William Blake Group

Question:

adefang
adefang

Why is the rhythm and meter of "The Tyger" appropriate to the theme of a God who creates both the gentle lamb and the killer tiger?

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Posted by adefang on Monday October 20, 2008 at 6:29 AM and tagged with meter, rhythm, themes, tone, william blake.

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  1. engtchr5 Teacher
    High School - 10th Grade

    eNotes Editor

    If you read this poem aloud, you will hear its meter: a swinging, striking rhythm that emulates the work of a blacksmith. Consider the lines -- "What the hammer, what the chain/In what furnace was thy brain?"

    Blake here likens the severe, ferocious beauty of a tiger to the work of a metals shop: burning, banging, crafting until a beautiful product is rendered.

    Think also of the lines, "What immortal hand or eye/could frame thy fearful symmetry?" Here, Blake gives credit to a great cosmic creator for the lines and vicious appearance of the Tyger. That same creator is credited with the "work" of crafting the animal's nature, as previously mentioned. The meter contributes to answering Blake's own questions.

    Sources:
    http://www.enotes.com/william-blake/

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    Posted by engtchr5 on Monday October 20, 2008 at 7:28 AM