London

Question 1

what is the poem about (4)

Answer 1

1 The narrator describes a walk around the city of London
2 He describes everywhere he goes the people are effected by misery and despair
3 The misery seems relentless and no one can escape. Not even the young
4 People in power - church, monarchy and wealthy landowners seem to be behind the problems and do nothing to help the people in need.

Question 2

What form does the poem take (3)

Answer 2

1 First person narrator speaks passionately and personally about the suffering he sees - reader can sympayhise
2 ABAB rhyme scheme -reflects monotomy of the city and implies it will never change
3 regular rhythm iambic tetrameter reflects the sound of his feet as he trudges

Question 3

what is the structure of the poem (3)

Answer 3

1 stanza 1 and 2 focus on the people he sees and hears
2 shift in focus in stanza 3 institutions he holds accountable
3 stanza 4 returns to people affected this creates a cyclical and inescapable structure

Question 4

what are the key contexts (4)

Answer 4

1 set in 18th century when London was developing rapidly because of industrialisation
2 many people were living in poverty, death rates were high and issues with child labour
3 Blake outlines his concerns about the lack of freedom for people living in London
4 Blake supports the French revolution

Question 5

What are the poets messages (2)

Answer 5

1 society needs to change
2 protest against effects of power on those who are effected

Question 6

what are the key quotations (8)

Answer 6

1 i wandered through each chartered street - near where the chartered Thames - use of first person shows the poem is a personal account of the narrators walk and implies every aspect of the city is owned and people in charge are to blame for the suffering
2 mark in every face i meet marks of weakness marks of woe - repetition of word mark emphasises everyone is effected
3 mind forged manacles i hear - metaphor - the people of London are enslaved by psychological chains not physical ones , use of word manacles invokes idea of slavery.
4 every blackening church appalls - black related to french revolution and implies London could also revolt against institutions like church and monarchy
5 and blight with plagues the marriage hearse - describes the hopelessness it is an oxymoron even in something happy like a wedding he sees pain and suffering
6 blasts the infants new born tears - this is shocking and saddening as it suggests a brutal corruption effects even the youngest citizens from birth
7 soldiers described as hapless implies he can not do anything
8 blood running down the palace walls suggests the powerful people inside have blood on their hands

Question 7

which poem does it link to

Answer 7

The Emigree

Question 8

How are the poems linked

Answer 8

1both poems are involve a narrator describing a place
2 The Emigree is a positive, less emotive description of a place. In London the narrators negative description of misery in the city are emotive.
3 in London narrator is physically present so he can present reality first hand, present tense makes it immediate as if he needs to express his concerns straight away. In contrast in Emigree narrators distance -she has not lived in country since she was a child so she remembers a more idealised presentation. She describes her memories of the country nostalgically. The reliance on memory make the presentation less realistic than London “sunlight clear”

Question 9

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