A Comparison of Blake’s Poems “the Divine Image” and “the...

Erich Nolan CMLT-C205 3/19/12 A Comparison of Blake’s Poems â€Å"The Divine Image† and â€Å"The Human Abstract† William Blake (1757-1827, London) is considered the first of the great English Romantic poets; he was also a master engraver, a printer, and a painter. Blake was not widely known during his life and it wasn’t until some time after his death that his poetic works became widely read. Two of his best-known works â€Å"Songs of Innocence† (SoI) and â€Å"Songs of Experience† (SoE) contain the poems that I will compare here. These collections of poems are companions, but it should be noted that SoE was written about 4-5 years after SoI. The poems are best read by seeing them in their original print form with the accompanying engravings. Many†¦show more content†¦Eighteenth century England provided many such conditions that Blake explored through his work. â€Å"The Human Abstract† is an assault on the values from â€Å"The Divine Image† as being ideals only suited to a world made imperfect by humanity. The values spoken of represent a passive o r resigned sympathy for suffering but don’t suggest any obligation to alleviate that suffering and make the world more just. In this way, the speaker in â€Å"The Human Abstract† refuses to think of these values as ideal but suggests that they are only a response to the accepted norms of a cruel society. In SoE, Blake is showing his disgust for a society that perpetrates such evils on humanity and the church that uses God as a tool for controlling those who suffer. â€Å"The Human Abstract† is a critique of the important virtues that were praised in â€Å"The Divine Image†. Analyzing Pity, Mercy, and Peace, these differ from Love as an innocent abstraction, and the poem explores the insidious growth of a system of values based on fear and repression. This is unlike â€Å"The Divine Image† which suggests a more positive tone with respect to Pity, Mercy and Peace. Love and peace areShow MoreRelatedThe Notion of Duality of the Human Soul in William Bl ake’s Songs of Innocence and Experience4371 Words   |  18 PagesDuality Of The Human Soul In   William Blake’s Songs Of Innocence And Experience Tembong Denis Fonge             Blake’s Songs of Innocence and Experience generally subscribe to the main stream appreciation that they present the reader with two states of the human condition - the pastoral, pure and natural world of lambs and blossoms on the one hand, and the world of experience characterized by exploitation, cruelty, conflict and hypocritical humility on the other hand. However, Blake’s songs communicateRead MoreThe Poetry of William Blake1806 Words   |  8 PagesThis essay will aim to show the relationship between Innocence and Experience in William Blakes Songs. Both Songs of Experience and Songs of Innocence serve as a mirror Blake held up to society, the Songs of Experience being the darker side of the mirror. Blakes Songs show two imaginative realms: The two sides to the human soul that are the states of Innocence and Experience. The two states serve as different ways of seeing. The world of innocence as Northrop Frye saw it encapsulated the