William Blake Group

Question:

ban-chan
ban-chan
Student
High School - 12th Grade

Discuss the symbolism William Blake used in his poems "The Lamb" and "The Tyger."

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Posted by ban-chan on Thursday October 1, 2009 at 12:17 PM and tagged with literature, symbolism.

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  1. akannan Teacher
    Middle School

    eNotes Editor

    Best answer as selected by question asker.

    The primary symbolism in Blake's poems would lie in how each personify the central animal.  In "The Lamb," Blake uses the animal to symbolize innocence.  The poem centers on the idea that the lamb represents a sense of childlike wonder, and a sense of hope and purity.  The cadence of the poem presents itself in a very simplistic and akin to a child, which substantiates the theme of innocence.  This is opposed to "The Tyger," where the beautiful terror is one of experience.  The animal is depicted in "careful symmetry" in its essence as a hunter and one that stalks its prey.  The song of innocence, as seen in the former, is contrasted in a stark manner to the images of the latter, the song of experience.

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    Posted by akannan on Thursday October 1, 2009 at 5:20 PM