Comparing The Lamb and The Tyger by William Blake
This essay will focus on the enchanting poem, 'The Lamb' which is
taken from the 'Songs of Innocence' which will be compared and
contrasted with the mysterious poem, 'The Tyger', which is taken from
the 'Songs of Experience'. The poem of 'The Lamb' represents the
child's early years whereas 'The Tyger' portrays an adult (the
dominator). Blake has constructed these two poems from natural views
and by comparing and contrasting them I may end up with an answer on
what Blake is trying to explain in these poems.
The settings of each poem are set distinctively as each poem is set to
suit their title. The place at which 'The Lamb' is set, 'By the stream
and o'er the mead', immediately gives us the image of a meadow, and as
if a child is playing in the meadow. This contrasts to 'The Tyger' as
Blake has set this poem, 'in the forests of the night', which conveys
a view of darkness; something that only an adult would understand.
This gives a sign of apprehension. The word 'night' could be symbolic
of the cave or layer of which 'The Tyger' survives which would be
murky and humid.
The repetition of the word 'Tyger' builds atmosphere as if Blake is
eager to get its attention or maybe it has something important to tell
him and he wants to ensure the tiger is listening. It could also
explain that he has a great fascination with the tiger. This compares
with the start of the second verse in 'The Lamb', 'Little Lamb I'll
tell thee. Little Lamb I'll tell thee!'
Blake is saying to the lamb, I'll tell you who made you, and it is
repeated maybe because he is so keen to tell the lamb how he was
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...ds is suggesting that the tiger lives in a dark forest,
which normally associates a daring and drastic habitat.
All these are used as it gives the reader more to think about whilst
reading the poem. It helps the readers think for themselves of why the
tiger is known for being vicious and the lamb being the complete
opposite.
These two poems have had many conclusions from many different people.
It all depends on how you read the poems. My belief is that Blake has
so much fascination with this tiger that he doesn't really want an
answer from where the tiger has come but likes to think of all the
possibilities that it could have come from.
'The Lamb' on the other hand answers the question and I believe that
Blake's message in this poem is that God is innocent and that the lamb
is a symbol of the goodness of God.
Through the streets and alleyways of Nineveh the prophet Jonah trudged. At every marketplace and city gate he joyously roared his tidings of evil, “forty more days and Nineveh will be overturned!” Two and a half millennia after the great fish vomited Jonah back onto dry land, William Blake faithfully follows that path of bilge and seaweed, bile and gall, into the fraternity of prophets and oracles. Just as Jonah was reluctant to prophesy to the Ninevites for fear that his enemies would hear and repent, Blake has a vested interest in perpetuating the blindness of his readers. In fact, even as he works his metaphysics to impose his “phantasy” as the prophet who proclaims the liberation of the world, he shows a full awareness that true success can only lead to his demise as a poet. Thus, standing upon his apple-crate in the marketplace, he chokes back his voice a little and mumbles in ciphers, desperately praying that he would not be understood.
In Blake’s poem “The Lamb” from Songs of Innocence, Blake proves that in order to keep innocence alive, a child must not question. It is in a child’s nature to trust all that has been told. Therefore the lamb represents childhood as well as innocence. The lamb is personified as being a gentle creature without sin, and the poem itself is characterized by pleasant light imagery. This imagery is an indicator that innocence is a desired state of being. In the first stanza of the poem, the narrator asks questions regarding
In the first stanza “The Lamb”, opens with "Little Lamb, who made thee?" A child is most likely the speaker and asks the lamb how it came to be. The speaker wants to know how the lamb chooses where it feeds. Next, the speaker asks where the lamb got its’ wool "clothing" and its’ "tender voice" from. In the next stanza, the speaker tries to answer his own question. The speaker tells us that the lamb was made by someone who is called “a Lamb". The creator is a lot like a lamb. He is seen as gentle and pure, just like the speaker, a child, and a lamb.
