Presumption of innocence

In Paolina’s Innocence, the author Larry Wolff gives readers an illustrated portrayal of how early forms of sexual abuse of children was preserved in early modern Europe by the public as well as the court of justice. Wolff explains the story of an eight year old servant girl who spent the night on the bed of a rich and well known man name Gaetano Franceschini. As Wolff explains the events that surrounded this troubling story, he also gives readers explanations of the adult behavior and attitudes…

William Blake was a poet and artist during the Romantic Period. His first published work was a collection of poems protesting war, tyranny, and King George III’s treatment of the American colonies. Then in 1789 his Songs of Innocence were printed followed five years later by his Songs of Experience. These were a contrast of the states of the human soul. The Songs of Experience spoke out against the monarchy and the church; they were published the same year that King Louis was executed during the…

After the Romantic period Childhood was created and a division between adult and child was formed. In William Blake’s poem The Lamb great divine and supreme being of children is portrayed.”I a child an thou a lamb” connects children with innocence portrays them to be God like. This theme of a perfect, pure child was created and idolized during the Romantic era, however, the definition of a perfect mature adult was not addressed. In Lewis Carroll’s novel Alice in Wonderland, Alice is placed in…

Painting and relevance: Jacques-Louis David’s “Oath of the Horatii” was painted in 1784 and it was commissioned by the Académie royale de peinture et de sculpture on behalf of the Kind Louis XVI. The inspiration of the painting had to come by Corneille’s Play “Horace” which was being performed in Paris during that time. In 1785 the painting was exhibited at the Paris Salon. The painting shows a decisive moment of will as well as a great family tragedy resulting from political consequences. The…

element discussed along with the reoccurring reminder of the conditions the chimney sweepers were forced to endure. Despite all of the harsh experiences, the children’s’ innocence is evident as they remain hopeful and optimistic in the unfair society. The poem explores the contrast of the unruly child labor paired with childhood innocence that makes up the chimney sweeper’s dark reality. William Blake starts out the poem by revealing the…

The Gain of Self-discovery: From Innocence to Experience William Blake’s The Songs of Innocence and The Songs of Experience aim to show the two “contrary states of the human soul” by presenting paired poems respectively focusing on the bright and dark sides of the world and human spirit. Among these poems, the two versions of “The Chimney Sweeper” explore the issue of child labor in the 18th century of England from children’s perspective. By comparing the two poems, readers will find that…

look back at it. In order to explore themes such as remembrance and childhood, it is crucial to consider linguistic features and the communications of emotions or feelings such as warmth. It is believed that copious poems all portray the subject of innocence of the younger; poems including ‘Prayer Before Birth’, ‘Half Past Two’, ‘Piano’ and ‘Hide And Seek’ are no exception to being exemplars of poems which typify the theme of remembrance and childhood, which could be further supported by the…

vocabulary. Much of the work uses an anapestic poetic meter, which is often characterized with childish cadence of literature. The composition therefore resembles perhaps a children’s hymn -- establishing the innocence of the boy which narrates it. Ergo, the very nature of youthful innocence is tied inextricably to the overall tone of the poem. Blake not only addresses the reader, but additionally establishes the entire tragic past of our protagonist within just the first two lines. The…

such as in “The Lamb” and “The Tyger.” The archetypes he uses in his series of poems entitled Songs of Innocence are very different from those he uses in Songs of Experience. In his poetry, William Blake uses archetypes to illustrate the ideas of innocence, strength, and the power of optimism. First of all, in his poem entitled “The Lamb,” William Blake uses the lamb as an archetype for innocence. In the poem, he is asking…

someone as to where his parents are and to their surprise they are at the church praying. On the other hand in the poem “Innocence” the boy is completely ignored and we are told by the narrator that his mother had died and his father sold him off to work. Here we see how melancholy the tone is, though later in both poems we will see a shift to more positive tones. In the poem “Innocence” the tones back and…