WILLIAM BLAKE (1757-1827)

William Blake was born in London, England on November 28, 1757. At age 10 he claimed to see his first of many visions, which was a tree full of angels. Henry Pars Drawing School taught him for the most part, and the Bible was not only a big influence on him as a child, but for his entire life.

WILLIAM BLAKE COLLECTIONS

William Blake has two collection categories. One is

the Songs of Experience and the other is Songs of

Innocence. The two poems I chose were separated

into both of the collections.

Songs of Experience- A Poison Tree

Songs of Innocence- The Cradle Song

A POISON TREE

Symbols: The author used the tree being watered

and growing as a way to symbolize his anger

growing within him. The apple in the poem is the

result of the anger, it had an action with it.

CRADLE SONG

Symbols: The author uses the child, or baby, to

symbolize innocence, and gentleness to give it the

criteria to fit into the Songs of Innocence category. It

is unlike his others because it is a sweet poem, it is

expressing the mothers love for her child.

A POISON TREE ELEMENTS

In the first stanza of this poem, the first line is

Trochaic trimeter with an extra stressed syllable. In

the second line of the first stanza it is an Iambic

tetrameter. It was alternating.

CRADLE SONG ELEMENTS

Cradle Song is filled with alliteration using “s”. For

example, the starting of the first stanza is “Sleep,

sleep, beauty bright,” and the entire second stanza is

“Sweet babe, in thy face/ Soft desires I can trace,/

Secret joys and secret smiles,/ Little pretty infant

wiles.”

WORK CITED

http://

www.poetryloverspage.com/poets/blake/collections/s

ongs_of_experience.html

http://

www.biography.com/people/william-blake-9214491?p

age=1

http://www.gradesaver.com/author/william-blake/