One of my
favourite poems is Auguries of Innocence by William Blake and it is not a poem
to take lightly. Consisting of 132 lines, sometimes written in stanzas and
sometimes not, it has been dissected and analysed many, many times as to it's
meaning. Whether is be professional, historian, poet or layman, everyone has an
opinion as to its underlying message, and I am no different. However, saying
that there are come common themes that keep arising, Innocence, Faith &
Doubt, God & the Divine, Philosophy, Social Commentaries, and social class.
I first came
across this poem as with most people of my generation around 20 years ago due
to its inclusion in the movie, "Lara Croft: Tomb Raider" starring
Angelina Jolie. All we are shown is the first four lines...
"To see
a world in a grain of sand,
And a heaven
in a wild flower,
Hold
infinity in the palm of your hand,
And eternity
in an hour"
To me, these
four simple lines struck a chord. As a creative type, I felt that these words
were saying that even the simplest of things, even the smallest of things, can
hold outstanding beauty and wonder. But not only that, also the amazement and
wonder we have as a child were we would create our own worlds and
adventures in our own minds; where years can pass in just an afternoon. As
wannabe writer, these lines inspire me so much to creative and to look for not
only the small details, but also the larger themes and ideas.
In my school
life, while I enjoyed and still enjoy Shakespeare, I hated having to dissect
his works. Why does he write it this way? What's the underlying message? In all
honesty, I didn't really care. I enjoyed it for what it was, exactly as
audiences did back when it was first written. Whether it be comedy, satire or
tragedy, you could enjoy the subtle jokes, messages and such without having to
break it apart.
So, I'm not
going to do that to you, I'm just going to say that this poem deals with the
social inequalities involving class and religion at the time of writing, though
with our own current state of affairs most of it could apply now as well.
Living in a multicultural society it is more acceptable to worship who and what
you want or even have or require no faith at all, something that would have
inspired fear, horror, and persecution. Having faith and losing it can be a
terrifying thing and Blake includes this too. To me innocence is the
predominant theme and at times it feels to me as if he is saying, if this is
acceptable, why isn't this? It feels like the world seen through the eyes of a
child, a child with a religious upbringing.
I said I
wouldn't and I'm sorry, but when Blake talks about God, the lies not seen by
the eye, and night and day, to me it seems to say that believing in God and
faith in general is a defence against the night and that it is like a dream
that upon waking you realise it was just that, a fallacy. Some are born to
believe in a power greater than themselves, and some are not. What is with all
the animals? Maybe he was just an animal lover!
And with
that I will leave you with the poem and the foresight and knowledge that you
will agree or disagree. Just make up your own minds and don't be a sheep, but
most of all be inspired!
William Blake - Auguries of
Innocence
To see a world in a grain of sand,
And a heaven in a wild flower,
Hold infinity in the palm of your hand,
And eternity in an hour.
A robin redbreast in a cage
Puts all heaven in a rage.
A dove-house fill'd with doves and pigeons
Shudders hell thro' all its regions.
A dog starv'd at his master's gate
Predicts the ruin of the state.
A horse misused upon the road
Calls to heaven for human blood.
Each outcry of the hunted hare
A fibre from the brain does tear.
A skylark wounded in the wing,
A cherubim does cease to sing.
The game-cock clipt and arm'd for fight
Does the rising sun affright.
Every wolf's and lion's howl
Raises from hell a human soul.
The wild deer, wand'ring here and there,
Keeps the human soul from care.
The lamb misus'd breeds public strife,
And yet forgives the butcher's knife.
The bat that flits at close of eve
Has left the brain that won't believe.
The owl that calls upon the night
Speaks the unbeliever's fright.
He who shall hurt the little wren
Shall never be belov'd by men.
He who the ox to wrath has mov'd
Shall never be by woman lov'd.
The wanton boy that kills the fly
Shall feel the spider's enmity.
He who torments the chafer's sprite
Weaves a bower in endless night.
The caterpillar on the leaf
Repeats to thee thy mother's grief.
Kill not the moth nor butterfly,
For the last judgement draweth nigh.
He who shall train the horse to war
Shall never pass the polar bar.
The beggar's dog and widow's cat,
Feed them and thou wilt grow fat.
The gnat that sings his summer's song
Poison gets from slander's tongue.
The poison of the snake and newt
Is the sweat of envy's foot.
The poison of the honey bee
Is the artist's jealousy.
The prince's robes and beggar's rags
Are toadstools on the miser's bags.
A truth that's told with bad intent
Beats all the lies you can invent.
It is right it should be so;
Man was made for joy and woe;
And when this we rightly know,
Thro' the world we safely go.
Joy and woe are woven fine,
A clothing for the soul divine.
Under every grief and pine
Runs a joy with silken twine.
The babe is more than swaddling bands;
Every farmer understands.
Every tear from every eye
Becomes a babe in eternity;
This is caught by females bright,
And return'd to its own delight.
The bleat, the bark, bellow, and roar,
Are waves that beat on heaven's shore.
The babe that weeps the rod beneath
Writes revenge in realms of death.
The beggar's rags, fluttering in air,
Does to rags the heavens tear.
The soldier, arm'd with sword and gun,
Palsied strikes the summer's sun.
The poor man's farthing is worth more
Than all the gold on Afric's shore.
One mite wrung from the lab'rer's hands
Shall buy and sell the miser's lands;
Or, if protected from on high,
Does that whole nation sell and buy.
He who mocks the infant's faith
Shall be mock'd in age and death.
He who shall teach the child to doubt
The rotting grave shall ne'er get out.
He who respects the infant's faith
Triumphs over hell and death.
The child's toys and the old man's reasons
Are the fruits of the two seasons.
The questioner, who sits so sly,
Shall never know how to reply.
He who replies to words of doubt
Doth put the light of knowledge out.
The strongest poison ever known
Came from Caesar's laurel crown.
Nought can deform the human race
Like to the armour's iron brace.
When gold and gems adorn the plow,
To peaceful arts shall envy bow.
A riddle, or the cricket's cry,
Is to doubt a fit reply.
The emmet's inch and eagle's mile
Make lame philosophy to smile.
He who doubts from what he sees
Will ne'er believe, do what you please.
If the sun and moon should doubt,
They'd immediately go out.
To be in a passion you good may do,
But no good if a passion is in you.
The whore and gambler, by the state
Licensed, build that nation's fate.
The harlot's cry from street to street
Shall weave old England's winding-sheet.
The winner's shout, the loser's curse,
Dance before dead England's hearse.
Every night and every morn
Some to misery are born,
Every morn and every night
Some are born to sweet delight.
Some are born to sweet delight,
Some are born to endless night.
We are led to believe a lie
When we see not thro' the eye,
Which was born in a night to perish in a night,
When the soul slept in beams of light.
God appears, and God is light,
To those poor souls who dwell in night;
But does a human form display
To those who dwell in realms of day.
