Songs Of Innocence And Experience

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‘Songs of Innocence and Experience’ by William Blake ‘Songs of Innocence and Experience’ is a collection of poems by W.Blake and its main purpose is to reflect the two contrary states of the human soul. As we can understand from the title, the poems are written under two different categories which tell us the shifting and the transformation of the human soul through life. ‘Innocence’, in this case, can be a referrence to the state of man before the ‘fall’ from heaven—and also from grace of God — into the world of knowledge. With the central figures such as lamb, child, flower, piper etc. , Innocence can be considered according to Blake’s view as the primary state of the human soul. However, within the state of Innocence, there may be danger and even corruption. Because the darkness comes when the sun goes down, the spring ends with the coming of the fall, and shepherds are needed because of the wolves. As we can conclude from these contradictionary situations within this state of innocence, there is always something bad against good things and there is always an end for everything that pleases us. ‘Experience’, on the other hand, can be accepted as a referrence to the state of man after the ‘fall’ to the earth. As man goes out of the state of Innocence and enters into the state of Experience, he gets the knowledge and he becomes to question things that is happening around. As it is described in the poems, there is nothing that has changed about the dangers or corruption all around,but, what has changed is the human mind which becomes to question things and who becomes aware of the dangers and stays calm against them. There is no more empty promises that are given to people that they will be safe if they obey the rules. There is the state of awareness that illuminates the bitter truth about the institution of religion and its doctrines which are

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