holy thursday experience (73) Flashcards
whats the metre
iambic to trochaic
or ‘erratic’ metre
what is the impact of the metre
subverts expectations and forces the reader to face the suffering
iambic reflective of nursery rhymes and hymns, which has a comforting tone the trochaic interrupts and disrupts
reflects escalation in inequality; no longer ignorable and has to be faced harshly
reflects the inevitability of corruption
what is impact of having two poems with same title and topic
highlights the prevelance and longevity of the issue and that it cannot keep being ignored
what contextually did blake blame for increased suffering and poverty and when was it
industrial revolution (1760-1830s)
“rich and fruitful land”
ironic as the children are starved; unable to access the richness or fruit of the land
either due to corruption of church or the industrial revolution
blake criticising inequality
biblical reference + garden of eden reference
semantic field of children
“babes” “children”
saw children as a metaphor for the future; by being reduced to their misery we are keeping the future miserable
also seen as metaphors for malleable, innocent and uncorrupted versions of humanity
“babes reduc’d to misery”
the future kept bleak through the cycle of suffering due to inequality and disconnect from nature; instead having powers built on corruption and greed
“fed with cold and unsurous hand?”
calling out the bougeoise directly with a direct agressive question
considering who is to blame for the lack of warm, furfilling food to these children (symbols of purity and reliance)
the coldness also reflects the replacement of humanity with metal machinery in the industrial revolution
anaphora of “and”
the issue is continuous and escalating
everyone is affected and blake is worried it is too late to fix fully
“their sun does never shine”
as if there are different worlds for different classes; calling out the rigidness of class divide and its ridiculousness
the poor dont see the sun because they are forced to work as the victims of the industrial revolution
the sun as a metaphor for truth, clarity, wisdom or enlightenment
“eternal winter”
natures winter is not as cruel as humanities forced eternal winter; natures winter is necessary for rejuvenation but in humanity, one class is forced into eternal misery for the benefit of a higher class
the harsh part of nature; just like inequality seems to be an inescapable harsh part of humanity and our nature
“wherever the sun does shine”
blake holding onto the hope there is somewhere or some solution which solves the suffering of inequality
but the unsureness of “wherever” reflects the needs of collective pursuit for a solution; as a solution is not easily accessable at that point
rhyme scheme
rhyming couplets into an abcb rhyme which reflects the childlike ideology at the beginning; and that even by the end blake still holds onto hope
could also reflect the breakdown of the churches image as the uniformity and perfection of the rhyme breaks down
poetic intention
giving a voice to the subjects of the poem (the impoverished) whilst calling out the perpetrators (the church, bourgeoise, etc.)
