A study of sexual conflict in three poems of William Blake: The archetype of the triple female in "The mental traveller," "The crystal cabinet," and "The golden net".

"The Crystal Cabinet," "The Golden Net," and particu- larly The Mental Traveller" have long intrigued students of Blake, but only in the last few years have scholars begun to explore these poems in depth. The value of studying these shorter poems is twofold. First, and perhaps most important, they are a unique expression of Blakean themes and exciting in themselves. Second, their manageable length allows the critic to examine and discuss every detail of an individual poem. A careful analysis of Blakean thought illuminates the prophecies which, because of their length and complexity, are typically analyzed in more general terms.The shorter poems are not necessarily less intricate than the prophecies, however. A single poem can encompass several of the ideas presented in the longer works.