Essay:
In 1789 and 1794, William Blake responded to the condition of chimney sweeps with two poems called "The Chimney Sweeper". The two poems show the duty of chimney sweeping as a karmic response to certain actions. With the use of rhyming schemes, dialogue, and vivid imagery, Blake is able to create two different reasons for children sweeping chimneys.
In the 1789 version of "The Chimney Sweeper", Blake uses the rhyming scheme AABB whereas in the 1794 version, he uses AABB during the first stanza and ABAB for the next two stanzas. The AABB stanza is most commonly associated with basic rhymes and children's rhymes. By included this rhyming scheme, he creates builds the speaker's voice which is that of a child. The 1794 version of the poem also starts with the same rhyming scheme. However, there is a shift created after the first stanza when the the rhyming scheme changes to an alternate rhyme. This draws focus to the last two stanzas with the maturity of the child. By using the alternate rhyming scheme the author introduces slight complexity in the form. This allows the voice of the child to still be seen through the structure of the essay but allows the depth of the poem to show as well.
Both poems use some version of dialogue. In the 1789 version, the poem uses dialogue to show communication between two different kids. The poem also shows dialogue to build the voice and tone of the speaker. "'weep, 'weep," to show how the young the children were when they were burdened with the task of sweeping chimneys. This also shows that the speakers in both of the poems are similar. However, in the 1789 poem there is also additional dialogue between characters introduced in the poem. The speaker has a conversation with Tom who is another sweeper. The dialogue leads into the narration of a story about Tom's dream in which he was approached by an angel and told that "if he'd be a good boy, he'd have a God for his father and never want joy." The dialogue is significant in introducing the main story behind the poem. The dialogue in the 1794 poem uses dialogue in two different ways. In the first stanza, the dialogue is used to show one person asking the speaker where his parents are. While this is similar to the use of dialogue in the other version of the poem, the purpose of the dialogue changes as the speaker frames the answer which parallels the rhyming scheme change in the . the dialogue in the next two stanzas shows more self-reflection as the speaker discusses that his parents had gone to "praise God & his Priest & King, who make up a heaven of our misery."
The imagery used in each poem, along with the diction, helps set the two poems apart in discussing sweeping the chimney. The imagery in the first version discusses the dream that Tom has. The imagery focuses on the "coffins of black" and its contrast to the "leaping, laughing they run". This contrasts in images ultimately leads to the reason for why Tom will be a "good boy" and sweep the chimneys. In contrast, the second version of the poem focuses on the contrast between the "happy upon the heath" and the "clothes of death". The imagery of the second poem creates the contrast that shows how the clothes of death is masked by the "happy & dance & sing" he shows.
Ultimately with the use of similar devices, Blake draws parallels between the stories of the kids who sweep the chimneys. However, because of the difference in the rhyming scheme, the usage of dialogue, and the way the imagery is portrayed, the poems have different complexities. The first poem focuses on Tom's dream and how the "Angel" in his dream told him that if he is a good boy, then good things will happen. In the second poem, Blake uses creates the idea that the "notes of woe" have caused him injury even though he acts happy. The first essay discusses the why children should sweep chimneys and the second focuses on how the chimney sweeping should not result in his parents praising God.
Reflective Writing:
We were asked to write an essay that compared/contrasted two poems called "The Chimney Sweeper" written by William Blake in 1789 and 1794. In the essay prompt, we were asked to discuss the poems using poetic devices.
For me, the most significant issue was that I was not comfortable with the finding the poetic devices of the poem quickly. It also took me a significant amount of time to find the complexity within the poems but I was very unsure of how to tie in the complexity with the poetic devices that I did use. The reason for my hesitation was probably that I wasn't comfortable with the poems or the poetic devices. It was also slightly difficult to write a comparison/contrast essay for two poems written by the same person that have the same title.
I would give myself a 4 or 5 on this essay because I think my analysis was not as in depth as I would have liked it to be and I don't think I found the complexity as much as I would have liked. Having written this essay, I feel like I know the general direction in which to look when writing a comparison/contrast essay. I have learned that when writing this essay, it is very important to have a clear understanding of how exactly the devices used in the poems relate to complexity of the poem itself. I believe that I still need to expand my knowledge of the poetic devices and their possible contributions to the complexity of the poem. This understanding would be crucial to me being able to write an essay that discusses the complexity of the poem in under forty minutes. As the next step, I will need to study the poetic devices, how they can add to the complexity of the poem, and how they might be used differently in two poems.
