Essay on Analysis of William Blakes Poem London - 521 Words

Analysis of William Blakes Poem London London by William Blake is a poem characterised by its dark and overbearing tone. It is a glimpse at a period of Englands history (particularly London) during war and poverty, experienced by the narrator as he walks through the streets. Using personification it draws a great human aspect to its representation of thoughts and beliefs of the narrator. The author uses a rhyme scheme that mirrors the pace of walking. The pace is moderate using an octameter meter, and each stressed syllable is like each footfall of the narrator. As he walks through the streets near the River Thames, he notices the common distress in the faces of the people he passes along the way. The author uses alliteration in†¦show more content†¦The narrator speaks of what could symbolise the lower or working class the Chimney-sweeper, crying out against the system, and the upper class Church subduing them. Both the chimney and church are personified to symbolise the people they represent. This dominance is also related in the personification of Soldier and Palace. The soldiers fight the wars that the monarchy decides, their blood on the King and Queens hands. They sigh as to their shared plight, but their sighs only end in their deaths. This stanzas rhythm is different in that it follows a heptameter meter. Its pace is faster, which might reflect an inc rease in excitement by the narrator in what might be anger. In the last stanza, the narrator witnesses the young Harlot (prostitute) cursing and reprimanding Blasts the infants cries and tears at what could be the result of being fatherless. The soldiers deaths leaving mothers widowed, turning the joyful occasion of marriage (also personified) into a depressing event â€Å"the Marriage hearse†. This stanza has a very different rhyme structure to the previous ones. It is half octameter and heptameter, making it slightly off beat. Lines thirteen and sixteen are slower (octameter), while lines thirteen and sixteen (heptameter) have a rapid, excited tone. Although written long ago, before the twentieth century, London echoes a theme recurrent in present history. Poverty is still sharedShow MoreRelatedAn Analysis of William Blakes Poem London Essay1852 Words   |  8 Pages In London, William Blake brings to light a city overrun by poverty and hardship. Blake discards the common, glorifying view of London and replaces it with his idea of truth. London is nothing more but a city strapped by harsh economic times where Royalty and other venues of power have allowed morality and goodness to deteriorate so that suffering and poverty are all that exist. It is with the use of three distinct metaphors; mind-forgd manacles, blackning Church, and Marriage hearse,Read More William Wordworths London and William Blakes Upon Westminster Bridge1041 Words   |  5 PagesCompare and contrast London and Upon Westminster Bridge. 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Through the historical background exposed in the previous chapters, in fact, we came across only to the objective point of view of the city, but if we want to discover the feel of London life, its people, its sounds and smells there is a more direct source: literature. Through poems we can