Here discuss Blake precursor
of the English romantics. or William Blake and romanticism
In English Literature, William Blake is
regarded as a forerunner of the Romantic Movement. William Blake
and romanticism can be noticed in his lyricism, mysticism, symbolism, the life
of liberty, humanitarian sympathies, and idealization of infancy, pastoral
setting, and imagination. In terms of prose and poetry, Romanticism differs
from the Neo-classical attitude, which emphasized reason, harmony,
and logic.
The Romantic Movement began with the breakdown of 18th-century traditionalism's trappings. Prior to Blake, poetry suffered from an overload of rules and the monotony of heroic couplets. Every piece of writing adhered to a set of established classical standards. William Blake, on the other hand, was critical of traditional poetic forms. "If we're just and honest to our own imaginations, we don't require Greek or Roman models," he claims. He has made a substantial contribution to the field of diction.
Characteristics of romantic poetry William Blake
The poetic faith
of William Blake is built on imagination, which is a key component of
romanticism. Blake's visions, which he saw as a boy and continued to see
throughout his life, were the result of his overactive imagination. His visions
were in charge of his poems. He claimed that several of his poetry was dictated
to him by aliens. To put it another way, he was a gifted poet who knew how to
employ his imagination. This imaginative creativity is accompanied by vigor and
delight. He is truly romantic when he is under the pressure of imagination. The introduction to Songs of Innocence is a
fantastic poem that captures the innocence and joy of infancy. It depicts a
vision in which a youngster urges the poet to sing happy melodies.
Blake was a firm supporter of liberty and a humanitarian at heart. Another element of his romanticism is this. Blake's poetry is a massive proclamation of liberty. It includes all of the French Revolution's political principles. Blake chimney sweeper and, above all, London demonstrate Blake's humanistic sentiments. The Chimney Sweeper exposes parents' and society's brutality and antagonism. It mocks religion, which sacrifices humanity and human ideals in the name of God. Blake takes aim at social injustice in all its forms in London. We locate him here, he says—
In every cry of every man,
In every infant's cry of fear,
In every voice, in every ban,
The mind-forged manacles I hear.
In his symbolism and prophetic enthusiasm,
William Blake is a romanticist. Blake, like other romantic writers, used
symbols. Blake's poetry, however, is more symbolic than any other romantic poet
in England because he was a visionary. There isn't a single poem in the Songs
of Innocence and Experience that doesn't contain emblems. The lamb William Blake embraces and child as icons of innocence in
Songs of Innocence. Furthermore, they represent Jesus Christ.
The cloud and the grave in The Chimney Sweeper
represent man's corporeal body. In Songs of Experience, the tiger is the polar
opposite of the innocent lamb. It is a representation of man's aggressive and
scary forces. The parents, priests, and monarch are all symbols of authority in
The Chimney Sweeper. The king, societal institutions like loveless marriage,
and the "mind-forged manacles" are all icons of oppression and
tyranny in London.
Blake reflects both the naturalism and
mysticism of the Romantic
Revival and manifestation. On the observational side,
Blake deals to the most basic aspects of life, such as the instinctive life of
a child; the life of flowers, hills, and streams. However, the poet's mystical
vision is constantly transforming these familiar things, touching obscure
aspects, and spiritualizing the most prosaic into something strange and
wonderful.
Unlike Wordsworth, Blake believes that nature is a part of the human
universe and shares human emotions. Blake's rustic environment adds a spiritual
dimension and corresponds to children's innocence. The lamb is incredibly
divine in his rural background. Blake imagines himself as a shepherd in the
introduction to the songs of innocence,
and he walks with his flock of sheep, piping melodiously along the route. Poems
like these depict a rural scene, its beauty, and its perfect simplicity. The
pastoral features are revealed in the first few lines of the poem, as are the
traditional techniques of applying these aspects to attain the goal of a
pastoral environment.
Wild water cascades down the valleys. Pleasant
gleeful music rippling from the speakers. Blake is one of the pre-romantics,
alongside Gray, Collins, and Burns, as a poet. Many of the features that
characterize romantic poetry may be identified in Blake's poetry. Blake could
be considered a forerunner of Romantic poetry in 19th century England because of his championing of liberty, mysticism,
naturalism, idealization of youth, and simplicity. Environment.