Full Title: A criticism and comparison of “Infant Joy” and “Infant Sorrow” by William Blake

“Infant Joy” by William Blake is taken from his collection of poetry called “Songs of Innocence”. A second poem, called “Infant Sorrow” was released in a further collection, “Songs of Experience”. Even by the names of each poem and the collection they are a part of, we can anticipate that they will have subject matter, regarding a child, but stark contrasts in style and structure. “Infant Joy” has a very simple structure and style, emphasising the theme of freedom. On the other hand, “Infant Sorrow” has a more complex and dissonant style, using language which reflects the opposite theme of entrapment and discomfort.

The theme of freedom in “Infant Joy” is firstly presented by the dialogue in the poem, in which the child and another character talk freely. We are led to believe the child, “but two days old” is given the freedom to choose their own name. However, the very act of placing a name or label on oneself bears links to restriction and a certain loss of freedom. This loss of freedom makes up a core element to “Infant Sorrow” and is presented not only through the language used but also in the style. The child is described as being “helpless” and is “Striving against my swadling bands.” The very image this creates of a child “Bound and weary” in strips of cloth demonstrates a lack of freedom in stark contrast with “Infant Joy”. Furthermore, the line contains examples of dissonant language and sibilance, which enhances a certain sinister mood in the poem.

The harsh language in “Infant Sorrow” is incongruent with that in “Infant Joy”. The monosyllabic words and frequent use of repetition create a very childlike and innocent atmosphere, “Pretty joy! / Sweet joy but two days old.” The use of assonance in lines such as “Thou dost smile” give the poem a song-like quality, creating an image of a mother crooning over her child, a lullaby. The rhyming couplet with “smile” towards the end of the poem also aids this presentation, and reinforces the pleasant atmosphere with simple joy and emotion being expressed. However, in “Infant Sorrow”, Blake has made use of rhyming couplets much more often, but in this case they do not help to ease the tension created in the poem.

The perspective each poem is presented from also seems to differ. “Infant Joy” contains dialogue, but it appears as though the child is talking to the narrator who could be either the mother or the angel shown in the image. “Infant Sorrow”, on the other hand, is presented from the point of view of the child, although it never speaks “My mother groan’d, my father wept”. The words used by the child are complex and polysyllabic, implying that it perhaps has a more mature view of the world. The poem focuses on the horror of the world, and the physical act of the infant’s birth. Although, unlike it’s counterpart, “Infant Sorrow” does mention the child’s father albeit in a minor, unimportant role.

Furthermore, there is very little action in “Infant Joy”, with many simple adjectives to describe the scene. In contrast, “Infant Sorrow” generates a feeling of struggling and actions through its use of violent adjectives, “leapt” and “struggling” for example. The illustrations Blake created for each of the poems reflects this, with the child wailing and striving against the mother reaching towards it. The child in “Infant Joy” however, is shown as calm and placid, resting in it’s mothers arms. The illustration to “Infant Joy” has been painted in bright, vibrant colours with the simple flowing shapes of flowers as a background. The enclosed space the main flower creates bears relation to a mother’s womb, protecting the child. However, the centre-piece bears resemblance to the biblical Annunciation, with an angel figure standing over the child, cradled by it’s mother. A critic has interpreted this religious overtone, in conjunction with the repeated use of “I am” in the poem, as a reference to Exodus 3:14 when God reveals his name, “I am that I am…”. Therefore Blake could be implying that the infant is divine and therefore that divinity is “joy”.

The image which accompanies “Infant Sorrow” bears some resemblance to “Infant Joy”, in the hair colour of the characters and the smiling face of the mother. However, in “Infant Sorrow” Blake has removed us from the safe womb-like structure of the flower and places us in an ordinary room where no angels observe the family.

In conclusion, “Infant Joy” and “Infant Sorrow” have been constructed by Blake to show two points of view or representations of the same time. The first shows, as the name implies, the innocence and joy of childhood. The latter deals with a more negative, less fantastical view from the child. Blake has shown the differences between the two in his style, use of language and even references to religion.

_{Grade achieved: B+}

_{Teacher’s comments: Lots of splendid material. More development of ideas / consideration of the illustrations (e.g. colours) would be helpful.}

_{References: “Songs of Innocence and of Experience” by William Blake.}