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What is the mood of the poem "On Another's Sorrow"?

kulwend

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High School - 12th Grade

Posted by kulwend on November 4, 2010 at 5:13 PM and tagged with blake, mood, on another's sorrow, william blake

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epollock

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Through the emphasis on images of the lowly and on confidence in divine compassion (woe, sorrow, grief, falling dear, weeping, groaning, care, pity), Blake creates a mood conducive to pity and an attitude supportive of the need for sympathy. The last four stanzas include echoes of biblical passages that emphasize the loving and supportive role of God, the maker, who mourns with those that mourn, and who wipes away all tears. By referring to God as the “maker,” Blake emphasizes God’s divinely creative role. With this word, God is the one who does not sit on high, but who rather has worked directly with human beings and continues to do so. The sense is that God the maker is a co-sufferer with people, not a distant monarch, but a constant and loving presence. The poem’s concluding stanza suggests that eventually there will be divine triumph, but that until then, God’s role with human beings is to share their burdens and their grief.

Posted by epollock on November 4, 2010 at 5:15 PM

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