Experiences Of The Innocent

Essay by mcconnellaaron50College, UndergraduateA-, April 2013

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"Experiences of the Innocent"

William Blake was a strange character with a precious gift. The poet was predominately unrecognized during his lifetime, but after his death he became known as an inspiring figure in the history of the Romantic Age. He had the ability to see and write about things from two different viewpoints. Blake composed two collections of work, "Songs of Innocence" and "Songs of Experience", which were based on his commendable ability. The poems in the "Songs of Innocence" oppose the poems in the "Songs of Experience" to extract a deeper meaning. I am going to discuss how Blake uses the disparity of "The Tyger" and "The Lamb" to accentuate the importance of innocence and experience and how much they depend on one another to exist.

William Blake's "The Lamb" is a sweet and methodical poem written in 1789. The poem centralizes on the aspiring question of creation, but it does so in a subtle way, opening as a naive question to a divine, graceful creature: "Little Lamb, who made thee?" (Blake 282).

The first half of the poem asks the lamb who is responsible for the life and creation of this holy creature described by Blake as "a tender voice, / Making all the vales rejoice?" (282). The lamb functions as a symbol for innocence, simplicity, and naiveté. Blake's gentle phrasing provides a melodic tone to the piece and responds to the question that a higher power is responsible. Answering as Jesus Christ, Blake addresses the speaker's question: "He is called by thy name, /For he calls himself a lamb." (282). By affirming the lamb's creator as Jesus Christ, he is implementing that everyone is in some sense a little lamb, created by god, divine and innocent.

William Blake's "The...