Although Blake is "describing" the exploitation, he does it in a powerful and somewhat ambitious tone. "Now like a mighty wind they raise to heaven the voice of song". This line strikes me as confusing; the children are going back to terrible, awful "jobs", yet they are singing and acting as if they are a powerful army going to battle, even though they are being lead by their exploiters with disciplinary wands (Anthology, pg 22). It seems as though the children find solace in their exploitation by being together. In Songs of Experience, the tone is much different. First, Blake is questioning the exploitation much more strongly with an overtone of anger and resentment. He explicitly states the misery these children endure, which is not "holy" at all. The song that I felt was powerful in the Songs of Innocence is reduced to a "trembling cry" (line 5, pg 24). The last stanza is also prescriptive of society, meaning that this is the way society should be, not the way it is (Notes, 6/27). Society is full of hunger, suffering, and poverty. Both Holy Thursday poems enrich each other because they are complimentary. Each provides a different aspect and tone on the irony of Holy Thursday and what these young, innocent chimney sweepers endure. .
Of all Blake's poems in Songs of Innocence and Experience, the one that I am most fond of is The Sick Rose. This poem can be interpreted in so many different ways that it really exercises the mind. As I discussed before, I believe this poem reflects the sexual jealousy in Blake's marriage. It is amazing that such a short poem, only two stanzas, can evoke various feelings. My best interpretation is that Blake is frustrated and this poem is referring to his confusion and depression at some point in his life. I think that Blake desires another woman besides his wife, who very well could be a virgin: hence, "bed of crimson joy" (Anthology, pg 25).
