Innocence Meaning Flashcards
Introduction
- Encourages artists to follow the whims of mysterious forces rather than direct their work.
- Implies the book was a creation between both man and spirit.
- Even to write about innocence one must “stain[]” clear waters to make ink and break reeds to make pens.
- An innocent eye, perceives the ultimate goodness of the world through childlike joy and natural wisdom, but also acknowledeges the world’s failings.
PLOT: Strange encounter between a musician and holy child.
The Shepherd
- paints an idyllic portrait of a shepherd’s life, celebrating simplicity, nature’s beauty, and spiritual connections.
- also a subtle critique of the limitations of an idealized life. The sweetness may mask an underlying monotony, and the shepherd’s constant praise could be a poignant expression of unfulfilled longing.
PLOT: repetative life of a sheep herder
The Ecchoing Green
- “The Ecchoing Green” sees the entire circle of life in one neighborly day on a “green,” Through its images of “green” growth and a day fading into night, the poem explores the way that the rhythms of human life and death “echo” over and over again, and the comfort that people can take in these echoes.
day on the “Ecchoing Green,” a village common space where children and the elderly alike gather to play and relax.
The Lamb
- “The Lamb,” is a kind of hymn to God, praising God’s creation while also implying that humankind has lost the ability to appreciate it fully.
- In John 1:29 in the Bible, Jesus Christ is given the title “Lamb of God.” So the poem is not just marveling at the lamb itself, but also at the way in which the lamb is God, just as the Bible describes Jesus himself to be God.
- The poem thus expresses deep trust and faith in God’s work, suggesting that both the child and the lamb are safe in God’s hands.
PLOT: The poem is told from the perspective of a child, who shows an intuitive understanding of the nature of joy, They ask the lamb if it knows who made it.
The Little Black Boy
- The poem argues for racial equality, insisting that earthly identity is temporary and that all are worthy of God’s divine love.
- it reinforces many negative and outright racist stereotypes about Black people that were prevalent in the 18th century.
- treating Africa as a “wild” or, uncivilized, The speaker also seeks the approval of the English boy and remains subservient to him even in the afterlife,
PLOT: a boy is recounting the lessons taught to him by his mother in “the southern wild” (that is, in Africa). Suggesting God’s love is blind to race.
The Blossom
- The main theme of this Blake poem is the interconnectivity of all life, from different types of birds to plants to human beings. The recurring “happy blossom” and “bosom” suggest a universality to feelings of happiness and sadness.
PLOT: a speaker observes and addresses two different birds: a sparrow and a robin.
The Chimney Sweeper
- The poem takes issue with this idea, suggesting that it’s a form of indoctrination for the Church, its companion poem makes this clear.
- The poem argues that this is a kind of exploitation that effectively robs the children of their childhood, stealing their freedom and joy.
- The poem then offers a brief glimpse of what childhood should actually be like, which is full of freedom, joy, and nature
PLOT: he poem is told from the perspective of a young chimney sweep, a boy who has been sold into labor by his father, he meets Tom Dacre and reassures him if theyre obedient theyll get to heaven.
The Little Boy lost
- The father is going to an unnamed, unknown, destination, but it is clear that he does not want his son there, or does not care enough to stop and comfort him.
- If understood this way, the young boy becomes anyone lost in their life, searching for someone, a “Father,” God, or religion to guide them. Only when the boy cries and accepts the predicament he is in, do the “vapours” fly away, freeing his mind and perhaps returning him to the knowledge and belief in God.
PLOT: In this piece the “father” of the boy is getting farther and farther away from him, the child cannot hear or see him. He is without guidance in the dark but after a time of suffering the “vapours” fly away and he is, presumably, able to find his way back.
The Little Boy found
- The poem suggests that even in moments of darkness and confusion, divine intervention can provide guidance and support.
- The choice of white as a descriptor symbolizes purity and goodness, underscoring the benevolent nature of God’s intervention.
PLOT: a poignant narrative of a lost child guided by a divine, fatherly figure. Lost in a desolate fen, the child’s cries evoke the appearance of God.
The laughing Song
- The speaker encourages readers to live joyfully and merrily, inviting them to join in singing the sweet chorus of “Ha, ha he!” It’s a call to revel in life’s simple pleasures and find happiness in the company of nature and children.
- Essentially, every main element within this stanza is given traits that it cannot possess, which boosts the meaning from literal to figurative.
PLOT: The poem begins with a joyous scene in which nature is personified. It seems that all the elements of the natural world are laughing with the playing children.
A Cradle Song
- The speaker then starts talking about how he can trace a holy image over the child’s face and tells the story of how once an infant, most probably Jesus Christ, was born and wept for the child to live.
- Through his poetry, Blake wants to assert that Christ was born for all of us, and he had ‘Wept for me for thee for all, /When he was an infant small.’
PLOT: This lullaby is mainly a simple song of a mother, who enjoys her baby’s restful sound and expressions, she asks asks that an Angel keeps an eye on her baby’s dreams.
The Divine Image
- They need to remember that God’s goodness lives in every person. That truth cuts across false distinctions between religions and cultures: addressing a predominantly Christian audience, this speaker reminds readers that God lives in “heathen, Turk, or Jew,” not just in Christians. All people must love every single “human form” for this very reason.
PLOT: speaker proclaims that God’s “Mercy, Pity, Peace, and Love” appear on earth in “the human form.” Because God’s gentleness and kindness express themselves through humankind, every person has a bit of God in them, creating a feeling of connection and unity between all people.
Holy Thursday
- But there’s a streak of irony here: this pious speaker doesn’t seem to question how or why these children ended up orphaned in the first place.
- people must learn to “cherish pity” (that is, to develop their own empathy) or they’ll risk turning away “an angel” in need.
- By presenting this vision of impoverished children as angelic innocents, the poem implies that a world that treats poverty as a moral failing rather than an affliction risks hurting the most vulnerable—and missing out on great blessings.
PLOT: Watching an Easter Week procession of orphaned children making their way to St. Paul’s Cathedral in London, the poem’s speaker is moved by the kids’ goodness and sweetness and cautions readers to take “pity” on impoverished and suffering people
