William Blake Homework

In these selections of poems, Blake gives us two completely different state of mind. He juxtaposes the innocent world of childhood against an adult world full of repression and corruption. In "Song of Innocence" he narrates several stories with different characters, that all seem to be angelic, exemplary, stainless, guilt-free and pure. In addition, he mentions God multiple times,"`Look on the rising sun: there God does live, and gives his light, and gives his heat away". This quote is taken from "The little Black Boy" and here we see that Blake wants to send his readers a specific message. Following God has to be the first concern in every person's life. On the other hand in "Songs of experience" Blake explores the adult world full of dishonesty, cruelty and corruption. Although we are aware of the fact that Blake was intensely religious, in these selection of poems he does not seem to take a side. He identifies himself with neither view. He is an outsider, merely narrating stories and sins of fictional characters. In most of the poems, he personifies himself in different individuals,  "My mother bore me in the southern wild, and I am black, but O! my soul is white;white as an angel is the English child, but I am black, as if bereav'd of light." Even thought this collection of poems explores values and sensations of two different perspectives of the world, most of the poems fall into pairs. That way, the same circumstances are seen through different outlooks. It is almost as if Songs of Innocence and Songs of Experience are connected; Songs of Innocence amplify the innocent and ingenuous hopes and fears of childhood, and follows the change to adulthood. Some of the poems are written from the perspective of a child while others are written from an adult point of view. Songs of experience is written to describe how bitter and harsh are adult life experiences. Experiences that will make you forget about your innocent childhood. All of the main themes in Songs of Experience challenge the innocence of “Songs of Innocent”. Jealousy, shame, corruption, lies all go against the naïve and guilt free state of mind of childhood. Experience thus adds a layer of innocence that puts a shadow in a hopeful vision.  The language in the Songs of Innocence and Experience is every so often complex. Comprehending the subject matter is at time difficult. In several poems, Blake uses personification; while in others symbolism and abstract images seem to be the choice. I have decided to compare “The Tiger’ taken from “Songs of Experience” and “The Lamb” from “Songs of Innocence”. In the first stanza of “The Tiger” the speaker who is unknown, asks a question: Which God created him? “What immortal hand or eye could frame thy fearful symmetry?” It also seems as if the speaker is scandalized that a divine being would even think to create a creature such as a tiger. He then continues, by saying that this divine being had the courage to comply his duty by finishing what he started, “and when thy heart began to beat, what dread hand and what dread feet?.” He then continues, by skeptically asking himself if the divine being that created this monster, also brought into existence the lamb. He then concludes, by asking himself the same question from the first stanza “ Tiger, tiger, burning bright in the forests of the night, what immortal hand or eye dare frame thy fearful symmetry?”. The main theme of this poem is the idea that a divine being can create an animal both beautiful and horrible. A God with the capacity of conceive an animal capable of violent acts but beautiful and fascinating.  The message here is that nature itself is a reflection of its creator. Since all beings were created by God, he himself cannot be as celestial as he is depicted to be.  He allowed the existence of evil in this world, so he is responsible for it. When he mentions the lamb, he points out that tigers and lambs have been created by the same God, reminding the reader that they are not so different after all, since they both have been created by the same divine being.

“The Lamb” contrarily seems to be narrated by a child.  He questions the lamb, asking him where he originated from, who gave him “a tender voice, making all the vales rejoice.” In the second stanza, he attempts the answer his questions by saying that the creator of the lamb is “ called by thy name, for he calls himself a lamb.” In the last stanza, the narrator blesses the lamb, “ Little Lamb God bless thee. Little Lamb God bless thee”.  The poem is descriptive and fascinating, with a question followed by an answer.  The child’s questions seems naïve and vague although genuine and thoughtful. The lamb symbolizes Jesus and the child’s faith. The child admires the lamb, and has faith in him. The child trusts the lamb and places his confidence in him.  This lamb is free of guilt, angelic. The lamb is perfect and seems flawless. The lamb is completely different from the tiger, even thought they were both created by the same divine being. In “Songs of Innocence” Blake conveys an image of a perfect God; a divine being which seems incapable of creating something evil. In “Songs of Experience” he is describing the reality of nature.  The two poems give an adequate view on religion that includes the angelic and perfect part, and the evil and harsh reality of the world we live in. These poems counterpart each other, providing the realistic point of view that Blake had on religion and nature.