IN-The Shepherd Flashcards
background of the shepherd?
he is in touch with natural, instinctive love, and has an idyllic life
How does the poet view the shepherds “sweet lot” in life?
he romanticizes it
How many quatrains does the Shepherd have?
2
How does the tone of the poem move?
from an energetic joy to one of somber peacefulness
While the Lamb used in this poem is a common noun and not overtly meant to be a representation of Jesus Christ, does this connection remain?
yes
How is Blake’s disenchantment with the city implied in this poem?
from his paean (praise) to the shepherd’s rural life; in contrast to the the busy life of the urban dweller, the shepherd needs only to follow his sheep
In contrast to the the busy life of the urban dweller, the shepherd needs only to follow his sheep and their “innocent call” what does this imply for the whole collection?
that the poems of Songs of Innocence should be seen as the Shepherd’s pastorally-inspired. spontaneous songs
What does the capitalisation of “Shepherd” throughout the poem suggest?
the Divine shepherd, Jesus Christ who watches over his church “from the morn to the evening” just as the poetic shepherd does in Blake’s present work
What is the shepherd an emblem of?
perfect natural freedom
How is the shepherd an emblem of perfect, natural freedom?
as he can, according to this poem, roam where he pleases and free from the trammels (restrictions) of organised city life
Perhaps, what could be the purpose of all the poems in “songs of innocence” in which Blake speaks to children?
in order to remind them, in didactic (teach them) fashion, of their ‘duty’ and how in need of protection they are from the trammels of organised city life
What indicates a natural end to the paradisal state of this poem in which the peace is temporal and transcends into the world of experience?
the question of what will happen when the Shepherd is not “nigh”
What could be suggested from the second line in which “From the morn to the evening he strays”?
Although this might indeed serve to connote the pleasure of freedom, it might also conjure up the possibility of being lost and thus failing to offer protection- or indeed to be protected.
In what other poems across the Songs of Innocence does Blake present us with a powerful array of images of loss and straying?
The little boy lost
The little boy found
the little girl lost
the little girl found
What have some critics said about these poems involving the idea of lost?
they have said that they are oddly placed in the realm of innocence since the dangers they touch upon seem very much to interlock with the world of experience
