Mysticism in English Literature

Caroline F. E. Spurgeon

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We shall find that mystical thought, and the mystical attitude, are curiously persistentin English literature, and that although it seems out of keeping with our "John Bull"character, the English race has a marked tendency towards mysticism. What we dofind lacking in England is the purely philosophical and speculative spirit of thedetached and unprejudiced seeker after truth. The English mind is anti-speculative; itcares little for metaphysics; it prefers theology and a given authority. English mysticshave, as a rule, dealt little with the theoretical side of mysticism, the aspect forinstance with which Plotinus largely deals. They have been mainly practical mystics,such as William Law. Those of the poets who have consciously had a system anddesired to impart it, have done so from the practical point of view, urging, like Wordsworth, the importance of contemplation and meditation, or, like Blake, the valueof cultivating the imagination; and in both cases enforcing the necessity of cleansingthe inner life, if we are to become conscious of our divine nature and our great heritage.