London - William Blake

Question 1

What is the poem about and what is the speaker trying to do?

Answer 1

-Clear attack on all the institutions that contribute to the poverty and suffering in London.
-Wants to expose the Bourgeoisie who protect themselves at the expense of the lower class.

Question 2

What events are detrimental to the poem?

Answer 2

-The Industrial Revolution
-The class divides between rich and poor

Question 3

When was the IR?

Answer 3

1760-1840

Question 4

When was London published?

Answer 4

1794

Question 5

What in the backdrop could explain why Blake was so critical of the Institutions of London?

Answer 5

-Exploitation of the Poor for the Rich’s gain
-The French Revolution and the fight against Louis 16th and Marie Antoinette

Question 6

What things were happening at the time in London when the poem was written?

Answer 6

-Child Labour
-Prostitution
-Low morality
-Social divides

Question 7

What was Blake concerned about in Society?

Answer 7

-Social morality > caused fear for the future of society

Question 8

Is Blake critical of the church?

Answer 8

-Yes as he is against organised religion due to the corruption he believes it causes

Question 9

Is Blake an atheist?

Answer 9

No as he was very spiritual

Question 10

Why does the rhythm switch from iambic to trochaic in the last line of each stanza?

Answer 10

-Emphasises the sense of suffering and cruelty
-Stresses the misery and ownership
-Shows there is that possibility of freeing yourself from this constant regime as shown through the shift in rhythm

Question 11

What is the significance in using ‘man’ and ‘infant’ in stanza 1?

Answer 11

-Shows cycle of misery remains through age and development
-Inescapable feeling
-Juxtaposition > weakens them both

Question 12

Why does Blake use ‘infant”?

Answer 12

-Those who are “born equal and free but everywhere in chains” -Rousseau
-Most innocent are affected
-Born into this cruel world

Question 13

Why does Blake use ‘man’?

Answer 13

-Idea of the common man
-the idea of the collective
-Call together people
-Collective and shared suffering > loss of identity

Question 14

Why does Blake use the anaphora of “In every” in stanza 2?

Answer 14

-Emphasise the exacerbation of Blake at the sheer inequality
-The plosives mirror his emotion

Question 15

What feeling does the Iambic rhythm create?

Answer 15

-Dreary and unending > symbolises poverty

Question 16

Why does the Poem start with “wander”?

Answer 16

-Homophone for wonder > Creates introspective tone

Question 17

What does ‘Charter’d’ in stanza 1 symbolise?

Answer 17

-The adj creates the idea of restriction and control

Question 18

What does the Juxtaposition of line and one and two in stanza one symbolise?

Answer 18

-How the Thames is restricted yet the water is free to flow
-Idea that they may be restricted but revolutionary ideas are free to flow

Question 19

What is the significance of using ‘mark(s)’?

Answer 19

Suffering so strong it becomes physical

Question 20

What does ‘mind-forg’d manacles I hear’ explore?

Answer 20

-Those of higher power want to prevent revolutionary ideas
-Mental oppression due to society imprisonment by the ruling elite and institutions
-Hear > suggests how inescapable these metaphorical chains are and hard to ignore

Question 21

What type of words are ‘cry’ and ‘chimney sweepers’ in Stanza three and why are they significant?

Answer 21

-Plosives > create this harshness
-Chimney sweeps are young children who are exploited for the gain of others

Question 22

Why does Blake describe the church as ‘Black’ning’?

Answer 22

Metaphor for the evil and corruption of the church

Question 23

Why would Blake’s description of the church in stanza 3 be controversial at the time?

Answer 23

-He openly accuses the church of hypocrisy
-Juxtaposes the innocence and purity of a church
-Goes against Christian beliefs

Question 24

What is meant by “hapless soldiers sigh’ in stanza 3?

Answer 24

-sibilance creates a sympathetic tone
-hapless > unfortunate
-Unfortunate that they are dragged into a regime which use them for their own gain and do not protect them

Question 25

What is meant by ‘Runs in blood down Palace walls’ in stanza 3?

Answer 25

-sacrificial nature of the monarchy
-Accusatory tone “blood on your hands”
-Plosives depict his anger and frustration with the system
-Revolutionary mindset

Question 26

Why does Blake use a cyclical structure in the poem using the ‘infant’ and idea of wandering through the streets?

Answer 26

-Creates the idea of perpetual suffering, on going pain and torment
-Perpetual misery passed from the mother to the baby > follows that child throughout life

Question 27

Why is “midnight streets” significant?

Answer 27

-Night so that these actions are concealed from the day and understanding

Question 28

Why is “Youthful Harlot’s curse” significant in stanza 4?

Answer 28

-Prostitution causing STDS > married men sleeping with prostitutes

Question 29

Why is “New born infant’s tear” significant in stanza 4?

Answer 29

-cyclical > endless crying children > children suffer the most at the hands of poverty and corruption

Question 30

Why is “Blights with plagues the marriage hearse” significant in stanza 4?

Answer 30

-the destruction of the tradition of marriage
-“Married to death bed”
-The end stop slows down the pace which adds to a somber tone and makes the reader reflect on life and the society we live in