holy thursday innocence (69) Flashcards
use of iambic heptameter
rhythm emphasises innocence
the musical metre reflects the deception of the church- covering corruption with similar-sounding hymns
diverts expectation with rhythms lightness vs what the poem actually talks about
“innocent faces clean”
the church wiping away individuality
the wiping away of innocence by society
the church faking appearances, emphasising that the children’s faces weren’t clean before due to neglect
impact of being a ‘poem of innocence’
hiding the poem of experience underneath
there is no true innocence if you analyse and understand something long enough, art reflects life (corruption everywhere)
children in holy thursday
symbols of true innocence and divinity; unworthy of the corruption and suffering of the real world
gods true image before humanity taints them, twisting into something corruptive and corrupted
“multitude”
biblical adjective repeated reflects the true divinity that the children have
collective description reflects the unity humanity has when we are still innocent, and the connection of spirituality versus the isolation of organised religion
blakes opinions on organised religion
spiritual man but very against the church and generally organised religion as a whole
“multitudes of lambs”
metaphor of lambs reflects their sacrificial state, by being in complete control of something as destructive and corruptive as the church
reflects their innocence as well, they are the prey in this situation
“raising their innocent hands”
desperation; reaching for god like jesus did
collective use of “their” reflects the unity of the purest form of humanity
but also reflects the loss of identity and the collective action reflects obedience, suggesting the corruption has already begun on the children
“like a mighty wind they raise”
simile reflecting their formation of power; together they have power despite their societal and physical weakness
“beneath them”
physical hierarchy; children physically higher than the “aged men”
the closer you are to the real divinity (heaven in the skys) the further you are from the human figures (priests)
what is the event in the poem
public appearance of charity school children in st pauls cathedral to raise charity (funds) on ascension day
the conflict of the poem
that no true christian would/should be able to watch the desperate and pitiful state of the children and still celebrate the day
