Story- "London" by William Blake

William Blake describes London as being a hellish world. What words and phrases does William Blake use to create this fiendish scene and atmosphere? Is there any sense of hope or salvation in "London"? Why do you think Blake presents the world in this way? What does Blake have a problem with, specifically, and why?

"London" by William Blake is a poem that describes the unpleasant state of the world as viewed in the 1800s England. In the first stanza, the speaker narrates that he "wander[s] down each chartered street". This word "wander" demonstrates the extent to which the speaker is quite uncertain about himself. He feels as though misguiged and lost. Also, he uses "charted" to give an insight how the streets are controlled and rigid. He seems to be wandering in a restricted and mapped out zone. As he walks, he notices the faces of the people walking and describes them as having "weakness" and "woe", to set up a tone of melancholy.  He appears sad amd empathetic as he walks by.

In stanza 2, the speaker demonstrates his melancholic feeling towards the passers by. He hears the "mind forg'd manacles" from the cry of a newborn child and the cry of an old man, which reveals the state of hopelessness in the world at that particular time. He however tries to reveal that the "mind forg'd" chains are the people's own creation. The speaker also uses the word "ban"  to reveal the menacles, or rather, the restrictions that are placed by the society.

He uses the phrase of a "hapless soldier" to reveal how the soldiers are just but poor victims of a corrupt regime. He describes his feelings of war as the blood that runs "down Palace walls", where the royalties are expected to be residing. He demonstrates his dislike for the government whom he belives are responsible for spilling the blood of the soldiers in order to keep their comfort of living in a palace.

The speaker seems dejected with no sense of hope as he spends the entire poem in describing the sense of hopelessness, oppression, and corruption present in England and, by far, the rest of the world. In his last stanza, the speaker reveals the extent to which corruption present in the society attacks innocence.He hears the "youthful Harlot's curse...", potentially admitting the level of corruption and poverty, as a youthful girl would indulge in prostitution already. He also curses the tears of a newborn baby, which is an attack on the innocence. The speaker also remarks that the harlot has blighted her marriage by selling her body before the marriage union.

Overall, Blake depicts the world in this way as he seeks to throw a jab at the society, the church, prostitution, church and marriage. England in the 1800s represented the most restrictive of worlds whrere people followed only specific principles. He also reveals how the society is too restrictive and hence decides to use poetry to criticize the situation.

Step-by-step explanation

London by William Blake (https_poemanalysis.com)

London Poem Summary and Analysis | LitCharts

A Short Analysis of William Blake's 'London' - Interesting Literature