The writer of a handful of spiritual texts including A Single Eye, All Light, No Darkness that appeared in 1650, and the autobiographical Lost Sheep Found, Laurence Clarkson is one of the more colourful characters to emerge from the English Revolution. Although initially drawn to the anarchic doctrine of the so-called Ranters, Clarkson eventually fell in with the Muggletonians and a general theme of isolation and distrust of authority can be seen throughout his writing. Clarkson’s Lost Sheep Found, in particular, illustrates the hope, despair, and confusion that best describe the nonconformist experience during the revolutionary years of 1640-1660. Clarkson’s text is part of the Puritan tradition of spiritual …
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Citation: Hall, Barry. "Laurence Clarkson". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 18 April 2012 [https://staging.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=908, accessed 24 November 2024.]
