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the lamb

            In the poem "The Lamb" by William Blake, Blake writes about a boy talking to a little lamb and the boy is asking the lamb question about who made the lamb. The poem "The lamb" creates a poetic tension between the natural lamb and the supernatural lamb that reflects the Dionysian/Apollonian duality. The poet creates poetic tension by constructing two opposite forces in a poem and contrasting them. Theses two forces can be defined as the Dionysian and Apollonian duality. According to Nietzsche the terms Dionysian and Apollonian were borrowed from the two art deities Apollo and Dionysus of the Greeks. Apollonian represents the art of sculpture while Dionysian represents the art of music. Both of these dualities run parallel to each other and create tension in a poem when contrasted. (Nietzsche).
             In the poem Blake is able to create a tension by comparing the natural lamb to the supernatural lamb, which is Jesus. In the first stanza Blake writes about the Dionysian aspect of the duality. The little boy asks the natural lamb if he knows who made the lamb "Little lamb who made thee? Dost thou know who made thee?" After receiving no answer he proceeds to give characteristics of the natural lamb. The boy gives characteristics such as "Gave thee clothing of delight, softest clothing wooly bright;" and " Gave thee such a tender voice," both of these characteristics are meant to make the natural lamb seem meek, mild and innocent. After telling the lamb of its characteristics the boy goes on to ask the lamb again who made the lamb "Little lamb, who made the? Dost thou know who made thee?" This stanza represents the Dionysian because the natural lamb has a life and a death. .
             In the second stanza Blake writes of the apollonian half of the duality. The boy after not receiving any answer from his questions in the first stanza decides to tell the lamb who made the lamb "Little Lamb, I"ll tell thee, Little Lamb, I"ll tell thee!" The boy tells the natural lamb of another lamb "For he called himself a Lamb;" The boy also gives chartaristics of this supernatural lamb which relate closely to the characteristic of the natural lamb given in stanza one.


Essays Related to the lamb

1. The Tyger and The Lamb

... used to bring out the power that the tiger has and it was used to describe the fierceness of the tiger. In "The Lamb" the brightness of the lamb is one of purity itself, "The effect of bright in "The Lamb" is less dramatic. Blake's "The Tyger" is the contrast poem to "The Lamb". "The Tyger" is the experience of the loss of innocence that "The Lamb" seems to personify. The poem explores the perfectly beautiful and destructive ... tiger. According to Thomas Curley, 'The Tyger' included a small painted ... ...

  • Word Count: 2028
  • Approx Pages: 8
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: High School

2. The Lamb And The Tyger

... poem is also written in a unsophisticated rhyme pattern which seems to add the simplistic nature and childish tone of the poem. The reader gets a real feeling for the Innocence that the Lamb portrays. The animal itself, Lamb, it seen to be a very calm and harmless creature. The lamb, with "wooly bright" clothing (6), plays in the pastoral settings of streams, (4) meads, (4) or meadows and vales, (8) ... and an innocent creature, which are perceived to be opposites of each other. As contrary to the Lamb, Blake seems to ask the question of the creator a little differently and seems to leav...

  • Word Count: 1062
  • Approx Pages: 4
  • Grade Level: High School

3. Three Aspects On Blake's The Lamb

... a triple parallel in the person of the lamb: Christ- Lamb of God, the lambs of Christ's flock and a lamb, the animal as the symbol of one or the other. The first possibility is to interpret the Lamb as Christ Himself. One of the arguments that could justify this idea is that Blake uses a capital L all through the poem. Supposing that Christ is the lamb we can interpret some of the verses differently. For example the verse Gave thee ... , you did for me" we can suppose that Jesus being present random in anyone is also present in the animal and therefore is in the lamb and is the Lamb at t...

  • Word Count: 2918
  • Approx Pages: 12
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: High School

4. William Blake - The Lamb and the Tyger

... symbols to lead the reader to their own conclusions. In "The Tyger- Blake questions if the tiger was created by the same being that created the lamb. The shared theme between the two works, "The Tyger- and "The Lamb-, is the theme of creation and divine intervention. »When juxtaposed with "The Lamb-, "The Tyger- counters the singular presentation of a good creator by accepting both the lamb and the tiger. It ... embraces these two attitudes at once, thus enlarging the idea of the ... « . Conclusion Throughout my research I came to conclusion that the key question in all interpretat...

  • Word Count: 2099
  • Approx Pages: 8
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: High School

5. Lamb to the Slaughter by Roald Dahl

... dinner with someone else with his back turned towards her. Climax Then suddenly Mary swings the lamb through the air aiming at the back of Patrick's head which then kills him. Falling Action Mary thinks fast and covered her tracks, by putting the leg of lamb in the oven then going to the grocery shop to get potatoes and peas. When she returns home she needs to pretend ... , or action that operates on two level of meaning in literal or figurative. It depends on the knowledge and views to interpret the meaning of the symbol. The symbolism Dahl uses to etch the theme of the story begins mos...

  • Word Count: 2792
  • Approx Pages: 11
  • Grade Level: High School

6. the tyger and the lamb

... hand or eye Could frame thy fearful symmetry." As can be seen, the poem is packed with alliteration, even in the first stanza. This is evident in the repetition of the T and B sound in the first line, and the F sound in the last. But what is more striking is the direct changes from "The Lamb" to "The Tyger". "The Lamb" uses pastoral beauty, with is softness, its mead and its streams. ... However in "The Tyger" the reader has imagery of fire blazing in the night. The powerful danger is exhilarating ... to the reader and is both ... ...

  • Word Count: 2271
  • Approx Pages: 9
  • Grade Level: High School

7. The lamb and the Tyger

... an array of figurative language and the differentiation of the contradictory poems. "The Lamb", in Songs of Innocence, is a simple and delicate poem. The innocence of the poem is found merely in its simplicity. The poem should be taken almost entirely at face value. "The Lamb- is expressed through a candid perspective conveyed by the speaker, a child who questions the ways of the world and creation. Blake epitomizes ... who made thee?" (Line 2), and proceeds to answer his own queries by telling the lamb that God made him. The atmosphere is cheerful, bright, and warm; taking place in a s...

  • Word Count: 1106
  • Approx Pages: 4
  • Grade Level: High School

8. How does Blake present the contrary states of innocence and

... the adult world of corruption, with 'The Lamb' representing a meek virtue and 'The Tyger' showing opposing, darker forces. The lamb is the voice of a child, whilst some critics believe the Tyger is a presence of evil. Keynes believes The Tyger' contains the "riddle of the universe-. The Lamb', on the other hand, is much less complex. Blake was a supporter of the French Revolution, approving of the revolt against the authority of the Kings, but he was appalled by the anarchy the ... some way contain a reflection of its creator. I believe, in this poem, the creator is Urizen, the unforgiv...

  • Word Count: 844
  • Approx Pages: 3
  • Grade Level: High School

9. Human Nature in The Tyger and The Lamb

... Innocence and Songs of Experience. Many of the poems in Songs of Innocence have corresponding poems in Songs of Experience. The first collection shows the innocent child`s outlook on the world, whereas the latter depicts the view of the experienced adult. The poems from the two collections are written on the basis of contrary states and opposites. Such is the case with the poems The Lamb and The Tyger. They complement one another and through ... the essence of the creator, they show the true nature of man- blend of good ... ...

  • Word Count: 1920
  • Approx Pages: 8
  • Has Bibliography
  • Grade Level: High School

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