“For according to the outward man, we are in this world, and according to the inward man, we are in the inward world . . . . Since then we are generated out of both worlds, we speak in two languages, and we must be understood also by two languages.” The dichotomy suggested in this quotation from Jacob Boehme, the 17th century German mystic, which Robert Bly used as an epigraph to

The Light Around the Body

might, as well, define Bly as a person and as a poet, since he himself is similarly bifurcated in terms of the “inward” and “outward” worlds of his life and the “two languages” paralleling these “two worlds” that are so vividly represented in his work. Indeed, although Bly has always kept clearly in mind and often graphically depicts the literal “outward” world…

1935 words

Citation: Davis, William V.. "Robert Bly". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 08 January 2001 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=457, accessed 19 March 2024.]

457 Robert Bly 1 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

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