Hone was tried for profane libel for publishing a political parody of the Anglican Catechism in the Book of Common Prayer. Hone readapted John Wilkes' eighteenth century manuscript. Cf. M. Wood, Radical satire and print culture, 1790-1822, pp. 114-121, 272-290.

Famously, Blake believed that 'without contraries' there could be no 'progression'. Conflict was integral to his artistic vision, and his style, but it had more to do with critical engagement than any urge to victory. The essays in this volume look at conflict as it marked Blake's thinking on politics, religion and the visual arts.