William Blake (28 November 1757 – 12 August 1827) was an English poet, painter, and printmaker. Largely unrecognised during his lifetime, Blake is now considered a seminal figure in the history of the poetry and visual arts of the Romantic Age.
1.
London
By William Blake
I wander thro' each charter'd street,
Near where the charter'd Thames does flow.
And mark in every face I meet
Marks of weakness, marks of woe.
In every cry of every Man,
In every Infant's cry of fear,
In every voice: in every ban,
The mind-forg'd manacles I hear
How the Chimney-sweepers cry
Every blackning Church appalls,
And the hapless Soldiers sigh
Runs in blood down Palace walls
But most thro' midnight streets I hear
How the youthful Harlots curse
Blasts the new-born Infants tear
And blights with plagues the Marriage hearse
Verse 1
I wander thro' each charter'd street,
Near where the charter'd Thames does flow.
And mark in every face I meet
Marks of weakness, marks of woe.
1. What is the Thames?
2. Is Blake walking through inner or outer London?
3. What does "charter'd" mean?
4. What does "mark" mean in line 3?
5. What does mark mean in line 4?
In every cry of every Man,
In every Infants cry of fear,
In every voice: in every ban*,
The mind-forg'd manacles I hear
1. Which sense is the verse focused on? (compare with Verse 1)
2. Which word is repeated 5 times? Which word is repeated 4 times?
3. What are manacles? What sound do they make?
4. Why does Blake describe the manacles as "mind-forg'd"?
* ban here could mean that many things are "banned". In verse 1 we learn that the streets and the river are chartered (privatised).
Verse 3
How the Chimney-sweepers cry
Every blackning Church appalls,
And the hapless Soldiers sigh
Runs in blood down Palace walls
1. Which institutions are mentioned? What do they have in common?
2. How do these institutions appear here?
3. What do you think the "chimney-sweepers" and "hapless soldiers" have in common?
4. The poem was written in 1794. What had happened in France 5 years earlier?
Verse 4
But most thro' midnight streets I hear
How the youthful Harlots curse
Blasts the new-born Infants tear
And blights with plagues the Marriage hearse
1. What time is it?
2. What is a Harlot?
3. What is the relationship between the infant and the harlot?
Watch a clip about this poem:
William Blake's London
Gap fill:
Something that flows ______ly
London was starting to ____ itself, starting to beat its
_____
Blake peeled the v_________
It ain’t a______g up
Industrialisation brings f______ profit, capitalism and a
desire of the _________
Talking about the body of people, so they
are their own __________
Soldiers, the Church chimney sweeps - these are all p_________ of society
Could be a nod to revolutionary F______
An exploited soldier fighting in _________ wars on behalf of
the palace
This is a time when reason has its ________ over belief.
He used his thoughts to ___________ himself beyond his
surroundings.
It almost feels like a warning or an urgent _______ to the
people around him…
But Blake also saw ______ his own time
Discuss
In the poem it is evident that Blake cares deeply for the victims of the Age of Industry. But was he right to see only darkness in it? What about all the progress, including social progress, that has come about thanks to industrialisation?
Kahoot
Also:
Blake's Radicalism
What is the spirit behind Blake's writing?
What is the underlying feeling in London the mid 18th Century?
Why were the Albion Mills burned down?
What did Blake call the mills?
What is the "charter"?
Why did Blake's poem London mention both chartering and prostitution?
Why does Sinclair say London is a "double" city?
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