Analysis Of The Songs Of Innocence By William Blake

William Blake, an unconventional writer and artist in Romantic England, was known best for his unique printing method and claim to supernatural visions. In 1789, Blake published the â€Å"Songs of Innocence,† a collection of poems attributed with an innocent, romantic viewpoint, as the title indicates. One of the poems, â€Å"The Divine Image,† was used to identify the nature of God in man. â€Å"The Divine Image† speaker identifies the Mercy, Love, Peace, and Pity found in humans to be truly divine and of God. These â€Å"virtues of delight† are understood not only to be of God, but to comprise His very being. The â€Å"Songs of Experience† counterpart to this poem, â€Å"The Human Abstract,† reveals how religion perverts this pure connection by instating man-made†¦show more content†¦However, before the idealist, there was the boy†¦ William Blake was born in the Soho district of London, England in 1757. A son of a hosier, William was allowed a comfortable lifestyle, through which he had access to printed works of his favorite Renaissance artists and writers. However, at the age of ten, William was sent away from his home to Park’s drawing school, a place to cultivate the creative potential William’s father saw in him. It was through his learning that he landed an apprenticeship to Basire, the local engraver, at the age of fourteen. Throughout his seven year training, William acquired a taste for all things Gothic, and labored on the first of his many works, Poetical Sketches.† Finally, at the end of his apprenticeship, William attended the Royal Academy of Arts for a time before meeting his soon-to-be wife, Catherine Boucher. Ms. Boucher was, in fact, illiterate at the time of meeting William, but after their hasty courtship and marriage, Blake rectified said fact by teaching her to read, write and paint. These skills would enable Catherine to aid her husband in many of his following works. After marriage, Blake’s career began to pick up speed, starting with his first published work, â€Å"Poetical Sketches† in 1783. The initial success of this work painted a rather optimistic picture of the future for the Blakes; but, a year later, tragedy struck. At the age of 27, Blake lost his brother, Robert,Show MoreRelatedSongs Of Innocence And Of Experience By William Blake Analysis868 Words   |  4 PagesSongs of Innocence and of Experience is the foundation of the work of one of the greatest. English poets and artists. The two sets of poems reveal what William Blake calls â€Å"the two contrary states of the human soul.† In both series, he offers clues to deeper meanings and suggests ways out of the apparent trap of selfhood, so that each reading provides greater insight and understanding, not only to the poems but also to human life. Throughout this poem, the logic of this poem favors experience ratherRead MoreAnalysis Of The Songs Of Innocence And Experience By William Blake1208 Words   |  5 Pagespoet William Blake. It was a city with no hope for poor people, and the government and church did little to help this. Among the poor were children working in slave-like conditions to feed their families and going to charity schools. Blake puts these children at the center of his piece to show the hypocritical nature of the church and how innocent people are suffering from it. He takes on two angles from the same topic: the event of Holy Thursday. By examining it from the lens of innocence, thenRead MoreThe Songs Of Inn ocence And Experience William Blake Analysis1751 Words   |  8 Pagesreligions have different gods, traditions, and ceremonies, but they all have one thing in common; people take different viewpoints of a religion to fit into their mindset. William Blake uses this idea to express how he believes people see Christianity and God. In his series named â€Å"The Songs of Innocence and Experience,† Blake creates the image of opposing views of similar situations. The poems show the views of the innocent and the experienced. The innocent takes on the roles to show how naivetyRead MoreSongs of Good and Evil1545 Words   |  7 Pagesall describe William Blake’s life (Greenblatt, Abrams, Lynch, Stillinger). Blake was born November 28, 1757 in London, England and his artistic ability became evident in his early years. Blake had a very simple upbringing and had little education. His formal education was in art and at the age of fourteen he entered an apprenticeship with a well-k nown engraver who taught Blake his skills in engraving. In Blake’s free time, he began reading writing poetry. At the age of twenty-one, Blake completed hisRead MoreWilliam Blake s The Tyger1132 Words   |  5 PagesWilliam Blake’s â€Å"The Tyger† and Tragedies William Blake wrote a set of poems in his collection Songs of Innocence and Songs of Experience. Some of the poems in each collection were meant to be read together to show the difference between innocence and experience. Many people question why Blake wrote a two part series to his poems and what they could actually mean. Two specific poems, â€Å"The Lamb† and â€Å"The Tyger,† were meant to be read together. â€Å"The Lamb† is a part of Blake’s Songs of Innocence andRead MoreWilliam Blake in Contrast of Songs of Innocence and of Experience1452 Words   |  6 PagesEN 222-Intro to British Lit. II April 21, 2012 William Blake in contrast of Songs of Innocence and of Experience William Blake, an engraver, exemplified his passion for children through his many poems. Blake lived in London most of his life and many fellow literati viewed him as eccentric. He claimed to have interactions with angels and prophets, which had a great influence on his outlook of life. Blake believed all prominent entities, those being church, state, and government had become sick withRead MoreWilliam Blake Songs of Innocence Experience1256 Words   |  6 PagesSweeper† Songs of Innocence amp; Experience analysis with, William Blake In 1794 William Blake’s work was known and published as a collection of poems that were put together as one book called Songs of innocence amp; Songs of Experience. In the collection Blake titles a poem, â€Å"The Chimney Sweeper†, and this one is viewed in two ways: Innocence and experience. In the book of innocence Blake shows how poor innocent children are being abused and mistreated during this time era. In Songs of innocenceRead MoreWilliam Blake s Innocence And Experience Analysis Essay1529 Words   |  7 PagesIsha Fidai Amber Drown English 2323 14 September 2016 William Blake s Innocence and Experience Analysis The Romantic Era was a movement in literature that began in the late seventeenth century throughout the eighteenth century that was mainly influenced by the natural world and idealism. Romanticism was predominantly focused on emotion and freedom emphasizing individualism. Formed as an uprising against neoclassicism, romanticism was more abstract, focusing on feelings and imaginations, insteadRead More An Analysis of Blakes The School Boy Essay1745 Words   |  7 PagesAn Analysis of Blakes The School Boy  Ã‚     Ã‚  Ã‚   The School Boy is a typical example of Blakes Songs of Innocence and Songs of Experience in its themes and imagery. Like many of the other poems in this work it deals with childhood and the subjugation of its spirit and uses imagery from the natural world. While first published in 1789 as one of the Songs of Innocence there are strong reasons why Blake moved it to the Experience1 section of the 1794 edition. If we compare it to other poems inRead MoreEssay about The Voice of the Chimney Sweepers1180 Words   |  5 PagesWilliam Blake (1757-1827) led a relatively happy life. At an early age, he claimed that he could see God, Angels, and other important Italian figures. Blake’s parents encouraged him to keep a record of all the masters he claimed to keep in contact with. Blake’s father, James Blake, gave him casts and engravings to keep this record. At the age of ten, Blake started at a drawing school named Henry Pars’ Drawing School. Three years late r, he was apprenticed to a Master Engraver, James Basire. Blake