The Little Black Boy Flashcards
Summarise the little black boy
- A little black boy muses on his position in the world
- he tries to explain both Gods purpose and the differences between human beings
What does the poem begin by doing?
Revealing some of the racist attitudes of the time that it will attempt to argue against
Give some context about racial attitudes of the time (slavery)
In the late 1700s, the transatlatic slave trade was fully underway.
- ships sailed to Africa where white slave traders enslaved people and for ht emost part transported them across the atlantic to new lives of cruelty
What does the little black boy advocate for>?
- Anti slavery and racial equality
What did blake write this poem with?
He wrote about the issue of slavery with force and conviction
Why did Blake write little black boy?
to assist the society for the abolition of the salve trade which was formed in 1782
What demonstrates the churches hypocrisy in the little black boy?
a combination of religious elements and the known background of the church being racist
What is the form of the little black boy?
The speaker is a child and there is a nursery rhyme like simplicity
What is the rhyme of the litttle black boy?
7 Stanzas, quatrain ABAB
What is the meter of the little black boy?
iambic pentameter
- there are some points where the meter changes
- it is one of the only songs written in Imabic pentameter
Why can the whole poem be considered a paradox?
because while Blake justifies their existence and campaigns for their rights the speaker still reverts to his biased behaviour which treats the white English by as a level higher than himself
“The little English boy”
The English child is seen as pure and superior, holy, like an angel.
- the speaker passes on a lesson to the ‘English boy’ that earthly identity is temporary because all are equal in the afterlife
“the cloud will vanish”
image of equality and joyful communion
“southern wild”
immediate stereotype
- ‘wild’ = black people were considered as savages
“Black bodies and this sun-burnt skin”
- both these things are just a mask and temporary
- implies a closeness to God as only those close to god (/ the sun) are the ones who absorb all his love
- pride rather than shame
repetition of “heat”
Heat is an oppressive force in this life but a positive one in the afterlife
Polysyndeton of ‘and’
Emphasises the benevolence of God
“but i am black as if bereaved of light”
- light is used as an allusion to god
- lacking the light of god, suggests sadness and greif, Blake suggests this is how the world makes the boy feel
“come out from the grove”
Idyllic grove evokes ideas about the garden of eden
- there is an idealised verison of the afterlife here
“… tent of god like lambs we joy”
Repeated lamb simile in the afterlife, children of all races will play together free from their original identities
- presents god as a good shephers
‘cloud’ ‘cloud’
Cloud metaphor creates idea that earthly identities (including race) is a cloud, a temporary identity that will eventually pass
“I am black, but oh! my soul is white”
Exclamation mark creates ceasure, image of the boy being pure and joyfull of the inside but society portray him as dark and untrustworthy
Antithesis of black and white
Emphasises that the colour of our skin doesnt mean anything - we are all the children of God and will eventually be equal there together
“then ill stand and stroke his silver hair”
- Traditional Christian depiction of paternal god
- the use of the future tense here creates the idea that the little boy has listened to his mother and has accepted he will go to heaven
he believes one day he will be equal to everyone else
“My mother bore me” “my mother taught me”
- parrallelism = emphasis the mothers importance in the sons life - her love and teaching shaped his world
What is the mother teaching the boyt in the little black boy?
That his skin colout is a special gift from God to enable him to bear the beams of love
What do the interactions between the mother and child in the little black boy indicate?
The tenderness the speaker expects from god
“whitew as an angel is the english child”
- Shocking simile to the modern reader - it is indicating that the black child is like the devil
- creates the idea that this idea is deeply engraved in the Childs mind
“thus did my mother say and kissed me”
conclusion of mothers words - repeated image of tenderness between mother and son
“shady grove”
metaphor signifies protection and concealment
“learn to bear the beams of love”
mothers lesson: earthly life prepares the soul for the afterlife
- alliteration = hard plosive sound
What does the mother teach the son in the little black boy?
how to not become corrupt by society
What are the main themes in the little black boy?
Religion
Spirituality
Afterlife
Identity
Love
Racial Equality