Revised Essay:
In 1789 and 1794, William Blake responded to the condition of chimney sweeps with two poems called "The Chimney Sweeper". The two poems discuss the cruel system that forces children to suffer by sweeping chimneys. With the use of rhyming, diction, and point of view, Blake is able to create two different reasons for children sweeping chimneys.
In the 1789 version of "The Chimney Sweeper", Blake uses the rhyming scheme AABB whereas in the 1794 version, he uses AABB during the first stanza and ABAB for the next two stanzas. The AABB stanza is most commonly associated with basic rhymes and children's rhymes. By included this rhyming scheme, he builds the speaker's voice which is that of a child. The 1794 version of the poem also starts with the same rhyming scheme. However, there is a shift created after the first stanza when the the rhyming scheme changes to an alternate rhyme. This draws focus to the last two stanzas with the maturity of the child as well as make the distinction between the adult's observations in the first stanza to the response of the child in the last two stanzas. By using the AABB rhyming scheme in the first stanza, Blake equates the adults view of chimney sweepers as innocent just as the child in the first poem was. By using the alternate rhyming scheme in the last stanzas, the author introduces slight complexity in the form. This allows the voice of the child to still be seen through the structure of the essay but allows the depth of the poem to show as well.
Both poems utilize diction to show the age of the child as well as to show the complexity within poem. Both the 1789 and the 1794 poems have the line, "'weep, 'weep," to show how the young the children were when they were burdened with the task of sweeping chimneys. By using colloquial diction, Blake shows how young and uneducated the children were, which is also mentioned in the footnotes. In the 1789 version of the poem, the diction creates a very optimistic tone. First, the boys in the first poem are referred to by name. This allows them to be seen as people with emotions. The emotions of the speaker in the poem can be seen by the diction as it morphs when discussing one idea. For example, when discussing Tom's "white hair", which would normally be seen as very negative, the speaker is optimistic as sends "never mind it" because the soot will no longer spoil his hair when he shaves it. This is also seen when discussing the "coffins of black" which were merely skimmed over by the speaker in order to discuss the "Angel" with the "bright key". The 1794 poem also has similar diction but with the use of the diction creates a cynical, critical tone. First, instead of referring to the children by their names, the speaker refers to the child as "A little black thing among the snow". This sets the stage for little emotional connection as the speaker does not see the child as a child. The next three lines of the first stanza are similar to the 1789 poem in that it discusses the praise of God because the parents have "gone up to the church to pray." However, in this next two stanzas the diction and syntax creates a cynical tone of the social system. While in the first poem the negatives were turned into positives, in the second poem, what seems to be positive is only filled with negative. The child describes how he "smil'd among the winter's snow" but then describes being "clothed in the clothes of death". He discusses how he may seem "happy" but then relays how he ha faces "injury". The last line relays this the most where he ends by comparing this so called "heaven" to "misery". Ultimately, the diction in the two poems are used differently so that the first poem has an optimistic tone while the second a rather cynical one.
The point of view of the speaker in each poem sets the stage for the different opinions of chimney sweeping. In the first poem, the speaker is an innocent child who is very optimistic of the world around him. He tries to see the positives in everything. For example, as described above, he comforts his friend who is sad because he had to shave his head by saying that the soot will no longer build up in it. He sees the opportunity Angel gave as a blessing even though the life on earth is so miserable. The innocence of the child is also seen by how little importance is give to the "coffins of black" of all the other kids he knew. In a way, the child's ignorance is his bliss. In contrast, the speaker of the second poem is an adult who sees a kid sweeping. The adult asks the child where his parents are and is given a response which takes up the rest of the stanzas. The child's response serves to educate the adult on his unfortunate situation. The child seems more mature than the speaker himself which shows how the harms of the society they are living in. In a normal society, the child is the innocent one and the adult should be the mature, weathered one. However, because of the chimney sweeping, the child is seen as mature and aged by life's struggles. This point of view contrasts the innocent, optimistic view of the first poem with a critical, cynical view of the world.
Ultimately with the use of similar devices, Blake draws parallels between the stories of the kids who sweep the chimneys. However, because of the difference in the rhyming scheme, use of diction to build tone, and the point of view, the poems have different complexities. The first poem shows the sad life of the children by showing a child so ignorant of his terrible condition that he is optimistic for the life ahead of him. The second poem shows the effect chimney sweeping has on the child because it has given him more hardship than the adult speaker or his parents can handle. Ultimately, similar points are coming across about the negative effects of children sweeping chimneys.
