COMPARE AND CONTRAST

Compare and Contrast William Blake 's Infant Sorrow ' and Infant Joy

Infant Sorrow and Infant Joy are works of the popular English poet and artist William Blake . Although William Blake was quite unrecognized during his own life time , his works both in literature and visual arts amassed great popularity after his death . His works are a reflection of his spirituality , creativity and originality and both his poems Infant Sorrow ' and Infant Joy ' are proofs of these

From the title itself , it is evident that the main of both poems is about

infants however , there exists a number of differences between both poems not only in terms of style and composition but also in the views and perspectives of the supposed speakers of the poems . Comparing and contrasting both poems are useful in helping readers better understand and appreciate the literary works as well as the being discussed in the poem

One of the first and most obvious difference that I noticed is the person supposedly talking in the poem or from whose viewpoint the poem has been written . It is quite apparent that Infant Sorrow ' is a narration from an infant 's perspective as suggested in the use of the following lines , My mother groaned ! My father wept . Into the dangerous word I leapt (Norton 095 , II 1 - 2 . These lines can only be uttered by an infant whose coming into the world is marked by great uncertainty not knowing what to expect from this world

Infant 's Joy 's ' style , on the other hand , is similar to a conversation between an adult and an infant , as evidenced in the lines I have no name , I am but two days old . What shall I call thee (Norton , 87 , II 1 - 3 . These perspectives or views are suggestive that the two poems , despite being about infants , are different in the viewpoints from which the poems ' ideas and words are based on . This difference makes both poems even more creative and novel because there are a few especially during William Blake 's time who would have thought of doing such

Aside from the differences in perspective based on the supposed speaker in both poems , I also believe that the experiences of the speakers also affect the poem 's message to its readers . These viewpoints differ because of the different attitudes people , particularly a newborn and his or her parent , have has towards childbirth . Infants , for instance may find it quite traumatic since they have been kept in the safety of their mothers ' wombs for nine months , and their transition into the world may bring about worries or anxieties as to what and who to expect in the outside world . The first stanza in the poem Infant 's Sorrow speaks about how the infant 's mother groaned and how his /her father wept the infant might have thought and taken his /her parents ' actions negatively making it quite traumatic for the infant . The use of the word `helpless ' also suggests...