William Blake’s “the Lamb” and “the Tyger” –

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William Blake’s “The Lamb” and “The Tyger” – William Blake’s poems “The Lamb” and “The Tyger” can be viewed as summarizations of Blake’s own world views concerning nature and metaphysics, posing deep philosophical questions regarding the structure of the existence and creation. That is to say, through the figures of the respective animals, Blake’s poetry provides an investigation into fundamental themes of what it means to exist in general, postulating the diversity of creation and what such creation means from a greater metaphysical perspective. It is this metaphysical perspective which can be said to harbour Blake’s own religious views, as the poems indicate a certain commitment to Christianity, especially in the poem “The Lamb.” In contrast, “The Tyger” shows this same religious dimension by meditating on the power and diversity of creation itself: the kindness of the Christian God as presented in the lamb is replaced by a god who is subject to his own creation in the form of the tiger. Accordingly, Blake’s careful attention to the physical details of the lamb and the tiger in these two poems becomes a means by which Blake can articulate his views on creation. However, judging by the contrast in the animals in terms of the innocence of the lamb and the violent power of the tiger, Blake illuminates two sides of creation – the passivity of the lamb in the delicacy of its existence, and the overwhelming power of the tiger which shows the capacity for potency within nature, thus evoking the creative potential of God. In Blake’s “The Lamb”, the care with which the poet constructs his verse reflects the delicacy of the animal itself. Blake treats his subject with a gentleness that befits the animal. In the poem Blake speaks to the animal with a simplicity that is normally reserved for talking to the very young, asking the lamb in an almost playful manner “dost thou

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