In 1789 and 1794, William Blake responded to the condition of chimney sweeps with two poems called "The Chimney Sweeper". The two poems show the duty of chimney sweeping as a karmic response to certain actions. With the use of rhyming schemes, dialogue, and vivid imagery, Blake is able to create two different reasons for children sweeping chimneys.
In the 1789 version of "The Chimney Sweeper", Blake uses the rhyming scheme AABB whereas in the 1794 version, he uses AABB during the first stanza and ABAB for the next two stanzas. The AABB stanza is most commonly associated with basic rhymes and children's rhymes. By included this rhyming scheme, he creates builds the speaker's voice which is that of a child. The 1794 version of the poem also starts with the same rhyming scheme. However, there is a shift created after the first stanza when the the rhyming scheme changes to an alternate rhyme. This draws focus to the last two stanzas with the maturity of the child. By using the alternate rhyming scheme the author introduces slight complexity in the form. This allows the voice of the child to still be seen through the structure of the essay but allows the depth of the poem to show as well.
Both poems use some version of dialogue. In the 1789 version, the poem uses dialogue to show communication between two different kids. The poem also shows dialogue to build the voice and tone of the speaker. "'weep, 'weep," to show how the young the children were when they were burdened with the task of sweeping chimneys. This also shows that the speakers in both of the poems are similar. However, in the 1789 poem there is also additional dialogue between characters introduced in the poem. The speaker has a conversation with Tom who is another sweeper. The dialogue leads into the narration of a story about Tom's dream in which he was approached by an angel and told that "if he'd be a good boy, he'd have a God for his father and never want joy." The dialogue is significant in introducing the main story behind the poem. The dialogue in the 1794 poem uses dialogue in two different ways. In the first stanza, the dialogue is used to show one person asking the speaker where his parents are. While this is similar to the use of dialogue in the other version of the poem, the purpose of the dialogue changes as the speaker frames the answer which parallels the rhyming scheme change in the . the dialogue in the next two stanzas shows more self-reflection as the speaker discusses that his parents had gone to "praise God & his Priest & King, who make up a heaven of our misery."
The imagery used in each poem, along with the diction, helps set the two poems apart in discussing sweeping the chimney. The imagery in the first version discusses the dream that Tom has. The imagery focuses on the "coffins of black" and its contrast to the "leaping, laughing they run". This contrasts in images ultimately leads to the reason for why Tom will be a "good boy" and sweep the chimneys. In contrast, the second version of the poem focuses on the contrast between the "happy upon the heath" and the "clothes of death". The imagery of the second poem creates the contrast that shows how the clothes of death is masked by the "happy & dance & sing" he shows.
Ultimately with the use of similar devices, Blake draws parallels between the stories of the kids who sweep the chimneys. However, because of the difference in the rhyming scheme, the usage of dialogue, and the way the imagery is portrayed, the poems have different complexities. The first poem focuses on Tom's dream and how the "Angel" in his dream told him that if he is a good boy, then good things will happen. In the second poem, Blake uses creates the idea that the "notes of woe" have caused him injury even though he acts happy. The first essay discusses the why children should sweep chimneys and the second focuses on how the chimney sweeping should not result in his parents praising God.
Reflective Writing:
We were asked to write an essay that compared/contrasted two poems called "The Chimney Sweeper" written by William Blake in 1789 and 1794. In the essay prompt, we were asked to discuss the poems using poetic devices.
For me, the most significant issue was that I was not comfortable with the finding the poetic devices of the poem quickly. It also took me a significant amount of time to find the complexity within the poems but I was very unsure of how to tie in the complexity with the poetic devices that I did use. The reason for my hesitation was probably that I wasn't comfortable with the poems or the poetic devices. It was also slightly difficult to write a comparison/contrast essay for two poems written by the same person that have the same title.
I would give myself a 4 or 5 on this essay because I think my analysis was not as in depth as I would have liked it to be and I don't think I found the complexity as much as I would have liked. Having written this essay, I feel like I know the general direction in which to look when writing a comparison/contrast essay. I have learned that when writing this essay, it is very important to have a clear understanding of how exactly the devices used in the poems relate to complexity of the poem itself. I believe that I still need to expand my knowledge of the poetic devices and their possible contributions to the complexity of the poem. This understanding would be crucial to me being able to write an essay that discusses the complexity of the poem in under forty minutes. As the next step, I will need to study the poetic devices, how they can add to the complexity of the poem, and how they might be used differently in two poems.
