Songs Of Innocence And Experience: Poem Analysis

William Blake was a British poet and painter who lived during the French Revolution. The devastating end to it caused Blake to lose faith in the goodness of mankind. This explains why much of the poems in Songs of Experience are about bad experiences rather than good ones. The purpose of the poems in Songs of Innocence and Experience were to show the two opposing states of the human soul. These being that a child with no experiences are innocent and happy, but when they grow and gain new experiences this innocence is ripped away from them. Blake used these poems to prove something he believed in. He believed that true innocence is not possible without experience. William Blake employs a variety of poetic devices such as theme, tone, and rhyme …show more content…
The images relating to the boy in this poem are extremely important as they shine light on the fragility of innocence and the effect society has on it. Marianne Buroch, an American poet, agrees with the importance of imagery in a poem. In her article entitled, “Three Blakes,” she states, “Blake allows imagery to be the heart of his poem.” This shows that the entirety of Blake’s poems are made up of images and without them, he wouldn’t be a real poet. Another image Blake utilizes in this poem is a simple plant. The image of the plant applies to the school boy’s present and future. The young plant, similar to the young boy, is tender and fragile. The way a child is treated determines a person’s capacity to live happily despite the things life may throw at them. This means that positive experiences and freedom of imagination are necessary for a person to live to their full potential. This is similar to the plant in that the way a person treats a plant dictates it’s later ability to bear fruit. If a plant is treated poorly, it will no longer be able to maintain being a strong and healthy plant. Blake challenges himself with comparing