London
William Blake's poem "London" depicts a very depressing setting. The tone is quite clear however the who, what, where, when, and why are left out. It is up to the reader and the knowledge he/she posses to best interpret a text. It begins with a man walking down city streets observing all the poverty and sadness that has reaped his town. Other than the title the poem alone does not make sense. To fully understand the tone of the poem you must know both the historical basis, and the author's history. It is important to understand the history of the author. William Blake's work is correlated to his own experiences. Britain Press states " William Blake was born on Nov 28, 1757 in London, the third of five children,"(1). This allows the reader to understand both the time frame and place the poem is set in. William Blake lived through the depression in London. This depression was caused by an Industrial Revolution that began in 1794. Blake wrote a lot about poverty and the problems that London's citizen's had suffered. This is because Blake lived in poverty his whole life. His work wasn't even noticed until after he passed away. Britain Press writes " indeed Blake struggled close to poverty for much of his life,"(2)
It is also important to understand the historical basis of the text. He also claimed to have been visited by angels. "(2) It was after this that he fell in his depression. As a result urban areas are flooded and eventually slums dominate the city. It was common that they would get stuck and die or even more commonly kids would develop lung cancer before 15. The authors past experiences are very influential in his writing. William Blake was in his 30's when the depression began in London. The overall tone is very negative towards the state of society that the narrator is living in. Another effect of an industrial revolution is a greater separation between the upper class at the time and the middle class. His negative tone also comes from instances in his life. In the poem Blake observes chimneysweepers. Blake writes "But most through midnight streets I hear how the youthful Harlot's curse Blasts the new-born Infant's tear, And blights with plague the marriage hearse. It is clear that author's aggression toward the hopeless struggles seen everyday in the middle class.
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