Read the introductory part, body, and conclusion of the paper below.“Chimney Sweeper” tries to tell story of a boy that is affected by poverty and corruption. Through Songs of Innocence, Blake makes the world know about the situation of children In his time working as chimney sweepers. Through the eyes of children, the speaker asserts that they can be set free from the evils of society through hope, Joy, and cheer that every child has towards God. The speaker is against society, government, and family who give children so much pain ND force them to work as slaves.
Blake expresses his feelings in the Songs of Innocence by showing sympathy towards innocent children that are treated with cruelty.
Society exploits, abuses and takes advantage of the children. The Songs of Innocence shows how society, specifically the father, the church and the chimney sweeping industry is to blame for the boys unhealthy condition and how the boy describes how pain and sorrow are part of his everyday life.
In the first stanza of the Songs of Innocence, the speaker makes a statement on the boys painful situation cause he Is not with his parents. It is sad and heartbreaking for that boy, who at a young age, Instead of being with parents enjoying life Is emotionally challenged with a number of factors Like getting sold away by his father and family, poverty, and he could not even speak and death of his mother. The speaker expresses his feeling for boy in earlier lines of the poem: “When my mother died I was very young / And my father sold me While yet my tongue” (1-2).
The speaker blames the boys father who sold his son to earn some money and now this injured child from the heart replies to his evil and cruel father with tears in his eyes, who cleans “chimney ” in “soot” and dust and also not given a proper place to sleep: ” Could scarcely cry Weep! Weep! Weep! Weep! ‘/ So your chimneys I sweep ; in soot I sleep” (3-4). The speaker attacks the father of a child who is the reason for child labor spreading in his country. Through the first stanza the speaker shows the reader an awful situation In which to get out of the poverty. The father of that child chooses a path In which money Is more vital than an Innocent child’s happiness and freedom. The speaker affects the reader deeply by taking them to the world of beliefs that Is spread by the church among the people.
“Tom Daycare” (5) is the victim of one of the religious beliefs that curly hair decreases the energy of the child and Tom has curly hair. Tom’s hair is “shaved” (6), so that he could work with full energy. The speaker tries to use the word “lamb” (6), from the second stanza to describe Tom’s hair shape. This religious practice makes Tom go through a lot of emotional pain because Tom loved his curly air and every tear from his eyes shows that the church has no mercy on child like Tom: “There’s little Tom Daycare, who cried when his head” (5). The speaker shows the love towards the Boy who is in tears.
And tries to give comfort to that child by making him understand that It’s good to have no hair, because when you sleep In “soot” (8), your “white hair” (8), Is going to get black and full of dust: “Hush, Tom! Never mind It, for when your head’s bare, / You know that the soot cannot spoil your white hair” (8). In tons second stanza speaker gives example AT concur oppression on weak canny Tom. Such practices from church are sinful and hurting innocent child like Tom with a belief of shaving the head leads to the question strike in the mind of the speaker. The speaker says the children are a gift from the “God” (20). And the church is the house of the god where people come and pray for their happiness.
That happiness is turn down by the church through going against god and giving pain to that gift where even god is unhappy with such practices by the church. In the last stanza of the Songs of Innocence, Tom wakes up in the morning with a same old work of sweeping chimney. This time Tom is happy and feeling warmth in his body because he has words from an “Angel (19). ” That if all duties are performed on time his friends and he will not need to worry about fear from the rich in the society. The rich exploits poor condition because they use child for labor work: “And so Tom awoke; and we rose in the dark / And got with our bags & our brushes to work” / “Though the morning as cold, Tom was happy & warm; / So if all do their duties, they need not fear harm” (21-24).
However, the speaker gives knowledge to the reader by showing the innocence of a child in the way of trusting God and hope that God will give him the love of the father and freedom. In the reality Tom was unaware of the situation. Even the prayer of rescue is not enough to get away from the evil practices of rich society. The speaker in the Songs of Innocence tries to portray indictment on his society for giving harsh working condition to the young children. The Speaker entreats a feeling of blame in the reader by connecting Tom’s nightmare with allegations of society’s unfaithfulness of these very young children.
William Blake accuses the father for putting his child into the hands of the labor industry for chimney sweeping by using word like “your” from the first stanza in the line “so your chimney I sweep” (4). It is even more disappointing that these poor children have no helping hand of the Church; instead the speaker claims that Church supported and encouraged the labor industry and the father for giving more oppressive conditions to these young children lives.
Sample Paper on William Blakes Family. (2019, Dec 06). Retrieved from https://paperap.com/paper-on-blaming-society-in-william-blakes/