Outline: The Book of Urizen
Preludium.
- Statement of the argument of the poem. (2.1-4)
- Invocation of the Muse. (2.5-7)
Chapter I: Urizen prepares his vision of the world.
- A shadow of horror is seen in eternity. (3.1-7)
- Urizen divides time and space. (3.8-12)
- Urizen battles his own creations, brooding on himself. (3.13-26)
- Urizen prepares his forces. (3.27-35)
Chapter II: Urizen presents his vision to the others.
- Description of Eternity before Urizen creates his world--the Eternals have no definite form or limitations. (3.36-39)
- Urizen sounds his trumpets. (3.40-43)
- The Eternals gather to hear Urizen. (3.44-4.5)
- Urizen's speech.
- Preamble--what he has done to prepare his thoughts. (4.6-9)
- Problem and goal stated. (4.10-13)
- Narrative of how he reached his conclusions. (4.14-30)
- He unfolds his book and pronounces his laws. (4.31-40)
Chapter III: Urizen's vision rejected and Urizen closes himself in his own abstract world.
- Urizen emerges from his darkness and is met with rage by the gathered Eternals. (4.41-5.2)
- Eternity is divided. (5.3-11)
- Urizen is showered with anger ("flames of Eternal fury") by the other Eternals. (5.12-18)
- Urizen flees the wrath of the eternals and enwombs himself in his own world. (5.19-37)
- In anguish because Urizen was rent from his side, Los watches over the dark globe of Urizen. (5.38-6.6)
- Seeing Urizen in his "stony sleep," the Eternals wonder if this is death. (6.7-10)
- In pain from the wrenching apart of Urizen that will not heal, Los rouses his fires and prepares his forge (7.1-9)
Chapter IV(a): The creation of Urizen's world.
- Los, the blacksmith, frightened by the "unorganized," chaotic whirl of abstractions that is Urizen, begins to give Urizen concrete form. (8.1-12)
Chapter IV(b): The creation continued.
- Urizen sleeps as Los divides his watch, creating time, and works at his furnace. (10.1-30)
- The seven ages of the creation of Urizen's world/body.
- In the first age, the skeleton is created, especially the skull and the spine that enclose "the nerves of joy." (10.31-43)
- In the second age, the heart and circulation system are created. (11.1-9)
- In the third age, the nervous system (the sense of touch) and the eyes (the sense of sight) are created. (11.10-18)
- In the fourth age, the ears (the sense of hearing) are created. (11.19-25)
- In the fifth age, the nose (the sense of smell) is created. (11.26-13.3)
- In the sixth age, the stomach, throat, and tongue (the sense of taste) are created. (13.4-11)
- In the seventh age, Urizen has a completed body and is as a new born babe. (13.12-19)
Chapter V: The creation of male and female.
- Los is horrified with what has been created. (13.20-25)
- Urizen's eternal life becomes like a dream to him. (13.26-34)
- Los mourns and pities Urizen (the birth of Pity). (13.35-51)
- Pity divides Los. (13.52-15.5)
- The Eternals see Los in an Abyss of space and see the globe of life blood that has been divided from him. (15.6-13)
- The globe of life blood becomes a female form (Enitharmon). (18.1-8)
- Horrified by the sight of the first female form, the Eternals determine to erect a tent to close Los and Enitharmon from the sight of eternity. (18.9-19.9)
Chapter VI: Los and Enitharmon beget a child while the Eternals finish the tent.
- Los embraces the female who has been divided from him and then she flees. (19.10-13).
- Horrified at the narcissistic love of Los and Enitharmon, the Eternals begin to erect the tent. (19.14-18)
- Enitharmon and Los beget a male child. (19.19-36)
- The Eternals raise the tent as Enitharmon gives birth to the Human Shadow. (19.37-43)
- The child is born in "fierce flames" (an indication of his nature). (19.44-46)
- The Eternals close the tent. (19.47-20.2)
- Los bathes the child (baptizing him as a member of the fallen world). (20.3-5)
Chapter VII: The cycle of jealousy and the awakening of Urizen
- The cycle of jealousy.
- Orc receives his name and is fed at Enitharmon's breast. (20.6-7)
- Los is jealous of Orc (the girdle of jealousy restricts his chest). (20.8-17)
- The girdles become the links in the chain of jealousy. (20.18-20)
- Los takes Orc to the top of the mountain and chains him down. (20.21-25)
- Urizen is awakened by the cries of the child (sacrificed to his law). (20.26-29)
- Urizen explores his dens (creating the instruments of scientific measurement to do so). (20.20-41)
- Los protects Enitharmon from the sight of this suffering, and she populates the world, bearing a mighty race. (20.42-45)
Chapter VIII: Urizen explores his world, weaving the web of religion.
- Urizen journeys through his world, encountering many monstrous forms. (20.46-23.7)
- Urizen is sickened to see his creations (exemplified by the four basic elements: air [Thiriel], water [Utha], earth [Grodna], and fire [Fuzon]. (23.8-21)
- Urizen curses his children (his creations) because they cannot keep his law. (23.22-25.4)
- The net of religion is formed out of his sorrowful wanderings. (25.5-22)
Chapter IX: The results of Urizen's law for the inhabitants of his world.
- As Urizen's net falls on the cities, the inhabitants shrink together into a reptile form (the fallen human body) and forget eternity. (25.23-42)
- The inhabitants are now mortal. (25.43-28.7)
- The cities are named Egypt. (28.8-10)
- Those who escape the net cannot be heard by the shrunken inhabitants. (28.11-18)
- Fuzon calls together the remnant, and they flee Egypt. (28.19-23)