William Blake Essay - 2131 Words

William Blake William Blake was born in 1757 during a time when Romanticism was on the rise. Romantic poets of this day and age, living in England, experienced changes from a wealth-centered aristocracy to a modern industrial nation where power shifted to large-scale employers thus leading to the enlargement of the working class. Although Blake is seen as a very skillful writer his greatest successes were his engravings taught to him by a skilled sculpture. Blake differed from other poets in that he never received a formal education. His only education consisted of the arts, and therefore he enrolled in the Royal Academy of the Arts around the age of twelve. It was only in his spare time that he showed any interest in poetry. At the†¦show more content†¦One proof of his disagreement is displayed through his poem London. London is a part of his anthology Songs of Experience which will be further discussed and analyzed later. Before comparing poems from both Innocence and Experience, it is best to know a little background on both. First, the title Innocence refers to the purity that the youth possesses compared to Experience, which relates to an adult. According to the Cambridge History of English Literature, Innocence was seen as having two parts. The first being that innocence assumes the world was made for the benefit of human beings, has human shape and a human meaning and is a world in which providence, protection, communication with others has a genuine function. The other is the ignorance of the fact that the world is not like that. As a child (Innocence) grows up, his conscious mind is able to accept reality or in this case experience and his childhood innocence is lost and remains only in his dreams. There are two poems in Songs of Innocence that will be discussed in further detail. They are Introduction, and The Chimney Sweeper. In both these poems, the characteristic of a caretaker is introduced, which is shown in the relationship of a shepherd who cares for his sheep and the special world in which they live. The first poem is The Chimney Sweeper. Although there is slight admission to the hardships faced by the innocents of the world, the main view is that of hope and a prayer for a betterShow MoreRelatedWilliam Blake As An Apprentice Essay1543 Words   |  7 PagesWilliam Blake born in London on the 28th of November in 1757 to a hosier names James and Catherine Blake with six siblings and 2 died in early age. Blake spoke of having visions in his early childhood. He saw god putting his head to the window when he was at the age of four and around the age of nine, he saw a tree filled with angels while walking through the countryside. His parents notice that he was different fro m his other siblings and they did not force him to attend conservative school. 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