William Blake's The Chimney Sweeper

In The Chimney Sweeper from songs of experience written by William Blake is about a child who is forced to work as a chimney sweeper by his parents who are gone to pray at a nearby church. Blake does a good job expressing his feelings through the speakers and the way he uses his rhyme schemes. This poem is quite different because it contains two speakers. Many may read this and think this is a simple poem of a working child. However, that is not the message that Blake is trying to deliver, the message is much deeper and is not limited to just a child.
In the first stanza there is something in the snow says the speaker. The speaker describes it as a little black thing. What is the little black thing? A person? An animal? Sadly, the little black …show more content…
In line 1 he states that because he was happy upon the heath, in other words because he was happy upon the land they used that to their advantage. He also states that he smiled amongst the winter snow. In line 3, he states that they clothed him in clothes of death. The sweeper clothing is associated with death because of the sickness that comes along with being a chimney sweeper. Ironic much? The parents did not literally teach him the songs of woe. It is a metaphor for how the parents forced the child into the job not even considering the child’s feelings. There is also a rhyme scheme with the words “snow” and “woe” which is interesting with snow meaning white and beauty while woe is sorrow. How could you have something filled with woe but is yet surrounded by something made of …show more content…
Because he does that his parents do not think that they’ve caused him any harm, he states that in line 2. He is not a happy child. However it is like he finds some sort of redemption in his songs and ways of dancing. The child states again that his parents are gone to the church to praise God, and his priest and his king. Then in the final line he goes on to say that they make up a heaven of our misery. What does that mean? To the child heaven is not the paradise that one may be made to believe. It actually causes him pain. It symbolizes how the priest, God and the king exploit the children. The child is not fond of his parents, the priest, God or the king. The parents are not practicing proper Christianity. Of course in Christianity children are taught to honor and respect their parents. However, Jesus says in Luke 18:17 that anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter in it. A child is supposed to be precious and so are their characteristics. Unfortunately, the child’s Christian parents are not teaching or practicing