"The Chimney Sweeper" from Songs of Experience is a vastly different poem than that of "The Chimney Sweeper" from Songs of Introduction. I feel as though the reason for such difference in the nature of both poems is explained by which collection of "songs" they're from. "The Chimney Sweeper" from Songs of Introduction has a more innocent and hopeful tone present throughout the poem. I'm assuming this is because the child is still new to the world, as the word "introduction" would imply, they haven't fully learned how the world works and therefore still have the ability to hope for the best. In "The Chimney Sweeper" from Songs of Experience, we get to see the perspective of a different child who seems to have lost hope and realized exactly how unfortunate their situation is as a chimney sweeper since children easily died while carrying out this job. The reason for this is also most likely tied to the word "experience," since they've probably been sweeping chimneys long enough to see what happens to the other children. When the child says "they clothed me in the clothes of death," the clothes of death were a metaphor for the clothes he had to wear when working as a chimney sweep (Blake 340). The parents sold him for money, and he was destined from that point onward to sweep chimneys until he inevitably died from doing so. His uniform cemented the idea in his mind that he was going to die. Present themes I noticed included gloom, hopelessness, and irony. The theme of gloom when using a metaphor that identified the child as a "little black thing among the snow" (Blake 340). He was described as black because he was covered in soot from sweeping chimneys. He also cries "'weep, 'weep," in "notes of woe" because of all the misery he feels (Blake 340). Hopelessness is present when he was clothed in the clothes of death. Irony is present when he says that his parents think they haven't harmed him because he can sing and dance and they continue to go to church and praise God as they "make up a heaven" from his misery (340-1). William Blake wrote this poem because it must have saddened him to know that children who swept chimneys lived such terrible lives. He wrote two different "Chimney Sweeper" poems because it bothered him to know that children had to try and negotiate with themselves to justify their parent's rationale for selling them into this lifestyle only to end up learning the truth as they gradually die.
Blake, William. "Songs of Experience." The Norton Anthology World Literature, edited by Martin Puchner, Third Edition, vol. D, W. W. Norton 2012, pp. 330-341
Hi Sabian! Your analysis is very nicely written and I liked reading it! I love in the beginning how you talk about how the child is new to the world, hence why it's called "introduction," and how you say that the child is still learning and adapting the this new world. I thought it was an interesting point of view, and not one which I would have ever thought of! And to "hope for the best" - which all these thoughts are wonderful, and a great perspective that I didn't have about the poem. Then your thoughts on "The Chimney Sweeper," and how you seem to contrast it the the first poem, and how the child has lost hope. What an experience it must've been for these child chimney sweepers and to see other unfortunate children die from doing this kind of job. It also makes me wonder...I understand that families, especially if they're struggling financially, would put their children to work. But what kind of mess is it that these youngsters have to have such a horrible job. Even for someone older - this job sounds/seems dark, lonely, and harsh. I loved the quote you used about how he was covered in soot from the chimney and that he was just a "little black thing among the snow." I think this is a great metaphor and definitely shows gloominess.
ReplyDeleteHi Sabian! Your analysis is written with great detail and I enjoyed reading it. I especially enjoyed reading it because at first you went into comparing the different poems, which helps elaborate more on the meaning. I completely agree with the fact that the themes are hopelessness, irony, and gloom. Keep up the great work!
ReplyDeleteHi Sabian,
ReplyDeleteYou wrote a very solid analysis this week! You seem to understand the poem very well. I liked how you picked up on the themes of irony and hopelessness. When I read this poem they were the themes I picked up on also. I liked how you were also able to pick up on the introduction as the birth of the child. Great job!
-Patrick