Songs of Innocence and of Experience

Aug 09, 2011 Ryan Milbrath added it · review of another edition

William Blake is one of my favorite Romantic era poets. Shakespeare is the only Englishman that I have enjoyed reading more than Blake. England during the 1800s never gave its accolades to the genius of Blake while he lived. His paintings and his most important works like Marriage of Heaven and Hell and this one, Songs of Innocence and of Experience, never received their just do’s till after his death.

Songs of Innocence and Experience are poems composed on vibrantly colored and detailed plates....more

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Feb 28, 2013 Elyssa Szkirpan rated it 4 of 5 stars

Songs of Innocence and Experience by William Blake

I don’t completely understand why some people choose to take the classics, respect them for what they are on the shelf, and then shove them into a box in the back of the closet. I understand that some may feel the classics are a little over analyzed, but the more you read them, the more you comprehend them and the more you understand how very important they are in the grand scheme of the literary world.

Hence why I pulled my weathered copy of the...more Songs of Innocence and Experience by William Blake

I don’t completely understand why some people choose to take the classics, respect them for what they are on the shelf, and then shove them into a box in the back of the closet. I understand that some may feel the classics are a little over analyzed, but the more you read them, the more you comprehend them and the more you understand how very important they are in the grand scheme of the literary world.

Hence why I pulled my weathered copy of the illustrated version of William Blake’s Songs of Innocence and Experience from the shelf and attempted to decipher it for the ump-tenth time. Essentially, the book is a two-part collection of William Blake’s poems. The first section of poems contains sweet, childish poems written from the perspectives of either children, or adults speaking to children. Common repetitive elements include those of lambs, cherubs, and other sweet items, such as flowers, birds, or other small creatures. Totally contrary to the first sections, the experience section makes the innocence sections look like Justin Bieber in comparison to Marilyn Manson. Think sex, death, anger, murder, and betrayal. In short, Blake revolutionized the approachable concepts of poetry. His experience section is essentially a summary of the life and styles we find totally acceptable today. However, for it’s time, this was completely disgusting and unexplainable.

Part of the glory of this book comes from the way in which you read it. If you read it with the mindset of someone in the twenty-first century, this is nothing special and Fifty Shades of Gray did the whole screwed up relationships thing much better. However, if you approach this collection of work with the mindset of a nobleman or a noblewoman from the eighteenth or nineteenth century, everything becomes just that much more interesting.

Critique-wise, in my particular copy, the Oxford edition, the publishers printed the illustrations side-by side with the poems printed on the back. However, this makes for inconvenient and confusing reading when the poems are split as the illustrations originally were. Perhaps the publishers should have printed an illustration with a translation directly next to the poem, since the images are essential in the reading and comprehension process.

I highly recommend this book for art lovers, poetry fanatics, or those who love to explore the scandal of centuries gone past.(less)

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Jan 31, 2013 Saretta rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: language-eng, other-about-religion, other-nature, poetry, sfida-babele, sfida-alphabet, sfida-esimiosconosciuto, format-ebook

Raccolta di poesie molto bella sia per i testi che per la struttura complessiva. Le poesie sono orecchiabili, in molti casi assimilabili a filastrocche per bambini; la struttura mostra una contrapposizione netta tra i canti dell'innocenza e quelli dell'esperienza. I primi hanno una visione ottimista, un contesto pastorale e mostrano fiducia a Dio e al mondo:
"For Mercy has a human heart;
Pity, a human face;
And Love, the human form divine:
And Peace, the human dress."
I canti dell'esperienza invec...more

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Aug 23, 2012 Huda AbuKhoti rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: poetry, philosophy

So my sister told me I am enjoying this because I have no experience in English poetry.. I assure you though, that this is no ordinary poetry book.

The book of contrast, I like to call it. Full of extremes at both ends. A joy to the heart in the innocence chapter. Then destroys it all and more with the experience chapter.

Amazing read! purely amazing!

You might feel a bit bored of the overly joyous innocence poems, but when you start reading the experience poems, the book becomes perfectly balance...more

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Dec 22, 2010 Venus added it

Shelves: poem

The sun descending in the west,
The evening star does shine;
The birds are silent in their nest,
And I must seek for mine.
The moon, like a flower,
In heaven's high bower,
With silent delight
Sits and smiles on the night.

Farewell, green fields and happy groves,
Where flocks have took delight.
Where lambs have nibbled, silent moves
The feet of angels bright;
Unseen they pour blessing,
And joy without ceasing,
On each bud and blossom,
And each sleeping bosom.

