Analysis Of - Laughing Song 1x6a6

Form:

It is probably true that many or most of these songs were actually performed as songs by Blake, to tunes he composed. But some are more obviously designed for song than others. The Laughing Song is perhaps an attempt to incorporate into verse a feeling of unrestrained exuberance ("Exuberance is Beauty," !) or (in Blakean ) Energy; A Cradle Song is a lullaby and a meditation on Christ as child; The Divine Image is a prayer; Infant Joy a dramatic dialogue between parent and two-day-old child, an attempt to dramatise the feelings that exist before words can lend their shapes (and distortions, perhaps?) to experience, and it ends in an expression of good wishes, rather like the kind of thing you might put into a card given to celebrate a new birth; On Another’s Sorrow is an uncompromising attestation of Christian faith. So, in the non-narrative poems, religion and purity of feeling dominate, and, of course, these sorts of ideas also dominate the narratives to a very large extent. The forms have been chosen, as I see it, to enable Blake to create a wide palette of innocent voices, voices laughing unselfconsciously, declaring simplistic ideas of duty, celebrating nature, experiencing complete religious certainty, telling stories which all have happy endings – moralistic stories, attesting to God’s control and merciful purposes perhaps – and, by doing so, to let his audience hear – and enjoy – the purity and power of that Innocence which (perhaps) we all secretly cherish within our hearts, however much Experience may batter us later in our lives. Variation in form is a major tool Blake uses to keep us fresh and responsive as we work through the Songs of Innocence.

STRUCTURE Variation of structure is another such tool. Most of the poems in the Songs of Innocence as a whole (15 out of the 22 songs: Introduction, The Shepherd, The Little Black Boy, The Chimney Sweeper, The Little Boy Lost, The Little Boy Found, The Little Girl Lost, The Little Girl Found, Laughing Song, A Cradle Song, The Divine Image, Holy Thursday, Nurse’s Song, A Dream and On Another’s Sorrow) are based around a stanza of four lines. Some of these, however, use an ABAB rhyme scheme, some an ABCB rhyme scheme.

LANGUAGE Most of the language is understandably simple, some of it is even simplistic. This is entirely understandable given Blake’s overarching purpose of trying to let us hear the songs that innocence sings and to hear them ringing out as clear as a bell for our sensual and emotional enjoyment.

How William Blake Uses Poetry as an Instrument for Social Comment Living in a world without modern technology and media. William Blake (1757 1827) used his poetry as a powerful instrument for social comment. This is particularly evident in 'Laughing Song'; and 'London'; taken from The Portable Blake. The two poems present conflicting views of creation and mankind. In his innocent years, Blake saw the world as a 'joyous meadow, natural and free. However as he grew with experience his naive ideology was tainted with images of war and devastation. Blake's purpose in writing these poems is to position his readers to see the world as it lies before them, unmasked and raw. He is inviting society to take a stand against the degradation of our land and our people, a timeless invitation. To do so Blake exploits the traditional poetic conventions of persona, form, language, tone and atmosphere. The persona of both 'Laughing Song and 'London'; is Blake himself. However he is writing in two opposing states of mind. 'Laughing Song'; comes from the Songs of Innocence, a collection of celebratory poems, offering a view of the world with the 'voice of joy' though perhaps through rose-coloured glasses. Blake is simply enjoying nature, and through this is therefore praising God. In 'London'; however, the glasses are removed and Blake's images of a once 'merry scene' are lost, replaced by 'charter'd streets'. Coming from the Songs of Experience, Blake is presenting his perceptions of a ... Another anaylsis here William Blake is so happy, the world around him reflects his joy and merriment! He is full of the joy of life, his heart sings in wonder. The green woods laugh with the voice of joy, the river laughs, Here William Blake seems so happy, this is also reflected as his heart sings about nature around him. This reflects his merriment and laughter back to him. In the first verse element of the earth laugh, in the second verse meadows laugh, grasshoppers laugh, Mary, Susan and Emily laugh. Another analysis: 'Laughing Song'; consists of three, simple, four-lined stanzas. Perhaps representing succinct periods in Blake's childhood. Beneath the apparently simple form however, lies an intricate web of complex meanings. Although ordered, Blake's use of rhyming couplets and longer lines stress the delight in nature and the harmony between nature and man. In 'Laughing Song';, Blake uses light and joyous to describe the world around him. The 'green woods' provoke images of lush nature, spring and happy times. However at the same time Blake is commenting on society's attitudes by personifying the woods, stream and meadow. The woods and meadow 'laugh' whilst the 'dimpling' stream suggests a wide smile on the face of a child, enjoying God's creation. The children have 'sweet round mouths'

representing their innocence and purity, their voices singing 'the sweet chorus' conjure an idyllic scene. However in the third verse, perhaps representing the end of Blake's childhood he notes the 'painted birds'. An image of a man made creature, seemingly apart of the natural world but not quite the same. This is linked with the 'table' constructed by man, 'spread' with 'cherries' taken from nature for human purposes. 'Laughing Song'; has a celebratory mood, Blake is celebrating nature and the beauty of creation. He is also praising God for enabling man and creation to live in harmony in this 'merry scene'. This is evidence of Blake's value of Christianity and Christian beliefs. Through his poem, Blake places importance on the philosophy of 'love life while you can'.' Another analysis: How he uses imagery and sound: In Songs of Innocence and of Experience, by William Blake, imagery and sound are both very important. They help express ideas effectively and link the poems together. Blake uses different types of imagery, the first of which is nature imagery. In London, the ‘charter’d Thames does flow’. The Thames is part of nature but in London it is described as ‘charter’d’ showing that it has been restricted and controlled. This helps express the idea that society is so full of restrictions that it even has control over natural things, mapping them out and restricting their spontaneity. Natural imagery is also used in Nurse’s Song but to express a completely different idea. ‘in the sky little birds fly, And the hills are all cover’d with sheep.’ This immediately conjures an image of boundless rolling hills and unrestricted freedom. This contrasts the difference between innocence and experience as seen by Blake. Innocence is the freedom of the human spirit while experience is the human spirit bound by restrictions and prohibitions. This shows Blake’s main theme shown in the full title of his poetry, Songs of Innocence

Another major feature used by Blake is sound within which there are several different types of sound features. The first is the different sound words used by Blake. In Nurse’s Song, ‘The little ones leaped & shouted & laugh’d’. The sound words ‘shouted’ and ‘laughed’ are full of energy and convey the joy and openness of the children. Another main form of imagery used by Blake is colour imagery. In London, ‘Every blackening Church appals,’ the use of the colour black in reference to the Church is a bit of an oxymoron as black is considered the colour of the devil. In this context, the blackening of the Church isn’t literal but is the blackening of the Church’s values and reputation. The Church is seen as being hypocritical, preaching love and kindness but ignoring the suffering surrounding it. The Church is one of the institutions placing restrictions on society and its blackening shows Blake’s contempt at its falseness. The colour black is used very effectively in this instance to convey Blake’s view of the Church.