"The man who never alters his opinion is like standing water, & breeds reptiles of the mind."

— Blake, William (1757-1827)


Publisher
William Blake
Date
1790, 1794, 1795, 1818, 1827
Metaphor
"The man who never alters his opinion is like standing water, & breeds reptiles of the mind."
Metaphor in Context
My friend the Angel climb'd up from his station into the mill; I remain'd alone, & then this appearance was no more, but I found myself sitting on a pleasant bank beside a river by moon light hearing a harper who sung to the harp. & his theme was, The man who never alters his opinion is like standing water, & breeds reptiles of the mind.
(Plate 19)
Provenance
Reading
Citation
Reading William Blake, The Marriage of Heaven and Hell (New York: Dover, 1994).

Link to the William Blake Archive <Marriage of Heaven and Hell>
Date of Entry
04/25/2013

The Mind is a Metaphor is authored by Brad Pasanek, Assistant Professor of English, University of Virginia.