London By William Blake Flashcards
What is Blake trying to show through “London”
The negative effects of industrialisation
The corruption of London
Where does Blake use allusions to religion in “London”
“Every ban”- implies religious and political restrictions
“Every black’ning church appalls”- the church is corrupted and exploits the weak
What colour is referred to twice in the poem
Black-
“Black’ning church”, “midnight streets”
-> connotations of evilness and corruption, and also fear
What metaphor used in London refers to entrapment
“Mind-forged manacles”
- people are not physically help captive, but they are unable to leave due to being enslaved to capitalism and industrialisation
What word is repeated throughout the poem to highlight the universal negative aspects of industrialisation
“Every”
-every face i meet, every cry, every infant’s cry, every voice, every ban
What oxymoron is at the end of “London” and what does it symbolise
“The marriage hearse”- life and death side by side
What poems should you compare “London” to
Ozymandias!!- how nature is more powerful than man
What quotation shows man trying to overpower nature in “London”
“Where the chartered Thames does flow”
-chartered has trade- related connotations, and a flowing river cannot be chartered as it is constantly moving and ever-changing
What quotation from “London” uses graphic imagery to express discontent with the monarchy
“Runs in blood down palace walls”- the monarchy’s inability to protect soldiers as metaphorical blood in on the wall as soldiers shed literal blood on the battlefield
