London (poem) 4015296 224884503 2008-07-10T20:59:36Z Msgj 42630 Reverted edits by [[Special:Contributions/207.233.32.17|207.233.32.17]] ([[User talk:207.233.32.17|talk]]) to last version by Lightbot [[Image:Blake London.jpg|thumb|Blake's plate of ''London''.]] '''''London''''' is a poem by [[William Blake]], published in ''[[Songs of Experience]]'' in 1794. It is one of the few poems in ''Songs of Experience'' which does not have a corresponding poem in ''[[Songs of Innocence]]''. The poem was not published during the aftermath of the French revolution. William Blake was an unorthodox Christian of the dissenting tradition, who felt that the state was abandoning those in need. He was heavily influenced by mystical groups, and believed he had conversations with his dead brother<ref>[http://www.bbc.co.uk/education/asguru/english/03contexts/14williamblake/index.shtml BBC: Blake's 'London']</ref>. The poem reflects Blake's extreme disillusionment with the suffering he saw in London<ref> Edexcel GCE English Language and Language and Literature Poetry Anthology Teachers' Guidance, pg 4.</ref>. ==Text of the Poem== <blockquote><poem> I wander thro' each charter'd street, Near where the charter'd Thames does flow And mark in every face I meet Marks of weakness, marks of woe. In every cry of every Man, In every Infant's cry of fear, In every voice: in every ban, The mind-forg'd manacles I hear How the Chimney-sweeper's cry Every blackning Church appalls, And the hapless Soldier's sigh Runs in blood down Palace walls. But most thro' midnight streets I hear How the youthful Harlot's curse Blasts the new-born Infant's tear, And blights with plagues the Marriage hearse. </poem></blockquote> ==Analysis== The use of the word 'Chartered' is ambiguous. It may express the [[political]] and [[economic]] control that Blake considered [[London]] to be enduring at the time of his writing. Blake's friend [[Thomas Paine]] had criticised the granting of [[Royal Charter]]s to control trade as a form of class oppression.<ref>Stephen Bygrave (ed), ''Romantic Writings'', Routledge, 1996, p.20; [http://books.guardian.co.uk/review/story/0,,2025117,00.html The Invisible Worm, Tom Paulin, ''The Guardian', March 3, 2007]</ref> However, 'chartered' could also mean 'freighted', and may refer to the busy or overburdened streets and river, or to the licenced trade carried on within them.<ref>E.P. Thompson, ''Witness Against the Beast: William Blake and the Moral Law'', Cambridge University Press, 1993, p.176</ref> The reference to a harlot blighting the 'marriage hearse' with 'plague' is usually understood to refer to the spread of venereal disease in the city, passed via a prostitute by a man to his bride, so that marriage can become a sentence of death.<ref>Bygrave, p. 20</ref> The poem was published during the upheavals of the [[French Revolution]], and the city of London was suffering political and [[social unrest]], due to the marked social and working inequalities of the time. An understandably nervous [[government]] had responded by introducing restrictions on the freedom of speech and the mobilisation of foreign [[mercenary soldiers]]{{Fact|date=January 2008}}. The City of London was a town that was shackled to [[landlords]], [[overseers]] and owners that controlled and demeaned the majority of the [[lower class|lower]] and [[middle class]]es{{Fact|date=January 2008}}. Within the poem that bears the city's name, Blake describes 18th century London as a conurbation filled with people who understood, with depressing wisdom, both the hopelessness and misery of their situation{{Fact|date=January 2008}}. ==Influence and musical settings== The poem has been set to music many times. Classical composers who have set it include [[Benjamin Britten]] in his ''Songs and Proverbs of William Blake'' and [[Ralph Vaughan Williams]] in ''Ten Blake Songs''. The poet [[Allen Ginsberg]] sung the poem as part of his own recordings of Blake's verse. The song also appears as a track on a number of albums by popular and folk musicians. It is sung by [[Greg Brown]] on his album ''Songs of Innocence and Experience'' and by [[Jah Wobble]] on ''The Inspiration of William Blake''. [[Tangerine Dream]]'s 1987 album, "Tyger" is built around a number of William Blake's poems, including this one. [[Finn Coren]]'s version on his album ''[[The Blake Project: Spring|Spring]]'' ends with the sounds of [[Big Ben]]. [[Sparklehorse]] included a version of the poem set to music on the b-side of the English release of their 1996 single "Someday I Will Treat You Good". [[Joan Baez]] recorded a spoken version of the poem. The opening lyrics of [[The Verve]]'s 1995 hit single, "[[History (The Verve song)|History"]], are an uncredited paraphrase of the first two verses of this poem. ==References== <references /> == External links == {{wikisource-inline|London}} * [http://www.archive.org/details/Lethargica_-_William_Blakes_London William Blake's London] by Lethargica. The Internet Archive. Retrieved 07/05/2008. [[Category:1794 poems]] [[Category:Poetry by William Blake]]