Reading "Visions of Daughters of Albion" by William Blake

visions of daughters of Albion

Man-woman relationship in the poem:

 "Visions of the Daughters of Albion" raises voice against the patriarchal construct which heralds the virgin - whore dichotomy and dictates the life of the women by branding them as such based on the hegemonic ideals promoted by the men which considers women as an object to be owned by them, having every right to exploit those of the "weaker" sex. The dimensions of relationship between Oothoon, Bromion and Theotormon portray the dynamics of man-woman relationship during Blake's contemporary social age, which holds true even to the current times. 

The poem begins by addressing the Daughters of Albion as enslaved, denoting the exploiter - exploited relation between man and woman. Oothoon is the representative of the women who dares to explore sexual pleasures and embrace its joy, shedding away the false morality and hypocritical constraints imposed by the misogynistic society – driven by the rules of the father. Bromion's act of raping Oothoon displays the mentality of the men who considers women who dares to accept and express their sexuality as promiscuous, and takes it as a license to exercise power upon them, wherein the act is not seen as a fault on the man‘s side, but rather a result of the lady involved being a whore for it. This attitude is also visible through Theotormon‘s abandonment of Oothoon. She is also looked upon as a defiled object, deserving of all the contempt. Even Oothoon considers herself unworthy and calls upon "Theotormon‘s Eagles to prey upon her flesh" to make her pure again.

The shackles that dictate the man-woman relationship through the hegemonic institutions of patriarchy and religion are critiqued through the narrative. It is possible to look at Theotormon as symbolic of ideal (romantic) love and Bromion as representative of sexual pleasures. Oothoon's wandering in the Leutha's vale and plucking the flower signifies her pleasuring herself and this act seems to be considered as a rape of her virginity and has made her undeserving of love in her views which are chained and molded by the repressive ideals of religion and patriarchy. The narrative depicts the mental journey of purgation and overcoming of this guilt experienced by Oothoon, questioning the supposedly opposing ideas expressed by Bromion and Theotormon. The poem thus unveils the nature of man-woman relationship as governed by institutions which "taught my Theotormon this accursèd thing" that frames and controls the thoughts and actions of the masses.