to her law." (Blake,Then She bore Pale desire…). But not only in his poetryThe Triple Hecate makes a connection: it is seen as an opposition to his paintingPity, circa 1795, where thepiety provides a "possibility ofsalvation" in the fallen world.[16] Here, bothwitchcraft andcurse, associated with Hecate, are factors to human perdition.Geoffrey Keynes wrote about it:
"Hecate, an infernal Trinity, crouches in the centre. An evil winged spectre hovers over her. On her left an ass is grazing on rank vegetation, while an owl and a great toad watch from between rocks. The theme of the Moon Goddess is derived from Shakespeare'sMidsummer Night's Dream."[17]
The image was created in a time in which Shakespeare'sMacbeth had a revival, being performed nine times.[18] Like other works by Blake, such asThe Ghost of a Flea, the picture is part of W. Graham Robertson'sprivate collection and was presented to theTate Gallery by himself in 1939. It is considered to be one of the most brilliant and significant pictures of William Blake.[19]