Death is associated with the passing of a loved one or inclusively a loss of belief in value. Although the word death carries negative connotations, Thomas Gray in his poem “Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard” subverts this motion by carefully incorporating death as a liberator. In the same way, William Blake in “The Garden of Love” mourns the absence of spiritual individuality. Gray’s use of strict structure (heroic quatrains) is purposely followed to memorialize and equate the poor and rich; simultaneously, serving as a symbolic representation of death being an equalizer and liberator. Moreover, his use of pronouns is in an effort to embody all individuals as equal; therefore, death is to be celebrated as pure from the prejudice of human
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Moreover, this helps Blake honor the death of spiritual individuality, which is often repressed by institutionalized religion. Blake’s poem is misleading because it first appears to follow a typical ABCB rhyme scheme, but is immediately altered by a sudden break in the rhyme of ABCD. In fact, he states “[I]went to the Garden of Love,/ And saw what I never had seen: /A Chapel was built in the midst, /Where I used to play on the green”(1-4). This stanza shows that the end-rhyme sounds help evoke a cheerful optimistic mood. The eight-syllable rhyme also helps maintain a pleasant lyrical flow. Blake does this intentionally because he wants the reader to hear the speakers joy. Structurally, the happiness of the speaker is meant to influence its readers to understand the value of one’s ability to choose to go to a location and play. The reason why this is important is because it shows the fulfillment of one’s desires. Furthermore, the reader needs to pay close attention to the disruption in the third stanza of the poem. The last stanza maintains no end-rhyme, rather in the last two lines, there is an internal rhyme. For instance Blake states, “[a]nd Priests in black gowns, were walking their rounds,/ And binding with briars, my joys & desires”(11-12). These lines have two pairs of internal rhymes, which are “gowns” and “rounds” followed by “briars” and “desires”. Rather than finish his poem with his expected pattern and rhyme, Blake surprises his readers with disappointment. His last lines crush the hopes of the speaker; at the same time, his poem echoes a pessimistic mood. The fact that priest in black gowns were presented in these lines symbolize that established religion is what literally caused the lack of enthusiasm of people. Historically, institutionalized religion was joined with the government,
Moreover, this helps Blake honor the death of spiritual individuality, which is often repressed by institutionalized religion. Blake’s poem is misleading because it first appears to follow a typical ABCB rhyme scheme, but is immediately altered by a sudden break in the rhyme of ABCD. In fact, he states “[I]went to the Garden of Love,/ And saw what I never had seen: /A Chapel was built in the midst, /Where I used to play on the green”(1-4). This stanza shows that the end-rhyme sounds help evoke a cheerful optimistic mood. The eight-syllable rhyme also helps maintain a pleasant lyrical flow. Blake does this intentionally because he wants the reader to hear the speakers joy. Structurally, the happiness of the speaker is meant to influence its readers to understand the value of one’s ability to choose to go to a location and play. The reason why this is important is because it shows the fulfillment of one’s desires. Furthermore, the reader needs to pay close attention to the disruption in the third stanza of the poem. The last stanza maintains no end-rhyme, rather in the last two lines, there is an internal rhyme. For instance Blake states, “[a]nd Priests in black gowns, were walking their rounds,/ And binding with briars, my joys & desires”(11-12). These lines have two pairs of internal rhymes, which are “gowns” and “rounds” followed by “briars” and “desires”. Rather than finish his poem with his expected pattern and rhyme, Blake surprises his readers with disappointment. His last lines crush the hopes of the speaker; at the same time, his poem echoes a pessimistic mood. The fact that priest in black gowns were presented in these lines symbolize that established religion is what literally caused the lack of enthusiasm of people. Historically, institutionalized religion was joined with the government,