Andrew M. Cooper

Latest book: "A Bastard Kind of Reasoning: William Blake and Geometry." Early review: “quite brilliant … [Chapters 2 and 3] are exemplars of the engagement between the humanities and sciences as part of the history of ideas … a tour de force. The book is subtle in its illustration of the multiple ways in which Blake engages with science, frequently presenting this reader with genuinely surprising connections with the Enlightenment milieu in which Blake found himself … boldness … transformative … exemplary.” Jason Whittaker, "Global Blake Network: A Network for Blake Studies."

"The book is a valuable addition to the field and would be of interest to many who work on Blake, science, and theories of objectivity, like phenomenology. The depth of knowledge that it demands may make it a challenging read for those who are not theoretically inclined, so it is perhaps not an introductory text to Blake and science. Nevertheless, A Bastard Kind of Reasoning is an engaging read and a surprisingly succinct exploration of how Enlightenment science and geometry contribute to Blake's vision of the universe." Blake/An Illustrated Quarterly 58:2 (2024).

"Heady," "thrilling, "impressive." The Wordsworth Circle 55:3 (2024).

“Blake situates artistic depiction in Euclidean space while also experimenting with new topologies, including waves and wrinkles that resemble Möbius strips and Klein bottles rather than direct reflections of tangible space. Cooper's book takes this kind of conflicting representation as a provocation to look more closely at Blake not just as an artist experimenting with new media and the human form ‘divine’ but also as an artist who was attempting to represent natural philosophical phenomena that may not have been considered extensible into the physical world. … Cooper offers a refreshing and energetic approach…”

Studies in English Literature: 1500-1900 63:3 (2025)..