They look in every thoughtless nest,
Where birds are...more

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May 02, 2012 Aurore Henze rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: children

This is not the exact copy we have- ours has paintings and poems together- and the cover is a painting too. But, it is the same content- this book has been absolutely instrumental in homeschooling my teenage children. Poems like Tirzah, the Lost Boy, The Lost Girl and most importantly- the Poison Tree- lead us on a deep discovery of ourselves and our personal pain. Blake, way ahead of his time-though mystical, and perhaps he needed to be to protect himself from the dead and armored society which...more

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Nov 28, 2010 Matthew DeCostanza rated it 5 of 5 stars

In turns heartfelt and alienating, warm and eerie.

The duplicity with which this book is written is its most defining characteristic, making it a direct reflection of the world we live in. It's short, but encompassing; it's safe to say that the breadth of emotions I felt in the hour I spent reading this book were more vivid and diverse than the emotions I'm going to feel this coming week.

My favorite William Blake anecdote says that when he was four years old he saw God peering into his bedroom wi...more

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Jun 01, 2009 Jason Gignac rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: fill-in-the-gaps, read-your-name-challenge

Wow.

I know, I'm very purply in my prose when I talk about books, and I have a tendency to say everything is beautiful. I know this probably takes away from the impact of when I really find something life-changingly perfect. Do not let my larkety-la-ti-da writing style in reviews, however, stop you from putting down whatever you're reading, and immediately adding this precious book to the store of books you've read.

I can honestly say that, if the other things William Blake wrote are as beautiful...more

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May 04, 2013 i! rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: poetry, to-reread, 2013

I realize the project that Blake undertook, and yes it is very ahead of its time but: some of the poetry is weak, and much of it is not particularly good. This includes much of the "Song of Innocence" poetry, which over and above being about innocence, and simplicity, which are fine, are doggerel. Some of the "Songs of Experience" poems are like this as well. It is a noticeable trend that features clumsy, simple rhyme schemes and construction. There are, for instance, times in which a word is si...more

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Jul 05, 2011 Sara rated it 5 of 5 stars

L'attenzione, l'amore e la dolcezza che william Blake rivolge ai bambini orfani, abbandonati e ammazzati dalla società mi ha fatto commuovere come poche poesie al mondo.

Ricordando che furono scritte in un tempo in cui i bambini orfani venivano utilizzati, senza scrupoli come spazzacamini ed infilati in canne fumarie spesso ancora roventi, molti morivano o ne rimanevano gravemente ustionati ...
In un tempo in cui i genitori abbandonavano i loro figli nella nebbia non potendoli sfamare ...
In un tem...more

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Oct 13, 2012 Amy rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: university-reading, poems

3.5. There are brilliant contrasts and similarities to these poems; one set of course focusing on human innocence and the others experience. Some of the poems from "Innocence" share the same titles as some of the poems from "Experience", with Blake even using some of the same lines. This made me feel like the same themes were being played on, but were tainted and distorted in the "Songs from Experience".

"A Divine Image" from "Songs of Experience" wonderfully personified the flaws of human natur...more

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Jan 29, 2012 Staci Wigton rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: academic-school

Interesting book of poems about contrasts in life from the innocence and naivety of childhood, dependent upon authority to the experience developed as we grow older and gain more knowledge and begin to question the world we live in. I loved the poems where Blake was criticizing English society and the poor treatment of children as chimney sweepers. His poem 'London' was also another favorite, emphasizing the city's harsh man-made bonds and restraints made from both society and also our internal...more

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Nov 22, 2011 Hollandemily rated it 4 of 5 stars

Innocence "read" once two months ago. Did not shelve. Took to The Lamb and Little Boy Lost two days ago. Finished second reading of most of Innocence tonight. (it is night). add The Divine Image. Shelve as "reading."
Sporadic indolence of two hours, (after thinking I wasn't experienced enough for Experience), I have devoured its entirety in one ravished sitting . Humane. Shelve as read. Can I actually say I read it? When I can barely grasp the Innocence which needs precede the Experience?

Will p...more

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Sep 13, 2007 Shaindel rated it 5 of 5 stars

Blake is brilliant...brilliant...brilliant. Probably because the spirit of Milton was possessing him by entering the big toe of his left foot just like he thought. I can't come up with any other reason for it.

