The William Blake Collection: The Marriage of Heaven and Hell, Songs of Innocence and Songs of Experience

William Blake was a complete unknown in his time but has since risen to the center of the canon of English poetry. The poet was literally a visionary. He was either plagued or blessed (depending on one's perspective) by intense hallucinations, which inspired his work. These visions helped him craft some of the most evocative poems ever written. They also helped inspire Blake's manifesto of universal humanity transcending race and gender, far ahead of its time.