A divine image

Cruelty has a human heart,
 And Jealousy a human face,
Terror the human form divine,
 And Secrecy the human dress.

The human dress is forgèd iron,
 The human form a fiery forge,
The human face a furnace seal'd,
 The human heart its hungry gorge.

by William Blake (1757-1827) , "A divine image", 1791-4, possibly intended for Songs of Experience

Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive)

by William Bolcom (1938-) , "A divine image", 1956-81 [soli, madrigal group, chorus, and orchestra], from Songs of Experience, Volume Two, no. 16.
by John H. Harbison (1938-) , "A divine image", 1971, published c1975, first performed 1973 [four soli, SATB chorus, string quartet, and percussion], from Five Songs of Experience, no. 5, New York, Associated Music Publishers
by Frank Lewin (1925-) , "A divine image", published 1960, first performed 1961 [soprano and chamber ensemble], from Innocence and Experience, no. 7, New York, American Composers Alliance
by Ralph Vaughan Williams (1872-1958) , "Cruelty has a human heart", 1957, published 1958 [voice and oboe], from Ten Blake Songs, no. 8.

Added to the website between May 1995 and September 2003.

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