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Jul 04, 2012 Sarah rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: favorites

I absolutely adore William Blake. He is one of my favorite Romantic writers, as well as one of my favorite poets overall. Blake's transcendentalist undertones give his work an air of spiritual truth, which is both satisfying and thought-provoking. This particular volume is divided into two parts: innocence and experience. Some poems are included in both parts, but changed, to show the changes that one goes through as one leaves childhood and enters adulthood. Blake is not necessarily partial to...more

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Dec 03, 2012 Linda Robinson rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This is a beautifully rendered reproduction, courtesy of The William Blake Trust by Princeton University Press, with an introduction and notes by Dr. Andrew Lincoln. The text about copper plate acid etching, and the commentary about the color choices is particularly gratifying for someone interested in the palette. Purple madder was discontinued in 2005, but it was fascinating to read how it was used in the Blake plates. Most congenial way to share some time with William Blake, who Lincoln write...more

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Jan 09, 2010 Mike Jensen rated it 2 of 5 stars

I don't get Blake's reputation. I grant the genius of “The Tyger,” but 90% of the rest of the poems in this book are doggerel. The other 10% are doggerel mixed with a good idea gone wrong or a nice line or image mixed with some very bad writing. It is hard for me to understand why anyone but a Christian fundamentalist with a taste for trite rhymes or an English lit scholar would bother. This raises the question of why Tyger is so good. My blind spot, or did Blake strike gold once with most of hi...more

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Apr 24, 2012 Menna Kh. rated it 5 of 5 stars

I love the concept of the poems. I've studied them in college and for me they were beyond poems in a curriculum.
The concept was former of it's time and it had an innovative idea of poetry writing.
William Blake isn't immortal for no reasons.
Songs of Innocence and of Experience is one of the most wonderful things written in the Augustan/Romantic age.
They are peoms of life and the different perspectives towards life from the eyes of a child and from the eyes of an experienced individual.
Very deep,...more

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Jun 10, 2012 Elisabeth Cary rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: poetry

I read this book of poems for the poetry unit my 10th grade English teacher taught. I think this may have been when I started to enjoy poetry for the poetry's sake, rather than just the familiarity of having poetry around at home. Learning how to analyze a poem through this book makes The Tiger and The Lamb special to me, along with the other poems of this book. My friends and I nicknamed William Blake "Bleak" because of the sad poems, but I love the comparisons he makes between an innocent worl...more

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Mar 24, 2009 Lily C rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2009, classics

These poems are beautiful and thought-provoking, as are the accompanying illustrations. "Innocence" describes scenes of love and trust and light, while "Experience" looks to the shadows. My favorite will probably always be "Night", but "On Another's Sorrow" and "The Human Abstract" struck me as well. Blake can be very subtle, creating an array of possible meanings, and even the poems that seem like children's rhymes have much more depth than one might at first suspect. Blake was a bold, fascinat...more

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Apr 04, 2013 Khaled rated it 4 of 5 stars

Blake offers us such a contrasting and depressing perspective on the evolution of our souls.

Another reviewer highlights that Blake was perhaps hinting at a third, more nuanced, understanding of life.

Between two extremes, there always lies a middle path. Perhaps such a path adds complexity & texture to simplicity or naivety. With hope, beauty & optimism lessening the grittiness of experience.

Maybe the middle path reminds us of love & beauty, yet reminds us to be aware and to keep our...more

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Feb 28, 2013 Elyssa Szkirpan rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Songs of Innocence and Experience by William Blake

I don’t completely understand why some people choose to take the classics, respect them for what they are on the shelf, and then shove them into a box in the back of the closet. I understand that some may feel the classics are a little over analyzed, but the more you read them, the more you comprehend them and the more you understand how very important they are in the grand scheme of the literary world.

Hence why I pulled my weathered copy of the...more Songs of Innocence and Experience by William Blake

I don’t completely understand why some people choose to take the classics, respect them for what they are on the shelf, and then shove them into a box in the back of the closet. I understand that some may feel the classics are a little over analyzed, but the more you read them, the more you comprehend them and the more you understand how very important they are in the grand scheme of the literary world.

Hence why I pulled my weathered copy of the illustrated version of William Blake’s Songs of Innocence and Experience from the shelf and attempted to decipher it for the ump-tenth time. Essentially, the book is a two-part collection of William Blake’s poems. The first section of poems contains sweet, childish poems written from the perspectives of either children, or adults speaking to children. Common repetitive elements include those of lambs, cherubs, and other sweet items, such as flowers, birds, or other small creatures. Totally contrary to the first sections, the experience section makes the innocence sections look like Justin Bieber in comparison to Marilyn Manson. Think sex, death, anger, murder, and betrayal. In short, Blake revolutionized the approachable concepts of poetry. His experience section is essentially a summary of the life and styles we find totally acceptable today. However, for it’s time, this was completely disgusting and unexplainable.

