The Ode to the Fearsome Beauty of Evil in "The Tyger"
William Blake, a Romantic age poet, captured every element of evil in his short poem, 'almost reminiscent of a nursery rhyme,' according to Thought Co. His poetic fluency made him a prominent figure among the most celebrated poets in the history of literature. His poetic masterpieces resonate with readers across generations, with even renowned poets, including W.H. Auden, expressing their admiration for his work at a young age. Although few poems surpass William Blake's beauty and emotion, some of his best works, The Tyger, were at the forefront of modern poetry as we know it today. According to biography.com, "his writings have influenced countless writers and artists through the ages." This article left me, and probably you, thinking: what was behind The Tyger's success?
Long Story Short
William Blake, born on Thanksgiving 1757, was the son of a modest hosier and lived modestly for most of his life. At a young age, he expressed much interest in art, specifically engraving. He was sent to art school for four years before taking an apprenticeship to the engraver William Wynne Ryland. He tried to tell his father in a famous quote: "I do not like the man's face; it looks as if he will live to be hanged." (Ryland was later hanged 11-12 years later for forgery.)
After completing his apprenticeship, Blake attended the Royal Academy of Arts in 1779 and exhibited his skill in watercolor painting. This career continued until 1810, but Blake wrote poems as a side job in the early 1780s and funneled his spirituality (Blake claimed he saw God's head through a window and witnessed a tree full of angels) into his works as a Romantic poet. Songs of Innocence and Experience was one of his early volumes, which included some of his most distinguished poems, published in 1789.
Once his newfound job had given him a hobby and income stream, he continued his writings. William Blake released The Tyger in Songs of Experience in 1794. Later, in 1802, Blake wrote to his patron, "I am under the direction of Messengers from Heaven Daily & Nightly."
Due to his spirituality and devotion, Blake was often regarded as insane and died in 1827 with the society's opinion unchanged. However, his lyrical and poetic voice is considered spectacular today.
The Writing
In the first stanza, Blake depicts the tiger roaming the 'forests of the night.' Later in this stanza, he describes the tiger's terrifying symmetry and wonders who could capture such symmetry with eyes (paintings that can be seen with eyes) or hands (necessary to read a poem).
Blake then talks of something distant in the skies (heaven) that provoked the Tyger and burned the fire of his eyes. This marks the Tyger as evil to the reader and proves their prediction when, in the next verse, the Tyger wishes to take the wings of an angel. Blake praises the Tyger in the last verse of the second stanza when he ponders who would stop the Tyger.
In the third stanza, Blake contemplates the mysterious person who could stop the Tyger.
In most analyses, the mysterious person is considered God; in that case, the poet questions God's ability to stop his creation.
When the poem ends with Tyger accomplishing his feat, the poet asks God if he created such evil with such good (The Lamb). The poem ultimately ends with a repeat of the first stanza.
The Theme
The only central theme I could find in this poem was the power of religion and the power of creation. It questions God's nature and why he brings such evil creatures into the world.
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Disclaimer: Remember, this is just my opinion and what I think of a piece after gathering research and writing it down.
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