Comment on William Blake’s description of the exploitation and suffering of children in his
poem, The Chimney Sweeper (10 Marks)
Answers
Answer:
The Chimney Sweeper poem shows Blake to be a radical critic of the social injustices of his age. His indictment of desperate material conditions and those institutions which perpetuate them is passionate and powerful, but his greatest anger is reserved for the forces – the established Church, mercenary and uncaring parents – that restrict our vision and prevent us from understanding both our oppression and the infinite possibilities of true perception. The poem expresses poverty and suffering that concern with people, particularly the people who are more vulnerable in society. They also represent suffering and the hardships that are associated with it. They also reflect on what the hierarchy of England was and how it affected people, which would have also been an influence as to why people and children were living in poverty. Blake sympathised with the Revolution which he reacted with great outbursts of freedom against exploitation and child labour.
It also shows that their childhood is taken away far too soon and that they are forced to grow up. Blake uses repetition to convey the unheard suffering of the children as they cry “weep weep weep weep,” (“The Chimney Sweeper” line 3) and this also creates onomatopoeia which makes the poem sound harsh and upsetting to read. He also uses the first person proposition such as “I” and “my” to illustrate that he wanted to show the harsh reality that the children are suffering day to day through a first person viewpoint as if he wanted to narrate the poem as a child. This also emphasises the emotional quality of the poem because it creates an image that the speaker of the poem. Blake is known as a poet who did not have problems voicing his own opinion, especially when it came to important issues that affect the majority of people such as poverty and other issues associated with it. The best way for him to get his message across would be through the representations in his poetry.
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