Part of the glory of this book comes from the way in which you read it. If you read it with the mindset of someone in the twenty-first century, this is nothing special and Fifty Shades of Gray did the whole screwed up relationships thing much better. However, if you approach this collection of work with the mindset of a nobleman or a noblewoman from the eighteenth or nineteenth century, everything becomes just that much more interesting.

Critique-wise, in my particular copy, the Oxford edition, the publishers printed the illustrations side-by side with the poems printed on the back. However, this makes for inconvenient and confusing reading when the poems are split as the illustrations originally were. Perhaps the publishers should have printed an illustration with a translation directly next to the poem, since the images are essential in the reading and comprehension process.

I highly recommend this book for art lovers, poetry fanatics, or those who love to explore the scandal of centuries gone past.(less)

like · see review

Dec 31, 2012 Jennifer rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: poetry, owned

First of all, I would like to state in my defense that I picked up this slim volume days before I started freaking out about getting to 50 books by any means necessary. Ever since I catalogued my poetry shelf, I've been making an effort to get more of it read. Plus, in the story currently in my head, I'm a teacher, leading a unit on poetry. And apparently now I'm doing research for the stories I tell myself on long walks and as I fall asleep.

Yes? Well, okay. I don't know exactly what I was expec...more

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Oct 31, 2011 Jenn McCollum rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: rich-imagery, strange-children, race-relations, landscape, phenomenological-delight, poetry

William Blake, in many ways, polarizes innocence and experience in his book of poems Songs of Innocence and of Experience. His exploration of these are literally separated by a frontispiece and title page. Moreover, he marks the primary differences between innocence and experience by showing the evolution of poems -- "Infant Joy" in the first half becomes "Infant Sorrow" in the second, for example.

For Blake, there is, I think, a too-clean cut between the states of innocence and of experience. Bu...more

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Dec 14, 2011 Ivana rated it 4 of 5 stars

The main reason why I like Blake is simply because I enjoy his poems. Yes, he was a visionary and was remarkable in all kinds of ways... That all put aside, he really is a great poet. Call him pre- Romantic or Romantic poet; I don't see anyone from that period similar to him. In a way as a poet in my mind he always stood alone. There is something unique about him. His poetry is only simple at the first glance. The more you look at it the more interesting it gets. I liked the contrast between his...more

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Aug 02, 2011 Scot Quaranda rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I am not sure I chose the right entree into Blake's work. My interest sprung from the vast number of references to his poetry that elevate it as prophetic. If these two collections are in that category, the only possible route is the telling of the stories from two sides - innocence and experience. The Songs of Innocence are relics of a time past, probably even in Blake's time. They are sing songy, pastoral and mostly sweet, though definitely not my cup of tea. I mostly breezed through this set,...more

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Apr 01, 2013 Anthe rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

William Blake’s Songs of Innocence was first published in 1789. This period –the Age of Reason- was marked by a European intellectual movement emphasizing reason, individualism, religion and virtue. Songs of Innocence was intended for children and their instructors and followed contemporary tradition to morally educate children via literature. Not much later, in 1794, he published Songs of Experience combined with Innocence. Although he continued to publish Songs of Innocence separately, he neve...more

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Nov 15, 2008 Hannah rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: poetry

Some of Blake I'm uncertain about: one or two of his poems I hesitated at. In 'Songs of Innocence' for example, 'The Little Black Boy' to me held several perspectives on race and I couldn't pinpoint which Blake was adopting. Whether the last stanza was a commentary on Christian charity or really was insinuating racial inequality, even in the eyes of God I'm unsure, although the accompanying plate which depicts the White Boy resting on Jesus' knee bathed in the light of his halo while the Black B...more

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Oct 03, 2008 Jessica rated it 4 of 5 stars

The deliberate contrasts set up between the poems of Innocence and the poems of Experience are eloquent expressions of Blake's own inner turmoil surrounding large aspects of his life and the human experience. "The Ecchoing Green" shows his reverence for the pastoral, rural life, while "London" shows his distaste and distrust of the dirty, urban lifestyle. Contrasting "Lamb" and "Tyger" further exposes this preference, though "Tyger" goes deeper into that almost primal human fear of the wild. The...more

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Aug 13, 2012 Jon Chater rated it 5 of 5 stars

I believe Blake to be such a misunderstood poet. In England people know him for his lyrics to Jerusalem and even then they don't understand the dark side.
My favourite poem of all time is the poison tree. Almost 30 years later I still quote it and still live by its philosophy. All from a poem I read almost 30 years ago.
The man was a genius. The only poet's work I have to the front of my bookshelf. Everyone must read them.
That includes the marriage of heaven and hell.

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