The Tyger - COMPLETE

William Blake

‘Tyger, tyger’

• Tiger is associated with danger, wildness, strength. Could be symbolic of darker side/evil in humanitt?

• Archaic language - the Romantics wanted the old days back. I/y interchangeable letters.

• Repetition creates a childlike, rhyming tone. More melodic.

‘in the forests of the night’

• Night is where secrets/sin happens.

• Forest associated with a dangerous animal

• Forest is symbolism of the unknown of nature and the danger involved in nature.

‘immortal hand or eye’

• Synecdoche - no humanity in the societal view of God

• However, a synecdoche is often used to represent God in the Bible.

• Using this to mock it

‘could frame thy fearful symmetry?’

• questioning God’s ability, creating an impure image off god = teasing blasphemy? Blasphemy was a crime at the time

• ‘Symmetry’ suggests sameness.

‘burnt the fire of thine eyes?’

• ‘fire’ = destructive. dangerous. similar to the tyger.

• ‘thine’ = yours. Direct address to the tyger/evil of the world/darker side of humanity.

‘what the hand dare seize the fire?’

• synecdoche usage again

• prometheus stole fire from the gods - greek mythology. Saw him as rebellious figure who stole creative fire for humanity.

• ‘Fire’ = blacksmith imagery. Blacksmiths were becoming less important due to machinery, maybe suggesting industrial revolution was pushing out God’s creativity (which Romantics prioritised)

‘twist the sinews of thy heart?’

• 'uncomfortable imagery created by the words ‘twist’ and ‘sinews’ rivals the emotive imagery of love typically associated with ‘heart’

• Danger + power of the tyger = sinews are strong tendons that should not be able to twist. disconnecting heart/humanity from the rest of the body?

• internal organ - linking tyger to humanity, not focus on external ‘sinews of the thigh knit together’ of the behemoth in book of job, contrasting the story from the bible.

‘hammer’ ‘chain’ ‘anvil’ ‘in what furnace was thy brain?’ ‘deadly terrors’

• industrial items ‘anvil’ ‘hammer’ ‘chain’ ‘furnace’ associated with the dangers of the ‘tyger’, shows their danger

• ‘brain’ being in a ‘furnace’ shows that industrial revolution breeds dangerous minds. factory owners mistreating workers/Romantic criticism of the Enlightenment?

‘when stars threw down their spears’ ‘and water’d Heaven with their tears’

• Fall of Satan. Linking the evil of the tyger/dark side of humanity to Satan.

• Reference to Miltonic Satan, who staged a revolution and then fell due to the corresponding war. the Revolution here could be Industrial.

• Industrial revolution linked to Satan?

‘Did he smile his work to see?’ ‘Did he who make the Lamb make thee?’

• Dual nature of God - creating an innocent lamb and the evil tyger. Contrast

• If the tyger is made of industrial items, it is putting the industrial revolution and the lamb (innocence and sometimes representative of God) as oppositional.

‘tyger tyger burning bright’

• cyclical nature of the poem. Allows the readers to reflect on how their image of God has been challenged.

‘dare frame thy fearful symmetry?’

• shift from the uncertain tone of ‘could’.

• ‘Dare’ connotes danger.

• Important that this change occurs in the last stanza after the extent of the tyger’s danger has been marked.

Context - Historical

• songs of experience: loss of innocence, corruption, restrictions imposed by authorities, and often have religious symbols.

• links to story of Job - Job was in awe over the power of God, reflected in The Tyger by questioning how God can make the tyger and the lamb.

• Industrial Revolution lead to impoverishment of workers, and injuries + deaths.

Context - personal

• Blake compared the inddu