In Blake’s work “The Lamb,” he shows innocence through sheep and their nature. Blake describes sheep’s nature by saying that they “Feed/By the stream & o'er the mead/ have thee clothing of delight/ Softest clothing, wooly, bright” (Blake 4-6). This passage shows that sheep are providers to man and show no harm. Blake says that sheep has a, “tender voice/ making all the vales rejoice?” (Blake 7-8). Blake makes sheep seem to have a joyful emotion and wants to share it with others. The sheep has a tender voice which means it is not intimidating. Natoli, who is the author of the novel William Blake, says that,
In the two well known stories, “Lamb to the Slaughter” and “The Lady or the Tiger,” both deal with relationships that have gone wrong. The story for “Lamb to the Slaughter,” starts out with Mary Maloney, who is pregnant and sews and waits for her husband to come home everyday. When her husband comes home one day and tells her that he is leaving her, she gets upset and ends up killing him with a frozen lamb leg. By the end of the story she is able to also get away with doing it. As for “The Lady or the Tiger,” this story deals with a King, whose daughter has fallen in love with a man who is not of the same status as she is. When the king finds out of this, he sends him to their version of a court system, which consists of choosing between two doors. One that has a tiger that will kill them and one that has a girl that the man will get to marry. The princess knows which door has each option in it and has the power to tell him which one to choose. Although in the end, the story never actually tells you which one she picks, and leaves it up to you to imagine what she does. Both of these stories have a lot in common, such as dealing with complicated relationships, as well as both of these women end up losing no matter what they choose.
The ideas that are presented in poems are often the same ideas everyone is thinking but are too afraid to speak their mind for fear that they might be judged. Allen Ginsberg explained this predicament when he said “[p]oetry is the one place where people can speak their original human mind. It is the outlet for people to say in public what is known in private” (Ginsberg). This quote applies especially to “The Tyger” by William Blake. William Blake’s poem “The Tyger” at the surface is very simplistic; however, with further analysis the story’s theme of religion asks fundamental questions that pertain to one’s worldview with the use of symbolism.
During the British Romantic period, some writers used material from the Bible or imitated the Bible in style of writing or content. William Blake, a Romantic writer, engraver, and painter, believed that “the Bible was the greatest work of poetry ever written” (Barker 2004). The Bible influenced him throughout this life, specifically influencing both his writing and his art. There are many references to Biblical themes within his writing, and there are also many references to specific passages of Scripture (Barker 2004).
second stanza that the voice of the poem is of a child: ‘I a child &
Similar to common nursery rhymes, Blake uses musical devices in both “The Lamb” and “The Tyger” which brings an awareness of potential evil and how it dominates over innocence by exercising specific language in both related poems. For example, Blake uses alliteration in “The Lamb” by repeating “Little Lamb” several times during the poem to grasp the reader’s attention. Along with alliteration, Blake’s “The Lamb” and “The Tyger” both capture the reader’s attention by using rhyme scheme. For example, Blake’s use of couplets in both of the related poems potentially brings an awareness of how evil dominates over innocence. Blake utilizes the couplet series in his poem “The Tyger” and proves his theme by comparing and contrasting the tyger and the lamb and even bravely asks if the same Creator who created the innocent little lamb also created the potentially evil tyger
In the second stanza the speaker restates the question, then proudly the speaker declares, “Little Lamb I’ll tell thee,/ Little Lamb I’ll tell thee!/” (Blake lines 11-12). Allusions to Christianity blossom in the poem at this point as the speaker states that the creator of this lamb is called by the same name. In Christianity, Jesus Christ is referred to as the Lamb of God and/or the Sheppard, His followers are also referred to as His flock. The speaker then proceeds to state that he and the lamb are one and the same, ending the poem with “Little Lamb God bless thee./ Little Lamb God bless thee./(Blake lines 19-20).
At the very start of the poem it is clear in what way Blake wishes to
Blake thought that a lyric gives the freedom to tell anything and explore the emotions and ideas that an incident has created. Blake shows the original meaning of ‘lyric’ by actually titling his volume ‘Songs of. Innocence and Experience’. The ‘Songs of Innocence’ are poems which bring out happy feelings and show the greatness of life. They represent innocence and a child- like vision, thus ‘The Lamb’ is about God creating a lamb who is a.... ...
The theme of guardianship, being the act of guarding, protecting, and taking care of another person, is very prominent in William Blake's 'The Little Black Boy';. Three distinct instances of guardianship can be seen in Blake's poem. These guardianship roles begin with the little boy's mother, followed by God, and ultimately ending with the unsuspecting little black boy himself.
...ons. He shows everyone the meaning of the world that lies ahead of them, and the different ways to approach them. Blake effectively displays the different perspectives of man's path in life by his use of contrasting figures and the symbolism it conveys. The tiger may represent man's original state of sin and the qualities that portray it while the lamb symbolizes the innocence and purity brought along with its creation. Everyone’s knowledge is symbolic.
Blake uses different types of figurative language, so that he is able to use a simple rhyme