Revised Essay:
In 1789 and 1794, William Blake responded to the condition of chimney sweeps with two poems called "The Chimney Sweeper". The two poems discuss the cruel system that forces children to suffer by sweeping chimneys. With the use of rhyming, diction, and point of view, Blake is able to create two different reasons for children sweeping chimneys.
In the 1789 version of "The Chimney Sweeper", Blake uses the rhyming scheme AABB whereas in the 1794 version, he uses AABB during the first stanza and ABAB for the next two stanzas. The AABB stanza is most commonly associated with basic rhymes and children's rhymes. By included this rhyming scheme, he builds the speaker's voice which is that of a child. The 1794 version of the poem also starts with the same rhyming scheme. However, there is a shift created after the first stanza when the the rhyming scheme changes to an alternate rhyme. This draws focus to the last two stanzas with the maturity of the child as well as make the distinction between the adult's observations in the first stanza to the response of the child in the last two stanzas. By using the AABB rhyming scheme in the first stanza, Blake equates the adults view of chimney sweepers as innocent just as the child in the first poem was. By using the alternate rhyming scheme in the last stanzas, the author introduces slight complexity in the form. This allows the voice of the child to still be seen through the structure of the essay but allows the depth of the poem to show as well.
Both poems utilize diction to show the age of the child as well as to show the complexity within poem. Both the 1789 and the 1794 poems have the line, "'weep, 'weep," to show how the young the children were when they were burdened with the task of sweeping chimneys. By using colloquial diction, Blake shows how young and uneducated the children were, which is also mentioned in the footnotes. In the 1789 version of the poem, the diction creates a very optimistic tone. First, the boys in the first poem are referred to by name. This allows them to be seen as people with emotions. The emotions of the speaker in the poem can be seen by the diction as it morphs when discussing one idea. For example, when discussing Tom's "white hair", which would normally be seen as very negative, the speaker is optimistic as sends "never mind it" because the soot will no longer spoil his hair when he shaves it. This is also seen when discussing the "coffins of black" which were merely skimmed over by the speaker in order to discuss the "Angel" with the "bright key". The 1794 poem also has similar diction but with the use of the diction creates a cynical, critical tone. First, instead of referring to the children by their names, the speaker refers to the child as "A little black thing among the snow". This sets the stage for little emotional connection as the speaker does not see the child as a child. The next three lines of the first stanza are similar to the 1789 poem in that it discusses the praise of God because the parents have "gone up to the church to pray." However, in this next two stanzas the diction and syntax creates a cynical tone of the social system. While in the first poem the negatives were turned into positives, in the second poem, what seems to be positive is only filled with negative. The child describes how he "smil'd among the winter's snow" but then describes being "clothed in the clothes of death". He discusses how he may seem "happy" but then relays how he ha faces "injury". The last line relays this the most where he ends by comparing this so called "heaven" to "misery". Ultimately, the diction in the two poems are used differently so that the first poem has an optimistic tone while the second a rather cynical one.
The point of view of the speaker in each poem sets the stage for the different opinions of chimney sweeping. In the first poem, the speaker is an innocent child who is very optimistic of the world around him. He tries to see the positives in everything. For example, as described above, he comforts his friend who is sad because he had to shave his head by saying that the soot will no longer build up in it. He sees the opportunity Angel gave as a blessing even though the life on earth is so miserable. The innocence of the child is also seen by how little importance is give to the "coffins of black" of all the other kids he knew. In a way, the child's ignorance is his bliss. In contrast, the speaker of the second poem is an adult who sees a kid sweeping. The adult asks the child where his parents are and is given a response which takes up the rest of the stanzas. The child's response serves to educate the adult on his unfortunate situation. The child seems more mature than the speaker himself which shows how the harms of the society they are living in. In a normal society, the child is the innocent one and the adult should be the mature, weathered one. However, because of the chimney sweeping, the child is seen as mature and aged by life's struggles. This point of view contrasts the innocent, optimistic view of the first poem with a critical, cynical view of the world.
Ultimately with the use of similar devices, Blake draws parallels between the stories of the kids who sweep the chimneys. However, because of the difference in the rhyming scheme, use of diction to build tone, and the point of view, the poems have different complexities. The first poem shows the sad life of the children by showing a child so ignorant of his terrible condition that he is optimistic for the life ahead of him. The second poem shows the effect chimney sweeping has on the child because it has given him more hardship than the adult speaker or his parents can handle. Ultimately, similar points are coming across about the negative effects of children sweeping chimneys.
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