The Chimney Sweeper from Songs of Experience by William Blake

The Chimney Sweeper

Songs of Experience

William Blake

 

How is The Chimney Sweeper poem similar and different from Black's Songs of Innocence and Songs of Experience?

Answer: The title of the poem, The Chimney Sweeper appeared in the comparison of Songs of Experience and Songs of Innocent by William Blake as part of the facsimile. The tone of the poem is ironic. The poem presents the creature as a child’s condition during the 17th and 18th century era. This was the time when the Industrial Revolution took place. It led to urbanization and thus slums, child labor, poverty, despair, etc. were prevalent. Here in the poem William Blake tells the readers about a child who meets and talks to the fellow chimney sweepers and the poet asks the little boy about his parents and the little boy tells the poet his tragic story.

Through this poem Blake criticizes the institutions of society that exploit young children. The poem depicts a ‘little black thing’ standing in the middle of the ice. It brings to mind of readers the contrast that presents the dirty black thing in the original snow. But this ‘little black thing’ is actually a child, a chimney sweeper who is covered in ice. Blake referred to the child as a ‘thing’ to show society’s indifference towards these young children. The boy is crying ‘weep’ ‘weep’. It is often a context of the cries of such young chimney sweepers that they pronounce “weep” rather than “sweep”. Blake says the boy is crying in a ‘notes of woe’ which means the boy is actually in pain and so crying. The voice of a related fully-grown person then asks the child where his parents were. The child replies that they went to church to pray.

The child then talks about the misery of his life. He said since he was happy and played on the basis of warmth and ‘smiled in the middle of winter snow’, his parents sold him as a chimney sweeper. Winter in England is very harsh and often known as a symbol of sorrow and death. Blake said the children smiled even during the winter snow which shows the ability to keep children happy regardless of the situation. This does not mean, however, that they cannot feel pain and that the grown persons fail to see it. So the child says that his parents wore "death clothes" on him. It refers to the dress that is the risky occupation of black and chimney sweeps that lead to the death of many children. The child said that they again taught him to sing 'choke notes' referring to the cries of the chimney sweep which is equivalent to crying for the child.

Now the child is saying that since he is happy and his parents are singing and dancing so the adults think they have not hurt them. It again goes back to the ability of children to be happy in all situations. Although he is now a chimney sweeper and suffering he does not reveal it outwardly and the adults see that they are a happy baby singing and dancing. Blake here refers to the indifferent attitude of adults towards children and their inability to understand the psychology of a young child. Eventually the child says that his parents went to the church purpose "to praise God and his priests and kings" who made heaven out of the misery of children. In the last two lines Blake attacks the Church and the institutions of the monarchy. These institutions of society exploit innocent children and enjoy the benefits of their labor. Instead, the children become careless and lead miserable lives. Thus, the poem parallels its name in the Songs of Innocence, where the poem assumes a subtle satirical message against the kind of false comfort that is brought to child by the so-called Church and Monarchy.

Again, when the songs are structurally compared to the rhyming part of the Songs of Innocence, it is clear that this poem is as long as its equivalent as long as its half. Additionally, many lines are too short by one or two syllables. Like the young Chimney Sweeper’s voice innocence, but he has very little time for the questions he has. The poem begins with the AABB rhyme scheme innocence and childhood features but with a deeper experience of the Chimney Sweeper experience it switches to CDCD EFEF for the last two columns. The final stanza is actually just a rhyme between ‘injury’ (line 10) and ‘sorrow’ (line 12), suggesting a growing catastrophe in the world of the chimney sweeper or in the social system in general. Thus, the poem of The Chimney Sweeper is similar and distinct from each other in Blake’s Songs of Innocence and Songs of Experience.

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