London - William Blake

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“London” – William Blake “London” by William Blake does a great job at portraying the bleak and dreary world of London during the time of the industrial revolution. The presence of political and social problems such as, the loss of innocence and corrupt city life is felt throughout the poem. Blake describes 18th century London as a place filled with people who understood, both the hopelessness and misery of the circumstances they were going thorough. He informs the readers about the upper class who took advantage of the poor as mentioned in verses one and 2, “I wander through each chartered street, Near where the chartered Thames does flow”. These verses indicate that even the most public and natural areas of London are under the ownership of the rich; suggesting corruption in society. The first three verses of the last stanza show that prostitution was another problem in the corrupt society, “But most through midnight streets I hear, How the youthful Harlot's curse, Blasts the new-born Infant's tear”. The speaker points out that that babies were born into a world where young women were becoming prostitutes and the babies’ tears got cursed at instead of soothed. The most interesting aspect of this poem is that it paints an unforgettable and almost real image of what is described in the poem. Blake uses figures of a chimney sweeper, a harlot, a married couple and cry of infants to increase the effect on the reader. By using words like “blackening”, “plagues”, “hearse” and “blood”, Blake sets up a very dark and disturbing picture for the readers to comprehend. Furthermore, the use of phrases such as “mind – forged manacles” (Verse 8) and “in very ban” (verse 7), further exemplify how confined and restrained people felt. This paints a clear image of what people were feeling during the time period. In addition, he does an effective job at evoking pity and sorrow for
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